Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC.

Esther P. Goodwin's heart-pounding thriller, "The Body Among The Pines," takes readers on an electrifying journey through abandoned places, secrets, and the haunting echoes of the past.

Kacy Roe, a successful YouTuber, thrives on exploring forgotten corners of the world. Her camera captures the melancholy beauty of places left behind—the crumbling walls, the whispers of lost stories. But there's one place she vowed never to revisit: her hometown of Tulsa, Oklahoma. A place haunted by memories, where grief and loss cling like shadows.

When an anonymous phone call shatters Kacy's monotonous routine, she rushes back to Oklahoma. Her estranged father's heart attack forces her to confront the past she buried deep. Yet, it's not just family ties that pull her back; it's the allure of Camp Mercy, an abandoned summer camp near her childhood home. A place with a dark history—one that now harbors a lifeless body.

As Kacy delves into the mystery, she crosses paths with an old flame—the detective assigned to the case. Their reunion ignites emotions she thought long extinguished. But this isn't just about solving a murder; it's about breaking the internet, about capturing the truth on camera. Kacy grapples with conflicting desires: family loyalty versus lost love, danger versus fame.

Esther P. Goodwin masterfully weaves suspense, romance, and nostalgia. The tension builds as Kacy races against time, piecing together clues, risking her safety, and unearthing buried secrets. The abandoned camp becomes a stage for both her personal demons and a chilling murder investigation.

The writing is crisp, the pacing relentless. Goodwin paints vivid landscapes—the whispering pines, the decaying cabins, and the secrets they hold. Kacy's vulnerability draws us in; her determination keeps us turning pages. And the chemistry between her and the detective crackles like dry leaves underfoot.

"The Body Among The Pines" is more than a thriller; it's a journey of redemption, facing the past to embrace the future. Goodwin's prose invites readers to explore their own abandoned places—the memories, the what-ifs, the heartaches. As Kacy races against time, we race alongside her, hearts pounding, with our breath held...

In the end, it's not just about solving a murder—it's about finding solace among the pines, about capturing the essence of what's lost. Esther P. Goodwin has crafted a gripping tale that lingers, like the echo of footsteps in an empty forest. 🌲🔍

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
Good read full of suspense and keeps you wondering. I always love anything about abandoned places too.
Decent creepy read.

I really wanted to like this book, but it just wasn't what I had hoped it would be. The writing is very juvenile in the way of a book report. Lots of big words so you sound smart even though what you're saying is very middle school.

The story pacing didn't work for me. At times it drags and at others it jumps ahead too fast. This leaves plot holes. Race was brought up but never really explained. The suspense was there and the emotions came through at times. I think this author has a lot of potential, but this book shouldn't have hit the shelves in this state.

A huge thank you to the author and the publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

Suspenseful thriller with an ending I could not have predicted. I really enjoyed reading this book. The story moved along quickly. A stunning debut

Just finished "The Body Among the Pines," and it's a must-read for mystery lovers! The author weaves an intricate plot, keeping you on the edge of your seat. The characters are so well-developed, and the setting in the pines adds a chilling atmosphere. I couldn't put it down!

Thank you Immersive Books Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

Like others, I was seduced by the Reese’s Book Club stick on the cover so I requested it. The sticker has since been removed, not sure if that was a technical issue or what happened there.

This book was not my favourite. Kacy is a youbter returning to her hometown after her estranged father has a heart attack. She trespasses in an abandoned camp and comes across a dead body. With police investigating and her being the one who found the body, she is reconnected with her ex-boyfriend who is on the police force and a detective working the case.

I am getting a little tired of books about influencers and YouTubers and podcast hosts etc but again, I saw the RBC sticker and thought I had to give it a try. The writing was very YA, almost juvenile and the characters just didn’t make sense. Their actions and behaviors did not strike me as the way adults would act and behave.

I think this one has a lot of potential and the plot was fairly well thought out but not executed well, some things just did not make sense or weren’t fully thought out.

I honestly could not finish this one. But I feel like I can give a fair review because it was just that bad from the get go. The writing was atrocious. It sounded like someone very uneducated and simple pulled out the thesaurus and used it wayyyy too much. The story was very fast paced with little elaboration where there could have been a lot more. The story itself had potential but the execution was very poor

I had such high hopes for this one but it fell flat for me. I found it hard to connect to the characters . I just didnt warm to it.

I did not finish this one, it was not for me, I couldn't relate to the characters, and just did not care for the story.

I always talk with my students about publishing movements- the trends and formulas that dominate the industry until inevitably the market becomes oversaturated, and the ensuing flood kills the interest that was left. Remember all those 2010-2015 YA dystopians in the wake of "The Hunger Games"? Or the paranormal romances of the mid-aughts a la "Twilight"?

Right now, mystery-thriller is having its big movement in publishing. Every house wants a runaway thriller best seller, their next Gillian Flynn or Riley Sager or Caroline Kepnes (author of "You"),

Esther Goodwin has a solid premise here- abandoned locations, murder, social media, social justice conversations, romance. However, it's just that: a formula that many a reader or published would be hooked on. Another entry for the movement. As many other reviewers have noted, the writing is too clunky and juvenile to move beyond formulaic. There's a lot of width, but not a whole lot of depth.

This book needed to cook and simmer more in the mental pot. There's opportunities for greatness, but it's just not there yet.

The Body Among the Pines by Esther P. Goodwin was a miss for me. I couldn't get into the story and the editing of the book really needs to be relooked at. The writing seemed all over the place. The premise was good but I would have liked to see more time put into developing the story more.

SYNOPSIS:
- Kacey is a youtuber that explores abandoned places.
- She has a strained relationship with her father, but when he had a heart attack, she returns to her hometown in Oklahoma to be with him. While there, she checks out an old, abandoned camp to film and explore, and she discovers a dead body.
- Her ex-boyfriend, Robert, is now a detective. They both look into the dead body & whether it may be linked to a 30 year old case.

MY THOUGHTS
- I originally requested this on Netgalley when I saw it had a Reese’s Book Club sticker on the cover. However, apparently, the sticker has now been removed, and this was a Reese’s Book Club pick.
- The ending falls flat. It isn’t terrible, but it is just mehhh. There was potential for twists, but that aspect fell short too.
- The writing felt very YA, simplistic, and basic. There isn’t any true character development.
- I wasn’t a fan of Kacey being a youtuber, and it didn’t really click with me. This is a subjective point though, and I’m sure many won’t mind it.
- I know I read an ARC, but there were lots of spelling errors in it as well. I am sure the final copy will
- I did like the pacing & short chapters.
- I appreciated there was some diversity among the cast of characters.

TL;DR: ⭐️⭐️⭐️Short chapters. Reads more like YA/basic suspense. Mehh overall with mehh ending.

Thanks to Immersive Books Publishing and Netgalley for this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. It was published on July 12, 2023, and it appears to be on Kindle Unlimited.

This book is marketed as a mystery/thriller but didn't quite hit the mark. Pacing was slow at times and the writing wasn't the most engaging.

This book has a lot of potential but the writing was a little weird at times. It was a bit simplistic but also trying way too hard to sound smart while still coming across as very young. The writing just didn't flow very well.

The story itself was pretty good, but it was too quick and too inaccurate at times. Maybe a tiny back-in-time chapter to 1986. Just more of everything. It was all too fast.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC of this novel.

Thank you to NetGalley and Immersive books for the eARC.

I am loving the idea of YouTubers/Influencers as the main character. This book was an easy read, easy to follow and had a bit of suspense. I enjoyed it!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC! I will say that I initially requested this due to the Reese’s Book Club sticker shown on the photo - which was then removed. Unfortunately, this book wasn’t for me. I found myself bored and this was very generic in terms of a thriller. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review.

This book had a good premise. It was a quick read, with short chapters and the mystery kept my attention. That being said, this book was just okay to me. The writing style was a bit simple and the story just didn't wow me. This book seemed more like a Young Adult read in that there weren't and big or dark twists. The story was a bit unrealistic and was very predictable. I normally don't mind predictable, but I do like for there to be twists. I didn't love this one and I didn't hate it either. Ultimately, it didn't leave me feeling much of anything.

This is a fast paced and attention grabbing thriller with a lot of potential. The author touches on racial issues and how bias can impact how crimes are handled, which is a thought provoking topic that made the story more impactful to read. This book wasn't as good as I hoped it would be but I will still follow the author to see what comes out next.

Thank you NetGalley and Immersive Books Publishing for allowing me to read this ARC for my honest opinion.

Genre: Murder Mystery/Thriller
Rating: ⭐️⭐️[2/5]
Review written by: J
Thank you NetGalley & Immersive Books for this E-ARC in exchange for an honest review

Plot:
Kacy is a YouTuber who's obsession with abandoned places takes her on an emotional journey that she will never forget. After vowing she’d never return to her hometown, she was forced due to an anonymous call informing her of her estranged father’s hearattack. After getting him home, Kacy embarks on another exploration to create more content for her channel.

Things take an unexpected turn when she stumbles upon a dead body at the infamous Camp Mercy, an abandoned summer camp, just a stone's throw away from her childhood home. With the police now involved, Kacy runs into an old flame, the detective on the case, adding a layer of complicated emotions to an already tense situation


Thoughts:
This was my first Goodwin book, and honestly, I had no idea what to expect. The book started off with fantastic atmospheric descriptions hooking me right off the bat.

The storyline leading up to the reveal had me so intrigued that I caught myself sweating and my heart racing.

Unfortunately the grand reveal of the killer fell flat for me because it lacked the twists I am used to in Murder Mysteries and I was able to figure out who the killer was early on. This book had a lot of potential for twists and crazy things to be added but ultimately it didn’t have that wow factor I expected.

I did however enjoyed the romance aspect that was sprinkled within the book and the healing process of the MC past traumas.

I would recommend this book to someone who wants to get into murder mysteries genre, its a good place to start. But if this is a genre you really like, this book falls flat on the twists and turns you would expect from.

The Body Among the Pines is a suspenseful story. It includes some subject matter that may be difficult to read and could be triggering to some. It is important to read the book cover before reading.