This book is based on a story from the author's childhood, when he was 8 years old at summer camp, and his camp counselor left him on a raft in the lake telling him he had to swim back to shore in spite of now knowing how to swim and being completely terrified! Terrible story which unfortunately makes for a good thriller.... In the book the same event occurs: little 8 yo Joey is left on a raft in the deep end of the lake and told to swim to shore by his swim teacher--left alone by Alex, who is frustrated that Joey hasn't learned how to swim yet. Eventually Joey is missed at camp dinner--by his counselor...and then Alex goes back to the lake to look for him. Scary! And super-intriguing. Joey is never seen again after a police search. Skip to 21 years later where Alex is a successful married adult with a beautiful wife and two daughters of his own. This book was quick read but really good and hard to put down! Lots of twists and quite the thriller as adult Alex starts to be harassed and and strange things begin to happen to him....great psychological revenge story that kept me reading until the very last page. Fast paced and very suspenseful! Great read!

This was an interesting thriller about 8-year-old Joey Proctor who goes missing at summer camp when his swimming counselor, Alex leaves him alone on a raft in the middle of the lake and instructs him to swim even though Joey doesn't know how and is terrified of deep water. Then Alex forgets about him and keeps quiet about it during the ensuing investigation. Twenty years later Alex is a professional earning lots of money when someone begins taunting him and spying on his family. Convinced it's about Joey, Alex worries how this will affect his family and his business, and of course it does in horrible ways. I wasn't wild about the ending but understood why Smith did this. All in all, a compelling read!

This author kept me at the edge of my seat waiting to see what was going to happen next and who was involved. Why do thigs happen and what can we do when they happen? I am ready to read more from this author. NetGalley thank you for chance to read this book and write about it.

3/5 🌟 REVIEW
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Thank you @netgalley and @sourcebooks for my copy of The Drowning by J P Smith. I had seen this all over #bookstagram so I was excited to read it.
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This was such an easy read. I managed to finish it in less than a day. The story started off really well, gripped me and pulled me in. It was constantly switching between the different characters feelings and speech so it was difficult to keep up at times, but from the start we had a creepy, eerie setting. The story is unique and I haven’t read anything similar, I couldn’t it put down.
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Unfortunately the ending was disappointing. I tuned the page and expected more as there were so many unanswered questions. I can see what the author was trying to do, but I personally needed more closure on several things.
There had been flashbacks to the past and small conversations between characters to get you thinking and to throw you off, but in the end, these seemed to be completely irrelevant. The story followed the life of Alex, who left a young boy to die on a raft and now years later is being taunted by an unknown individual. I guessed who this was and the twist regarding this person early on.
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If you ignore all of the loose ends, it is still a great story. I would recommend for someone looking for a quick, easy read.

This was a very interesting plot. Our main character isn’t a likeable guy. In fact he gets worse throughout the book. I think though, that is what makes this book kinda fun. We are very quickly more interested in what happened to little Joey Proctor- the boy our main character was in charge of at summer camp many years ago. A boy who disseappered under his care, what happened to Joey all those years ago and who is behind the torment of our main character now? Defientely check this book out!

The Drowning follows the story of 8 year old Joey Proctor, who went missing from Summer camp, and was never found. This book had so so much potential. It was a definite page turner, and had some intense creepy scenes, but overall left way too many loose ends. I can understand leaving the reader to sort of imagine the ending but I feel like every “mysterious” aspect of the story was left unanswered, especially the main plot.

One of the things I really enjoyed about the book was the Summer camp element. This is one of my favorite things to read about because it lends itself to a creepy environment, especially during nighttime campfire stories. While there isn’t a ton of this going, probably just in part 1 of the book, its still enough to enjoy.

Something else I wanted to touch on was the up and down on the writing. I felt like at times the writing was on point, engaging, and suspenseful, but a few pages later it would fall short. It was an ongoing issue. Engaging and then utterly boring, engaging and so on. With that being said it was still a quick read.


I feel like people will enjoy the experience of reading this but will sort of be left a tad bit disappointed.

*thank you so much to Netgalley for allowing me to review this book!

Twenty one years ago eight your old Joey Proctor was dropped off at summer camp a few days before he was to go home he disappears without a trace. Boys at the camp blame the urban legend John Otis, the evil man who is rumored to have been behind the disappearance of several boys in the same woods of the summer camp. The police are called and they believe Joey just wondered off or ran away due to his parents marital problems. Camp counselor and swim instructor Alex Mason knows what really happened, he left Joey on a raft in the middle of the lake that afternoon, to teach him a lesson he can either learn to swim or stay in the raft and try to swim back! Alex forgot about Joey after leaving him out there and now Joey is gone! Alex isn’t going to tell anyone what happened he doesn’t want to destroy his future due to a simple “mistake “ . Alex’s life goes on and twenty years later he’s older and extremely wealthy and has long forgotten his “mistake “, he lives in a mansion with his perfect wife and two daughters, until the day things start going wrong for him. Alex receives a sinister message in his pool “remember me” in blood! After the pool incident other strange events start happening. Threats against his family and him dark reminders of that day at camp that only Alex or Joey know about. Is someone out for revenge is Joey still alive? Or is someone else out for revenge against Alex. Alex is determined to figure out whose doing this to him before it’s to late. This was a quick read for me fast paced and extremely suspending. This whole book I was at the edge of my seat! The author has an amazing writing style! I highly recommend if you love a good mystery! Four stars!

The Drowning by JP Smith was an enjoyable read. Joey Proctor, an 8 year old boy, is sent to Camp Waukeelo one summer because his parents are on the verge of divorce and want him out of the way while this is going on. Joey is small for his age and scared of going to camp with boys he doesn’t know. He soon starts enjoying himself and the activities at camp, except for swimming. He is terrified of water. Enter Alex, the cocky 18 year old swim instructor. He swims Joey out to a raft in the middle of the lake and tells him he will have to swim back on his own. Alex then forgets to check on Joey and just leaves him there. The next day Joey is missing. Where did he go? They search the woods, drag the lake, and look everywhere. He is never found. Alex never comes forward with his story either. Fast forward 20 years and Alex is the biggest hotel and real estate developer in New York. He is married and has two children and lives in a huge house. Suddenly bad things start happening to Alex that point to Joey. Is Joey still alive? Has he come back to seek his revenge? The twists and turns keep coming very fast in this book. Alex is not likeable but that didn’t ruin it for me. The suspense kept me in the story. Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

There hasn't been a book that has grabbed me like this one has in a long time.
A page turner that grabs you from the start and doesn't let go.
A wild ride that kept me guessing until the end.
A true whodunit with so many twists and turns..........
Highly recommended......this is one I won't soon forget.

I enjoyed “The Drowning “ thank you for the chance to read it! I was up way longer then usual as I wanted to find out what happened to this young boy.....

I liked the concept of this book. As it went on, you got to see the why the main character was able to do the things that he did. I did have a problem with some of the other characters reactions to the situation. Mainly the boys parents.and some peripheral characters who were added to divert. Other than that, it kept me going to see how it would end.

I have been eagerly awaiting this book and was thrilled to read an advanced copy. The plot is reminiscent of a 1980s horror movie, yet much of it was unique. I enjoyed the twisty turny tale and alternately hated and felt sorry for Alex. The ending left questions unanswered, which usually is a pet peeve of mine, but it felt oddly fitting for this dark tale to leave a few loose threads. This book remained in my thoughts long after reading it. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

The story around the campfire at the boys’ summer camp is about a man named John Otis, who lives somewhere in the woods and snatches a boy from camp ever seven years. What does he do to the boy once he’s kidnapped him? The endless speculation keeps the boys up at night, especially when eight-year-old Joey does in fact go missing.

Arrogant camp counselor Alex is frustrated that Joey still hasn’t learned to swim by the end of the summer. He leaves Joey in a raft and tells him that if he wants to come back, he’ll have to swim. Alex forgets about Joey until it’s revealed that the kid is missing. Alex feels bad, but when divers can’t find the body in the lake, it suggests that he didn’t drown. Joey must have wandered off or been snatched. By John Otis or someone else.

Twenty-one years later Alex is married to a beautiful woman and has a hugely successful real estate investment firm. Yes, he inherited it from his wealthy parents, but he’s also grown the brand. Alex is exactly the kind of person it’s very easy not to like. Even the charity he does is really to enhance the brand of his business. Even so, I started having some sympathy for him when so many weird things begin happening to him that threaten to destroy his family and his business and it all seems to be about his decision to leave Joey on that raft. Is Joey still alive after all?

This is a fun, quick read. It’s not the best I’ve read because I don’t love any characters and therefore there is no one to root for, but the ending has a satisfying twist.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this novel.

What a page turner; I had to stay up late to finish this very realistic novel. Every action/non-action will cause something else. This lesson is definitely born out in this book.

At the end I could only think "how twisted and sad". Definitely a good read but a tragic story..

‘Joey must have moved the moment the shutter opened. Because his face, out of all the others, was slightly blurred. As if he were already existing in another time, midway between life and death.’

Alex Mason has everything he ever wanted. He’s a successful, well-respected, property developer – a self-made man, living in a million dollar home, with his beautiful blonde wife, and two adoring daughters. But someone is intent on destroying Alex’s ‘picture perfect’ life. Because Alex has a secret – one in particular that could ruin him if it ever became public. Twenty-one years ago, when he was working as a swimming counsellor at Camp Waukeelo, he challenged his campers to swim out to a raft, and back. When eight year-old, Joey Proctor, unable to swim, and deathly afraid of deep water, refused, Alex dragged him out to the raft, and told him that his only way back was to toughen up and swim. Then, he left him there, alone in the middle of the lake. And that was the last time Joey Proctor was ever seen. Or, was it?

There’s nothing quite like a good revenge story. This was a sinfully delicious read from start to finish. But, it was the ending that really stood out – talk about clever! You got me, J. P. Smith, well played! I’m still theorising over it. But, and this is a big but, you were left with questions and ambiguity, which may not sit well with some readers. I thought it was brilliant! I’m kicking myself that I didn’t figure it out earlier, as the clues were there.

When the harassment towards Alex first started, I liked how the 'scares' resembled childlike pranks, like something an actual eight year-old would do, as if, 'if' it were really Joey behind it, then he hadn’t aged a day since he disappeared – gave me chills! The telling of the campfire legend in the opening chapter, bouncing from one camp counsellor to another, at different points in the tale, was ingenious and creepy.

Alex was an arrogant, self-centered, despicable character, who felt little remorse or responsibility for his part in Joey’s disappearance, believing his only crime was forgetting Joey for a few hours, and that whatever happened to the boy after that point was not his fault. Not only that, when he’s first threatened, it takes him a while to even recall what he did to Joey as a possible reason for someone wanting to harm him. There are advantages to novels where the revenge directed at the protagonist is well-deserved. I couldn’t help relishing what was in store Alex, and anticipating how far things were going to escalate, and what Alex’s reactions would be. But, there were some tense and worrying moments, involving Alex’s wife, and daughters, characters I definitely cared about, and didn’t want to see harmed.

I wasn’t overly fond of the dream-like writing style in Part 1 (the chapters set at camp). I understand why it was intended to be purposely vague, and ominous, but I thought it was too rushed. For example, the scene where Alex and Joey have their altercation in the water, ending with Joey being left on the raft, it’s unclear what happened to the other campers? All of a sudden, it’s just the two of them. The other kids must’ve gone back to camp, but it didn’t seem like enough time had passed for them to complete their own swims out to the raft, pack up, and leave. I needed that extra detail to properly visualise events. There were also instances where it was unclear which characters were present in a scene, and who was speaking. Chapter 6 had me swiping back several pages to make sense of one part. I did figure it out, but only on my third read through. This only applies to Part 1 (the first 12%) – I had no issues with how the rest of the book was written.

Recommended to those who enjoying their mystery/suspense with a dose of surrealism.

I'd like to thank Netgalley, Sourcebooks Landmark, and J.P. Smith for the opportunity to read, and review, a digital copy of this book.

Review posted on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon, and Auckland Libraries.by NZLisaM

Ok, so this book was good, it just became a huge letdown at the end. You’re thrown all of this stuff that can be used as great twists for the ending and then you see what is going to be the twist a mile away, but are still thrown little breadcrumbs where the twist could have its own twist, but nope. No extra twist. No true resolution. Nothing. It’s not suspenseful enough to even be called a cliffhanger ending. Just an incomplete one. Trust me, there are ways the twist could have been twisted that then would have made this a standout, but instead the author just gave us the twist we saw right away and added nothing from the breadcrumb clues we were fed throughout the book. It’s a bunch of words and loose ends. Too bad too because there truly was big potential. The potential is probably the reason why 2 stars instead of just giving it 3 because with so much potential wasted, it makes me even more disappointed in this book.

Another one of those novels that makes you become emotional! And definitely wanting to read more of it... this novel was filled with twists and turns and one that I did not want to stop reading. I highly recommend this to everyone! J.P. Smith did a fantastic job with the characters and plot line.

3.5 stars

Well this was interesting and kept me turning the pages. Great idea for a story that kept you wondering.

I would have given 5 stars if the ending was different. I really don't like the idea that the readers are left to decide what happens themselves. I read a book, I want closure and it just feels like the most important part is missing from this.

WOW! Just WOW.
From the beginning, it was incredibly refreshing the way the story was told. The author spares us from the back and forth banter between characters and sums up the conversations. That's an automatic plus from me.

The story starts at Camp Waukeelo where a group of boys are sitting around a campfire and the counselors are collectively telling the old legend of John Otis, an inbred man who steals a young boy away from camp every seven years. We then meet Joey, a small for his 8 years, boy whose parents are at odds with each other and it has made him unsure and diffident. He develops a relationship with a counselor and confides in him and that counselor takes him under his wing. But then we meet Alex Mason, the 18 year old swimming counselor who ignores Joey's pleads and throws him into the dark murky lake. Joey can't swim and flails until Alex finally jumps in and grabs him, except he doesn't take him back to shore, he leaves him on a raft in the middle of the lake and tells him to swim back or die, basically. Alex forgets the boy and heads back into camp. Five hours later, the boy is missing. Police search the lake and the woods but Joey is nowhere to be found.
Fast forward 21 years, Alex is wealthy, incredibly successful, has a lovely wife and two daughters... and has forgotten all about Joey. But it seems Joey hasn't forgotten about him...

I found myself intrigued from the beginning, but when the first instance at the Mason household came about, I was on the edge of my seat... and I stayed right there on the edge of my seat until the very last page. I truly believed Joey was alive and torturing him for what he had done 21 years ago. But then even weirder things begin to happen and I thought maybe someone knew what happened and THEY were the ones behind it! I read a lot of suspense/thriller/mystery novels, and usually about halfway through, I know who's behind it all. This book kept me guessing. I had NO IDEA who could have been doing this. Joey or someone else?? The mind games, the intrigue... it was all so much fun to read!
I even found myself looking over my shoulder a couple of times. Which doesn't happen to me! I can read books about real life serial killers and sleep like a baby!
This book changed the game. I highly recommend this to fans of thrillers. It sure thrilled me!

Then there was that ending! Ughhhh. How could you Mr. Smith? HOW COULD YOU?
LOVED this. 4.5 out of 5. What a ride.

Who doesn’t love a good spooky campfire story? I was wrapped up in this story right from page 1. It kept me guessing the whole time. Our main character, Alex, is kind of a jerk, but at the same time I really started to feel bad for him, and then he went off the deep end and I started to get angry at him, but then I felt bad for him again! I was on some sort of rollercoaster as I kept turning the pages.

The story really made me contemplate the idea that the past will always catch up with you. Moral of the story is, don’t be a dick.

This book was fun. It was a quick read, simply because I didn’t want to put it down. I really enjoyed the flow of the story, and I look forward to checking out some of J.P. Smith’s other books.