Thank you for the opportunity to read this book. Unfortunately I was not able to get into the book - it took too long to set up the stage.

Eleanor Walsh is the founder of The Herd, an elite, women-only coworking space in New York City.  Her closest friends are also members, as well as co-workers, and they share everything. However, Eleanor is immersed in planning a news conference that will include a mysterious announcement that even her inner circle has not been privy to.  Then, Eleanor disappears the day of the scheduled event and her friends struggle to find out what has happened to her, while forced to confront the secrets they have all been hiding.

The Herd is an interesting book but I found it difficult to become engaged at the very beginning.  It took several chapters before I started to enjoy it. Even then, I was conflicted, since a majority of the characters weren’t very appealing, although the premise of the book was.   

Andrea Bartz is a talented writer and she intertwines the various characters and their stories in a very smooth manner and there were times it was a suspenseful and twisty story. Overall, I would give this book 3.5 stars.    

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book for review.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exhange for an honest review.
The synopsis of "The Herd" by Andrea Bartz sounded intriguing to me so I requested a copy to read.
Honestly, the book started out a little slow and boring to me but I saw some potential in it and I stuck with it.
I am so glad that I did stick with it because about 40% into the book it started to get really interesting and I couldn't wait to see how it would end. 
I am very excited to read Andrea's 
next book, "We Were Never Here".

Andrea Bartz writes a great and fearless mystery. In this book, readers are challenged to look at women and how they truly interact when they compete for success. THE HERD takes place in New York and, after reading, I was both sad and relieved to not live there!

The Herd is a woman only coworking  space. The founder Eleanor disappears. Her best friends risk everything to uncover the truth.  This is a clever whodunit.

Another hit from a modern master of thrillers! Andrea Bartz works her magic once more. I can’t wait for the Bartz books to keep coming.

This was a hard book to read or get in to...I put t down several times then finally gave up half way through. I rate what i read a 1.3. It didn't grab me or interest me as much as its description promised.

I really liked the premise of this one.  A feminist thriller?  Sign me up! Unfortunately, I really struggled to get into it.  The beginning just felt so dense and didn’t seem to be moving very quickly.  However, around 30% it started to pick up. 

The story is told in alternating perspectives.  Katie is a reporter/writer running away from a mysterious traumatic event and Hana is head of PR for the Herd, working on a mysterious announcement party.  In the midst of all of this, Eleanor, the founder of the Herd, goes missing.  Hana and Katie have to figure out if Eleanor left willingly, or if something more sinister occurred.  

Throughout the story we learn more about each woman’s past and what led them to where they are now. I just wish we knew a little more earlier on to get me more invested in the story.  They kept making vague references to the past without actually revealing anything and it got a bit repetitive and obnoxious.  The ending was surprising, but not entirely.  Don’t get me wrong, it worked.  It made sense.  But it lacked the wow factor for me. I was expecting something a little more than what we got.

Definitely not what I expected. The twists and turns made me unable to put the book down. Such a fast, fun, nail-biting read

This book is great! Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I took my time with this. In an obvious book slump from everything 2020 ish and being stuck inside since the Spring. This book felt like it reawakened my inner thriller lover back to life. I dragged it out slowly and I loved being surprised by all the things uncovered after Eleanor went missing. I liked the authors writing style and the way the story played out. I will be looking for more books from her now on. Thank you for gifting me this copy from a contest I won.

This was an interesting premise and I had high hopes that it would be exciting and suspenseful.  There were times when there were twists but then there were long times where nothing happened.  The characters were just not relatable and you never felt like you wanted to cheer them on.  All they did was backstab each other.

This book had the potential to be something special but unfortunately the author’s amateur writing and beyond ridiculous ending made for a flop.

Loved the Lost Night, loved this. My one criticism of the Lost Night was the incessant droning about Bushwick and hipsters, and I really wish the author would write just one book set outside of New York. WE GET IT.

This was not my favorite book, but I gave it between 2.5 and 3 stars. I’m definitely planning on reading this author’s debut work.

I liked this book.  I think the premise of it is actually pretty brilliant, but the execution left me wanting more.  It was a little slow in the beginning, and I had a hard time connecting with any of the characters until the very end.  It's not a super memorable book for me, but I enjoyed it while reading.

This book was not what I had expected it to be at all! I liked the suspenseful plot, but I was not a fan of the characters involved. It was also hard to follow along for me, I am unsure if that was due to the writing style or my disinterest in where the plot was going.

I really liked the premise, but wasn't really feeling the execution.  I didn't have any characters I liked, which is almost always a deal breaker f0r me.

Enjoyed this one trying to figure out what happened to Eleanor.  I didn't particularly connect with the setting or the characters but enjoyed the story overall.

Actual Star Rating - 3.5

Ugh. This was one of my most highly sought after books of 2020 and sadly, this one did NOT hit the mark for me. I was pretty confused for most of the book and really had a hard time connecting with the characters and the plot. What I did love was the strong sense of female empowerment and the super cool NY vibe / cohort where most of the novel took place, but that is where my fascination ended. 

This was a super slow read for me and I had to constantly find excuses to pick it back up. I wanted to love this one so much because it was a murder mystery (which I love) at an elite club for women, but it just didnt do it for me :(

Thank you Netgalley for my early copy in exchange for an honest review!