I honestly had no expectations when I started reading this book. had not read anything else by the author, didn’t know the name and the cover was a little cheesy. I read the first chapter and was hooked - so much so that it has consumed me the past day to two days it took me to read, only stopping when life got in the way. This book was outstanding. I loved the podcast tie in and the parallel stories made it seem like reading 2 books in one with such a good twist in both. I feel the structure of this book is where Reese Witherspoon’s pick of Conviction was lacking, making the podcast a huge part of the story and making it stick through the story, instead of just at the beginning. This book also brings to light the rawness if sexual assault, the 2 “sides” of you will, the emotions and devastation and effects to all involved, but also the real ness of the pressure, bullying behaviors and “identity’s” people are labeled with - this book will resonate long after

Podcaster, Rachel Krall, brings true crime to her listeners and asks them to be the jury. While covering a rape case for her next season, Rachel is sucked into another similar crime from 25 years ago. Two young girls, both raped and shamed by the same small-town community, deserve justice and Rachel won’t stop until she uncovers the truth.

While the subject is difficult, the mystery and telling of the story was excellent. Thankfully, there was not a lot of graphic descriptions in the story, but I will still put out a trigger warning for readers. What really made this a great reading experience was the manner in which Goldin intertwined the stories. The story shifted from victim to victim every 1-2 chapters and just made me want to read faster in order to get back to each victim’s story.

Thanks to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced ready copy.

I love true crime podcasts and I love a good thriller and Megan Goldin took the two and rolled them into one fantastic book. This one will stay on my mind for quite some time.

#TheNightSwim follows Rachel, a true crime podcaster, as she follows a rape trial in a small coastal town. As she attends the hearings and records the days events for her podcast, she also finds herself looking into a similar crime that happened in the same town some 20 years earlier.

There are descriptions of sexual assault and battery in this book so be warned it is not a light read. That being said Megan Goldin covered the topic well without being overly graphic.

The characters were written really well, the story flowed easily and it was so hard to put down because I just needed to know more!

I read The Escape Room and liked it, but The Night Swim is a superior novel. I can't wait to see how good her next book will be.

Thank you to @Netgalley and @StMartinsPress for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. 5 stars!!

Absorbing plot. Well developed characters. Very believeable. Megan Goldin never disappoints.
Nice style of writing. Hope to see more from this author.

I was given this book by NetGalley for an honest review -
I totally devoured this book- it was a pageturner that will stick with you long after you finish reading!
Rachel is a true crime reporter who becomes famous when her report leads to the freedom for an innocent man.
She begins to cover the story of a popular swimming star of the t.own accused of rape.
She finds a note on her windshield asking for help to find out what happened to Jenny 25 years ago. It was listed she drown but many think she was murdered.
Grab this book to find the answers to what happened to Jenny!
And - is the swimming star a rapist?

This was a DNF for me. The writing was good but it was a tough read, especially if you are triggered by violence towards women. There was not one, but two assault stories in this book to get through. With all the dirge of #metoo stories in the news, on TV shows and in movies, frankly, I just can't stomach any more. This just wasn't the book for me. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read the ARC, but I have to pass.

Wow - What a blockbuster of a book!

From the first paragraph It caught my attention. I could not put this one down.

Author Megan Goldin wrote a powerful book. A storyline that is not all that unique however told with great pathos and description. Characters that the reader would really care about, as well as wanting to know how it all would turn out.

This is the first book I have read by the author, and will not be the last

Thanks to Author Megan Goldin and The NetGalley team at St. Martin's Press

Megan Goldin is talented author who spins a web of intrigue that will leave the reader guessing until the very end. In her latest novel, “The Night Swim,” the story is so well written that I personally had a hard time putting it down. Rachel Krall is a podcast celebrity and each season she finds a new story about the justice or injustice of our society. For her latest season she has chosen a case from a small coastal town where the town’s golden boy has been accused of raping a young girl. It is a case of she said versus he said and the secrets of small town life. While Rachael is fully invested in her current season’s podcast, she is drawn into another mystery by a woman named Megan who believes her sister Jenny was murdered by a group of boys over 20 years ago. The more Megan shares about her sister the deeper Rachel delves into the intricate workings of a small town who will do anything to protect the chosen ones. I was given an advanced copy of this book, and all of the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I’m beginning to think this author just isn’t for me. I tried Escape Room last year, and while I didn’t love it, it was entertaining at least. I decided to give Goldin another shot with The Night Swim but I couldn’t finish it. I think the writing in this one was far better than her last, but I just could not connect with the characters or the storyline.

This was a very captivating read! It's two stories in one. This is the second book of Megan Goldin's that I have read and really enjoyed. She is fast becoming an author that by name alone, I'd get her book!

Rachel Krall, a podcast host fro Guilty or Not Guilty, is attempting to outdo her last season by covering a rape case by making the audience feel as if they are right in the jury box. Sides are split down the middle of this case, the accused on trial, is popular and training to be in the Olympics. The girl, referred to as K, was bubbly, kind, and dreams of being a Physiotherapist. Rachel is known for her voice, and keeps a low profile. She heads to Neapolis a few days early before the rape trial begins, but after stopping at a rest area, finds an unwelcome letter under her windshield wiper. She's uncomfortable with this fact, because someone knows who she is in public.

Despite Rachel's misgivings, the letter intrigues her, the letter is from a fan, who believes Rachel is the only one to help solve the murder of a sister from decades ago.

Hannah was just a little girl, when her world turned upside down, but Hannah will not remain silent anymore and if she can get Rachel on board, Hannah may get justice for Jenny. It's coming up on twenty-five years, that Jenny died.

I was captivated from the beginning, the story opens with a very young girl trying to comfort her mother after being told the tragic news of her oldest daughter drowning. Alongside of Hannah's story, is Rachel's, where Rachel is inquiring and interviewing people regarding the upcoming rape trial. Little by little each side of the rape case is revealed. Rachel continues to receive letters from Hannah, and it is through the letters that Jenny's story unfolds. I loved how this whole book had two stories happening side by side, and told from varying perspectives. In the beginning, you wonder if the letters are a lure from an unstable person, but the more pieces that fill in, the more invested it becomes to learn the entire story behind the letters until the shocking end.

I received an ARC from NetGalley via St. Martin's Press and I have voluntarily reviewed this book.

YOU MUST READ Megan Goldin's The Night Swim, coming August 4 from St. Martin's Press!! Rachel Krall, the number one podcaster of Guilty or Not Guilty, is covering a rape trial in the small Southern town of Neapolis for the third season of her show. She has chosen to do so because she "want[s] her [listeners] to think about how rape and the threat of rape affect[s] women in a hundred different ways.". Citizens of Neapolis, like Rachel's listeners, are divided on how they view the trial. About half think that the defendant, a college student whose Olympic dreams have been cast in doubt, should be convicted, castrated, or killed. The other half think that the sex was consensual, and that the victim, a sixteen year old high school student, is lying to protect her reputation.

As Rachel prepares for the trial, she receives letters from a listener asking for her help in solving the twenty-five years old murder of her sister Jenny. Rachel begins to investigate and uncovers hidden secrets that lead to a breathtaking conclusion. Goldin treats her subject with sensitivity and style. Highly recommended. Thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ARC provided in return for this honest review. Thanks also to my GoodReDs friend Dita for recommending The Night Swim.

Megan Goldin's The Night Swim is a juxtaposition of two rape crimes that were committed 25 years apart from one another. Rachel hosts a podcast which focuses on a crime per season. In contrast, Hannah's sister is a victim of an unsolved crime that she wants Rachel to cover. The setting is coastal Neapolis where there is a huge socioeconomic divide, and the wealthy seem to be untouchable. Secrets cannot be hidden, however, regardless of your socioeconomic status.

Although a sensitive topic, Goldin handles it in a delicate manner. The characters, both the innocent victims and menacing townspeople who judge them, are well-developed. Anyone who lives in small town America can relate to the depiction of this coastal community.

If you are looking for a good mystery, this will be one you will not want to put down. Thank you NetGalley for an arc of this book.

Would have been 5 stars if chapter and speaking voices were tweaked and marked a little better with maybe a little more background on Rachael and Pete. In several places it takes a second glance to figure out who is 'doing the talking'.
Great, fast paced book with lots of twists and turns with one new event to follow and an old mystery to solve. Characters are great, setting is picturesque, and story will keep your attention. Jacket cover gives adequate information. No spoilers from me! Enjoy!
I received this book as a complimentary copy for an unbiased review.The opinions expressed are my own.
Thanks to the author,publisher,and NetGalley for the ARC.

What an outstanding read!

Very fast paced, clear narrative, held my interest so well, that nothing got done until I was finished reading the entire book.

Great example of a mystery thriller.

Five stars

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Megan Goldin has crafted an engrossing page turner of a read in The Night Swim. Well worth the read!

A compulsively unputdownable thriller about two girls from the same town who are violently raped, then disbelieved and their reputations are ruined. The incidents are separated by 25 years, but are they connected? Enter Rachel Krall, who arrives in town to cover the trial of the beloved local athlete charged with the most recent rape. Rachel isn't an investigator, nor is she a journalist in the usual sense. She's the producer of a popular true crime podcast and she's cut her teeth on getting to the real story behind the public story. An impressive cast of well-drawn characters and wide nuance of views to past history make this book a page-turner. I loved Megan Goldin's Escape Room, and I love this book too -- not only because it's a darned good thriller but also because it educates on the topic of rape. Her deft perspective allows the reader to see the vast damage done by a single ignored rape victim, destroying not just the victim, but the family and community. #netgalley

For some reason it took me awhile to get through this book, which disappointed me after reading the Escape Room in less than a day. There was something whiny about Hannah, which I know is awful to say given the subject matter, but I found myself rolling my eyes whenever she narrated. All in all though, I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to others. Thank you to Netgalley and the author for the advanced copy. It is always appreciated.

WOW this book was amazing! I could not put it down and I finished it in one day! Two stories, one past and one present re intertwined here to create a powerful plot with an end that I could not have predicted. Rachel has a popular podcast on true crime. For the first time she is covering a current, live trial: a star swimmer has been accused of brutally raping a high school student. Rachel sets up camp in the small town of Neapolis where the trial is just about to start. She starts receiving notes from a mysterious woman named Hannah, asking her to investigate the murder of her older sister Jenny that happened in the same town, 25 years earlier. Rachel is a little freaked out but soon starts to investigate Jenny's death as well as following and podcasting the current rape trial which is downright vicious. The book is gripping with every detail in both cases bringing the reader closer to the shocking conclusions--especially in the death of Jenny from the past. The suffering of both Hannah and Jenny in the past, and the poor 16 year old rape victim Kelly in the present are both brutal and sad. Do not miss this riveting book! Thanks so much to NG for the ARC!!!

OUT OF THE 29 BOOK CLUB participants who read the ARC, we all agree it is a MUST read for their book clubs this year! Not just on the list… but at the top of the list for the AUGUST READ!!

This book has it: a victim advocate with a voice, a victim with no voice, and a bunch of small town politics (THAT WE SEE EVEN IN BIG CITIES,) cover-ups of not just one crime, but two.

Rachel Krall hosts a crime podcast that looks into cases where justice wasn’t served, or highlights cases where justice is slipping away. While in the town of Neapolis to cover a trial against a sports star (in the small town) who being accused of rape, Rachel starts receiving letters from someone claiming to need her help in solving her sisters’ murder years before.

This HAIR-RAISING, SPINE-TINGLING, ANGER-FEST made me want to run out and start a vigilante-crime-fighting-underground-for-women-who-never-received-their-justice-organization! I won’t do it, of course, but it really raises the question of how often victims in the day of #METOO still don’t get their justice. Because let’s face it the truth is that this type of small town story plays out across the country in our headlines STILL nearly every day!

Sad, compelling, nail-biting, and unforgettable.

I also want to add, the podcast angle was genius!

Thanks St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Well written with timely commentary on criminal/rape trials and the justice system. A mystery/thriller that’s next level in terms of theme and content.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/47590265