I was very excited to read other positive reviews of this book, and the premise intrigued me. In the first few chapters, it gave me a vibe of the girl from the headlines trying to escape her past from Gillian Flynn’s Dark Places mixed with the apathetic, mysterious, and unrelatable main character of Gillian Flynn’s Sharp Objects. The more I read however, the comparisons to these two books that I loved held less and less true, because this book simply did not capture my attention at all. I didn’t care about the characters, even our protagonist Liv/Arden, and the strange attempt at a mysterious atmospheric thriller ended up feeling hollow and detached. The end does tie up nicely but I found myself bored through most of the book, rushing to finish.

The story starts out slowly, but about a quarter of the way in it hits full force and never lets up. I love Megan Miranda do much, and I thought this was going to be a “meh” book for her— but boy was I wrong. I couldn’t figure out where she was going with this, but I definitely was not disappointed! She delivers— best mystery/thriller in a while!

This is the first book I’ve read by Megan Miranda (although I own a few others and just haven’t gotten to them yet) and I really, really liked it! The premise of this book is that, as a child, Arden was sleepwalking outside when she was swept away by a large rain and ended up in a storm drain for 3 days until she was rescued. She starts to question what actually happened when strange things begin to happen to her and it’s hard for her to remember things.
I liked this book because I had no idea what was going to happen next. Every time I thought I figured out what was happening, something new happened that proved me wrong. The pages kept turning and this was a great and suspenseful read. I look forward to reading her other books!
Thank you #netgalley for an advanced copy of #thegirlfromwidowhills

Wow Megan Miranda never fails with her writing! Her stories are so intricately laced with suspense and depth. I love her writing style. Every time I read her books I am reminded of Sharp Objects- Gillian Flynn...which to me is no greater feat. I mean what kind of person thinks of these absurd, astonishing, revolting, yet so intriguing story lines??? Someone who has me hooked that's for sure! I will always buy every Megan Miranda book. End of story! :)

This was my first time reading a Megan Miranda book. Everytime I had mentioned to my thriller loving friends that I had never read anything by her yet, they gave me “the look.” After requesting this one to review, I can say that I am truly a fan. This book gave me many twists and an ending I did not see coming. That is an accomplishment because most of the time I do. To say that most of the time you don’t know what is going on is a good thing, since Arden has periods of blank memories where she was sleepwalking. It’s disorienting to the reader as much as to the main character. Highly recommend if you are a fan of thriller books at all.

You can see my video review here:
https://youtu.be/mlE4rFKZQfs

I loved the storyline of this book! I thought that it was so unique and interesting and I really enjoyed all the characters. The story didn’t take that long to start picking up momentum, and as you start to get more familiar with the characters, you realize that everybody has their own secrets. I loved the ending of this book & it actually really surprised me. Even when you thought it was all done & over, something else happens.

When she was just 6-years old, Arden Maynor became a national news story because of something shocking and terrifying that happened to her. One night, in the midst of a sleepwalking episode, she exited her house during a terrible storm and subsequently got swept away into her hometown storm drain system.

Her mother reports her missing when she is not in her bed early the next morning. Hearing of the missing girl, the entire town of Widow Hills, and even neighboring towns, mobilize to search for her. Three days later, a man helping with the search discovers her grasping a grate at the top of a storm drain. Unable to pry open the grate lid, he holds her tight until a final rescue plan can be implemented.

It's an unbelievable story that unsurprisingly took the media by storm. How could a little girl possibly survive in a water-logged drainage system for three days on her own!?

Riding on the wings of such attention, Arden's mother takes full advantage and publishes a book telling her story. Along with the generosity of strangers and paid speaking events, the book royalties allow the Maynors a fairly stable income. But Arden disagrees with her mother a hundred percent on how she wants her life to go. She wants to be as far from the spotlight as possible.

She hates the pressure, people thinking they know her, her life story, acting like she owes them something. She just wants to move on with her life and forget that horrible night altogether. As soon as she can, Arden changes her name to Olivia, goes to college and breaks away from her mother for good. Frankly, the woman is toxic and being as far away from her as possible, does wonders for Olivia's own mental health and wellness.

The bulk of the narrative takes place as the 20th-anniversary of that fateful night approaches. In addition to the present-day narrative, mixed media sources are interspersed throughout that shine further light on the incident that changed Olivia's life forever. These include 9-1-1 call transcripts, police and media interviews, as well as excerpts from her mother's book.

As the anniversary gets closer, Olivia discovers she is sleepwalking again and begins to feel paranoid that she is being watched. She confides in her protective next-door neighbor and even a close friend after her hand is forced. Are the reporters back at it again, looking for another story, or is something more sinister going on? When a man ends up dead in her yard, Olivia guesses the latter.

This was a fun story. Such a quick read, I just wanted to know what was happening. The suspense was killing me, I just wanted Olivia to be okay! There were some great red herrings, excellent plot twists and steady, exciting pacing. I loved the use of the mixed media; such a clever way to piece together the story.

This was my first novel by Megan Miranda and I really vibed well with her writing style. I will absolutely be picking up more of her work soon. Thank you so much to the publisher, Simon & Schuster, and NetGalley, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I appreciate it and know a lot of readers are going to really enjoy this!

The Girl from Widow Hills intrigued me from the moment I heard about it. I have purchased three of Megan Miranda’s previous titles and enjoyed most of them. I was intrigued by the synopsis of The Girl from Widow Hills. I am sure that I’m aging myself but it immediately brought to mind the story of Jessica McClure from the 80s. At 18 months old, Jessica fell down a well at a relatives house and was trapped there for days. America watched the search and rescue on television like it was primetime programming. I had never given much thought to what the aftermath was like for the child, her family, or the town.

The Girl from Widow Hills introduces us to Arden Olivia Maynor, the woman that survived three days trapped in a storm drain following a sleep walking incident at just 6 years old. Arden has trauma induced amnesia and remembers little of what actually happened to her. Unfortunately, the notoriety thrust upon Arden and her mother after her rescue was staggering. By the time we meet Arden, as an adult, she goes by Olivia or Liv. She is as far from Widow Hills, KY as she can get. She has a job she enjoys, owns her home, has friends to hang out with and no one knows about her past. OR SO SHE THINKS.

Over the years, Liv was estranged from her mother. There was a windfall of money after the rescue from paid television interviews and the book her mother wrote about the ordeal. Liv felt that her mother cared more about profiting from the story than she did about Liv herself. Prior to Arden disappearing, her mom didn’t work regularly and many people followed the story and questioned the way the family profited from what happened.

Nearing the 20th anniversary of her rescue, Liv arrives home to find a package that is actually her mother’s belongings. It seems her mother passed away and Liv had no idea. Not long after, a stranger in a coffeeshop recognizes her and calls her Arden. These combined events make Liv flash back to her childhood, her rescue and Widow Hills. She starts sleep walking for the first time in years. Eventually finding herself outside in the middle of the night. She’s standing over a body, covered in blood, and has no idea how she got there or who the dead man is. When Liv realizes the dead man is the person that rescued her all those years ago, she must accept that her past has caught up with her.

Liv is forced to face her past, fess up to her friends about who she really is and figure out what really happened the night she went missing in Widow Hills. How does her rescue relate to the dead man in her yard and who killed him? Was it Arden? The police are investigating but Liv doesn’t trust them to get it right. She starts searching for her own answers as to what really happened to her in Widow Hills and how that night is still haunting her present.

What I liked:
I enjoyed this storyline very much. What does life look like when you’ve survived a terrible ordeal? Especially for a child that grows up with it over their head. Miranda is a skilled writer, she creates atmosphere that kinda gets under your skin. She also peppered the story with red herrings. I literally suspected the entire cast of characters at one point or another!

I liked Liv, she was flawed but in the same ways we all are. I related to her, she wanted to see the best in her friends, she was lonely because of her circumstances, but she recognized not connecting because she had secrets. I also kept questioning whether she was a reliable narrator. Do I trust her, or don’t I?

I enjoyed the pacing of the novel, there was a good amount of tension leading up to the big twist. The author did a great job of building the suspense and tension. I found it so smoothly done, I didn’t recognize how creeped out I really was until I heard a loud noise, or a door open.

The big plot twist, I didn’t guess until right before it happened, but remained intrigued by the details of it all. There were some other twists sprinkled in there that I did figure out and some I didn’t.

What I didn’t like:
Having worked in medical facilities the descriptions of the hospital were off in my opinion. Access to meds, patient rooms, and some placements of offices, just didn’t seem well thought out.

I was also annoyed with Liv’s male relationships throughout the book. I felt that she wasn’t wary enough, too trusting and demure and I SCREAMED at her to get a backbone.
I did feel that some of the secondary characters could have been more fleshed out, the importance of their roles felt somewhat skimmed over. That could also be because most of the story was Liv’s perspective only.

There are interview transcripts, and other documents related to search and rescue of Arden sprinkled throughout the book. I am usually a huge fan of mixed media but wondered if these were used as effectively as those I have seen in other books.


The storyline fascinates, the twist is a bombshell, and overall it’s a well done thriller that I think most will enjoy.

4 stars, thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for my advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Six year old Arden sleepwalks out of her house in the middle of the night and is swept away by floodwaters. She's lost in the town's underground pipe systems for three days before she's found clinging to a grate with a nasty arm injury and no recollection of how she got there. Now Arden is Olivia, she's moved away and changed her identity to escape the story folks just can't leave alone until one night she sleepwalks into a dead body in her yard and her nightmare becomes real once again.

This book is super, mega creepy. I lost a whole lot of sleep because I couldn't put this down or close my eyes in the dark after reading Olivia's tale of claustrophobia and dark, drippy spaces. The reader has very limited information to go on and even our narrator, Olivia, is unreliable. I think I had accused every single person in the book by the time I reached the conclusion. Every single person except the actual bad guy, which I never saw coming.

The Girl from Widow Hills is broken up with chapters of present day and then chapters which are transcripts or excerpts of interviews or articles written about Arden's ordeal. The book is already fast paced but this alternating chapter scheme makes it fly by even faster. I think you'll have a hard time putting it down as well.

My only criticism of the book is that I wanted a more fully realized explanation at the end of what had happened when Arden/Olivia was a child though I do think this is intentional. We understand as much as Olivia does, by which I mean she/we can never totally know. This is more of a me problem than a book problem, so I am not deducting any stars for a thematic conclusion.

Overall, a fun and thrilling ride. Five stars.

Megan Miranda comes back with a more mature writing about the survivor of a national interest story, but also the victim from all that fame.

Arden, who now goes by Olivia, has been working in a faraway hospital just to be extra safe no one will find her. But all of a sudden she gets a box with her estranged mother's last possessions and the news that now she is dead. That is the pivot of it all coming back, the next night she starts sleepwalking and the other she wakes up to a literal dead body right in front of her. As the police seems to suspect her, and she can't even remember if she has an alibi, her past becomes very present.

I'd say this is a 3+ book, because I did enjoy the read. It just lacked more excitement, which not even the big reveals saved. Olivia, the main character, is actually very boring and she did make an effort to become so, with the intention people wouldn't notice her. But a lot of strange things start happening to her, so many years after her disappearance incident as a child. Those things... well the discovery of the bodies and of the skeletons in everyone's closets, those were exciting but punctual thrills. In general, it wasn't a book that made turn pages, but it was definitely one I wanted to know the ending.

I can't say I liked the other characters either. Even after finishing and not caring for anyone in special—maybe the only one that took my liking, actually, was the defunct—, I still felt we hadn't known any of them well enough. The detective seems super cool, for example, but there isn't much more than an impression. Even Bennett, Olivia's best friend, was very very flat ultimately.

The conclusion was what I wondered it could be, but I had so many other hypotheses, it was great finding out, so I can't say I was bored. As I've even mentioned already, I did reach the end to know what it was, so I'd call the answer logical rather than evident. Could be better, but it was far from bad.

I know I kept listing the negatives, but I did enjoy this book. It was just more of a lukewarm read. The writer did everything right but lacked the oomph element we like in all the good thrillers.

I recommend it to anyone interested in thrillers, Megan Miranda is an excellent writer and this is not just another thriller following a fad. But if you still don't know her, I'd begin from All the Missing Girls, which is still the superior book.

Honest review based on an ARC provided by Netgalley. Many thanks to the publisher for this opportunity.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Simon & Schuster, and Megan Miranda for the opportunity to read and review her latest thriller - another 5 star read from this must-read author.

When Arden was 6 years old, she was sleepwalking and got swept away by a flash flood into a storm sewer and was lost for 3 days. The media circus ensued when she was found by a passerby, so much so that her mom moved her to Ohio where she changed her name to Olivia and tried to start fresh. Twenty years later and now living in the woods of North Carolina, Olivia is surprised to receive a box of her estranged mom's belongings and to learn of her death. Now Olivia is sleepwalking again and comes across the dead body of someone from her past in her yard. Is Olivia being watched again?

This is a slow-moving book that builds to a fabulous ending. The book is told from Olivia's viewpoint but has alternating chapters of press from the incident so long ago. I never could figure out who I thought was the villain in the story; Miranda's writing will have you questioning everyone. A gripping tale of media's portrayal of events, victims' rights to privacy, and childhood trauma. Fabulous read!

*This arc was provided to me by NetGalley and publisher in exchange for a review*

Arden Olivia Maynor was six years old when she was swept away during a flash flood and found three days later by Sean Coleman in a drain underground. It was believed she had been sleepwalking and just feel in by accident during the storm but the story never fully made sense to Arden. As she becomes an adult, she changes her name and moves away to get away from all the publicity the story gave her. She wanted to be forgotten and move on with her life but well into her twenties her past starts coming back to haunt her and she is struggling trying to figure out what really happened back then.

Throughout the whole story you knew something was up and that something move happened to Arden, now Olivia, as a child. The story didn’t add up. I had some theories throughout but couldn’t quite figure it out until late in the story. I really enjoyed this book through and through!

I would advise you not to finish this book before going to bed. I had the craziest nightmares with scenes from this book! And I rarely have nightmares.

Arden was six when she sleepwalked out of her house, ended up caught in a rain storm, clinging to a storm drain, before she was finally found three days later. She had quite a bit of notoriety after that. Twenty years later, Arden is living miles away under a different name, hiding from the admirers, including her own mother. She finds out her mother died seven months earlier, and receives a box of her mother’s belongings. Shortly after, she begins sleepwalking again. But, one night, she finds a dead man outside, a man from her past life. Arden is trying to find out what happened, and why she can’t remember. It seems she has blocked traumatic memories from her past.

The beginning of the book was a little slow, but then it picked up, and became a page turner. But, that last chapter in particular, had my heart racing, and gave me chills. I felt like I was on the edge of my seat the entire book. The mysteries of past and present weaving together nicely and finally getting resolved in that last chapter. This was my first book by the author but definitely will not be my last. Highly recommend.

* ARC provided by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

The Girl from Widow Hills is another psychological thriller by author Megan Miranda with whom I’ve had some up and down reactions to before in the past. Having really enjoyed a few of hers though I just knew I had to check out this latest.

Arden Maynor is that girl from Widow Hills, the girl that as a child of only six years old she turned up missing from her home one night leading to a huge search. Arden had a habit of sleepwalking and one night she walked right out into a huge storm and couldn’t be found for several days but thankfully she survived.

As amazing as it was for Arden to live through such an ordeal the attention it brought to her family was too much for a child to grow up with. Arden changed her name to Olivia and was happily enjoying her anonymity until one night she begins to sleep walk again and stumbles right into a corpse.

I have to admit The Girl from Widow Hills was somewhat of a slow starter for me and I wasn’t too sure about it in the beginning. Thankfully though those twists and turns I love began to pull me more into story and get interested in Arden/Olivia’s predicament becoming curious as to who could be at fault. Once fully engaged the story seemed to fly by to a conclusion I didn’t see coming.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

I typically like this author's books. This book kept me guessing throughout...and was creepy in spots. I didn't guess the twists and turns, which was fun. The ending wasn't as wrapped up as I would have liked, but a good read. From about 2/3 to the end was a race. Good read.

I post my reviews on my book club's blog: https://angelasepilogues.wordpress.com/2020/06/18/faux-headline-turns-thriller/ - Check us out, if you're so inclined!

This was a unique plot. Our main character, Olivia, isn’t who she says she is. But, don’t be alarmed, it’s not as sinister as it sounds. You see, Olivia is really Arden Maynor. That isn’t significant to us, but in the world of this book, you’d probably recognize the name. Or it would at least ring a bell, make you continue to consider her and question how you know her or why she is familiar, until finally, it clicks. Either you’ve googled it or something has triggered a memory, but you’ll finally remember that Arden Maynor was the little girl at the center of a national news coverage event.

When Olivia (or Arden, I hope I can write this without confusing you, friends) was six years old her mother awoke and knew in the instant her eyes opened, that her daughter was gone. In the middle of the night, Arden had put on her little green shoes and walked right out the front, leaving it swinging and unlatched in her wake. This wasn’t a runaway, though, because Arden was sleepwalking. And after a 3-day search, by luck, will-power, or divine intervention, Arden was found, alive and mostly unharmed.

I say mostly because aside from the physical injuries Arden sustained, the emotional and mental stress has stayed with her well into adulthood. So much so, in fact, that she changed her name and has worked diligently to hide her identity to even her closest friends and relationships.

She’s relatively well-adjusted and hasn’t encountered any pesky journalists or reporters since the ten-year anniversary of her rescue. She’s firmly entrenched in her career and relatively happy. Until she gets a box of her mother’s possessions and starts waking up outside, meaning she’s sleepwalking again, something she hasn’t done since childhood.

It’s frightening enough to wake up in a different place than where you went to sleep, but it’s worse when you wake up next to a corpse. Which is exactly where Olivia (aka Arden) finds herself at the start of “The Girl from Widow Hills.”

I liked Miranda's writing style. And I'm sure I'll be grabbing up some of her backlist in the near future.

She had a main character that wasn't entirely likable. She isn't unlikable, either. Further, it's understandable why Olivia has built up so many emotional boundaries, but she doesn't let her friends get too close, nor the reader. This makes it harder to anticipate any twists and turns of the plot.

Like I stated earlier, I thought the plot was unique. For me, it was unlike a storyline I had read before and I was genuinely surprised with the ending. You don't have to be kept guessing in order for a thriller to be engaging or well-written, but it certainly has it's merits!

The Girl From Widow Hills begins by following Arden Olivia Maynor, the survivor of a seemingly open and shut case that occurred 20 years earlier, when she was only 6 years old. But, things aren't always as they seem. When old faces keep popping up in the new life she's built for herself, she's thrust back into reexamining what happened 20 years ago and uncovers some disturbing details along the way.

I don't want to give anything about this twisty, turny thriller away. It kept me guessing until the very end and it had layers upon layers built around the central plot that we had to keep peeling back and trying to identify. Well written and intriguing, I just wish there had been a little more of a conclusion/epilogue before the book wrapped up.

I enjoyed the development of all of the characters! Megan Miranda is a favorite author of mine... while this started a little slow, I liked the build up of figuring out what happened both in the present and the past. The end was a total shocker/ didn’t see that coming!

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.
I stayed up late to finish The Girl from Widow Hills because the story and the writing were just that captivating! A six year old sleepwalks and gets swept away, stuck in a drain for 3 days before she's rescued, but then she changes her name and moves away 10 years later. And now 10 years after that, now that she's established herself and her career, everything explodes in this creepy thriller. Definitely recommend, especially if you've enjoyed Miranda's other books like I have!

This was fast paced mystery with twists and turns. I usually have the endings of most thrillers figured out before they are revealed, but this one kept me guessing. It was a great twisted ending!