This novel hit many nerves in a way I never knew it would. Be warned, this is all about rape and some reader will not be comfortable with this topic.

I ended up listening to this in the audiobook format because the author chose to have it set up as a podcast and wow it was executed perfectly. The story, the narration, the plot and wow the plot twist just threw me away. I thought I had it all figured out but yup Goldin did a spectacular job with this book.

Rachel, the protagonist, is a likable character which I enjoyed reading from her POV. Hannah is the other character who talks about the truth of her sister’s death. I enjoyed listening to the stories and just felt great sympathy towards her, her mom, and her older sister. It was heartbreaking and I did shed a tear because Hannah was retelling the story of what she witnessed when she was little.

This in my opinion is a controversial story that will definitely make you feel something. Rape cases are very hard to judge. You just don’t know who to believe.

I enjoyed this book because it gave me a little intel of how rape cases trial work. I bet Goldin did a lot of research for this novel and it came out great. I definitely recommend this book. This is a 5 out of 5 stars. It’s quick pace and leaves you just wanna keep on reading it.

This was a great audiobook choice. The book goes back and forth between a podcast and the story. It will keep you guessing.

I received the audio version of this book from Macmillan through my membership in The Walking Book Club. It was the first book I’ve read by Megan Holden but I also need to add that I don’t often read crime/mystery books. However, after reading this book I’m eager to try more of this genre!
I found this book to be gripping and suspenseful. It is about a true crime podcaster named Rachel who decides to do her podcast based on a current crime trial. She travels to the town where the trial is being held and begins to receive notes from a woman named Hannah asking for her help to find the person who killed her sister 25 years earlier in the same town. Rachel is intrigued and as the story unfolds the reader gets not only the story of the current crime, but the history of the town from 25 years earlier as Rachel accepts the quest to find Hannah’s sister’s killer.
A bonus for all you audiobook fans is that the podcast chapters are read as real podcasts! The narrators do a great job with this book. If you like a good mystery, I would definitely recommend you give this book a try!

I received this book in exchange for an honest review, which has not altered my opinion of this book.

I’m going to jump right in, this book follows two rapes in the same town over two different periods of time. It is a difficult book to read, although it is still tasteful when it comes to describing what happens. Not only does this follow the rapes, but it is mostly about the court case and how it affects those around the town and the rest of the country as well. This story talks a lot about how the impact of the media on a case and the difficulty in keeping anyone objective. It also talks about all the difficult things that the people in this town have felt with and how this case affected the small time. It talks about victim blaming and ruined lives, and ruined potential, and what this can do to a small town, but it concentrates on what it does to the victim, which I feel gets forgotten sometimes.

This is a subject that I have strong feeling on based on my own life and experiences, which I will not go into. However, I am very glad that I listened to this audiobook, the fact that this was a podcast made it all the more interesting. The quote below summarizes it quite nicely:

“To tell you the truth, I don’t get how we can almost unanimously agree that murder is wrong, yet when it comes to rape some people still see shades of gray.”

I think the main reason I didn’t give this a 5/5 is because it was advertised to me as a thriller, but it really didn’t feel like a thriller. It more felt almost like a mystery story and a contemporary and intense book. Overall, this book was intense and I can’t emphasize trigger warnings enough! This is a highly emotional book, so this is my warning, but go read it! 4.5 out of 5.

This book was good. It started really strong. I would give "The Night Swim" 3 Stars. I liked the fact that it featured a podcast story line. I believe I have never came across this is a book. But, I also feel this book was less of a thriller and more of a legal crime book.

At times, I felt Rachel was a little self absorbed. This did frustrate me but I do think this book needed character. I also feel there are so many characters in this story, at times, it was hard to keep everyone straight. with that said, I do like the Dual the narrative.

Over all, I would probably not re-read (or listen to the audiobook) but I do not regret listening to it the first time.

I loved The Night Swim- such a fantastic read. Truly one of the best in the mystery/thriller genre right now. I loved it so much because it reminded me of my beloved Nancy Drew, but with much darker subject matter. I really like how this book had Rachel investigating an old case and a new one at the same time, set in a beach town in North Carolina. You really felt like you were along for the ride solving the cases, and I loved the true crime podcasting element. I would definitely recommend this one on audio for that reason!⁣

Sadly I could not complete this book. I made it about half way but the narrator did not keep me interested. And it just seemed to drag. I don’t mind triggers and mystery but I would find myself dozing. I will come back to it at a later date but I am afraid this was not for me

Megan Goldin"s The Night Swim was an awesome read. I had the pleasure of listening to the audio version and the narrators did a fantastic job bringing this mystery to life. It was great! Five plus stars.

Told between 3(ish) different points of view, The Night Swim is the story of a true crime podcast about a rape trial and a separate investigation into a long forgotten death. I was given the opportunity to read and listen to the audiobook in advance and I was definitely impressed. The story was so compelling and the ending was a surprise, kind of. Not only were you trying to discover if the rape actually happened but also piece together the events that led to Jenny’s death.

The narrator for the audiobook was clear and did the characters well, even when I turned the speed up a bit.

If you like thrillers, this is one for you to pick up for sure!




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

If you like true crime and even better, fiction about true crime, this one will be right up your alley. True crime podcaster, Rachel, receives a note on her car begging for help to find out what really happened to her sister decades before. Did she tragically drown or was she murdered? Rachel is also covering a current rape trial and ask she digs, she begins to discover strange connections between the cases.

This book definitely has #murderino vibes! It is not a classic thriller though – more of a slow burn mystery, in my opinion. It is character driven and gritty. The book does not shy away from addressing the issue of rape and assault. Readers should be cautioned if they are triggered by these issues, but I believe the author handled them in a respectful way without looking away from the very real atrocity of such crimes and how the issues affect individuals, families, and entire communities for generations.

This is a gripping tale that will haunt and stay with you for a long time. It is highly relevant for #metoo and the women’s movement in general. It is a “hard” read but worth looking at the issues head on and understanding the despicable way women have been, and still are, treated when reporting sexual assault.

This was a great suspense novel perfect for audio. The podcast element of the story really elevated the audio. The narrators were excellent. I loved how this book brought up an important and current topic.

I am sorry to say that this one just didn't do it for me. I thought the story was interesting at first, but honestly I thought it was very slow and I was bored during large parts of it. I did find the podcast chapters interesting, but I thought it was weird that for someone who was supposed to remain neutral, she offered very little facts about the case. It was mostly long commentaries on victim blaming. Now don't get me wrong, I thought her commentaries were spot on and I agreed with all of them. I just thought it weird for her to continue claiming she was neutral while her posts were obviously on the prosecution side. I thought parts of the story had too much detail -- I didn't beed a step by step reenactment of what she did when she got up, for example. I wish the letters from Hannah and the old murder case made up for the lack of interest in the other parts, but it really didn't. I also just thought it too easy that Rachel was able to get all the information she needed from witnesses, even when others couldn't. I also didn't really understand the twist at the end and the person who came forward with information on the case. I won't give any spoilers, but I thought it ridiculous that he didn't come forward much earlier and his reason for not coming forward was a bit stupid. I am flabbergasted no one called him out on it and I was rolling my eyes at the fact that he was obviously protecting the person, but the reader was supposed to feel sorry for him. Umm, no. The guy was awful. I wish I liked this book more, but I just didn't.

First off, if rape or sexual assault is a trigger for you, I’d recommend skipping this book. The entire thing revolves around the story of two separate sexual assaults. It goes through them in detail and focuses on the victimization that occurs to victims during rape trials. It’s a heavy topic!

I personally enjoyed this book… I love podcasts and crime procedurals so this was right up my alley.

Rachel has a very successful podcast Guilty or Not Guilty where investigates crimes and follows their trial. For her third season, she’s followed the trial of a young swimmer accused of raping a high school girl. Along the way, she is contacted by Hannah who begs her to investigate her sister’s twenty-five year old murder.

I really enjoyed how relevant The Night Swim in. It discusses deep topics and still keeps you guessing.

I listened to the audiobook and absolutely LOVED it. The podcast portions were my favorite and were so well done. I did a couple of extra loads of laundry because I didn’t want to stop listening— I was enjoying it that much!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Pretty and NetGalley for an audiobook copy of The Night Swim in return for an honest review!

The narration was great, but overall the story fell flat for me. It didn't quite live up to the expectations I had. Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the chance to listen to this.

Triggers: murder, sexual assault, trauma, mental health
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This book was bittersweet for me. While enjoyed the concept, I thought there were a few hiccups that somewhat took away from the story.

The book focuses on Rachel a true-crime podcaster who's podcast Guilty or Not Guilty has been a huge success in its previous two seasons. Going outside her norm of cold cases and serial killers Rachel decides the third season will revolve around a rape case in the small town of Minneapolis, NC. The town and its inhabitants breathe life into the story throughout. I really enjoyed the smaller beat characters that Rachel interviewed during the course of the book. The author did a fantastic job at illustrating how polarizing something like this could be in a small town while also highlighting how corrupt small towns can be.

While I enjoyed Rachel as the main character I thought she was very wishy-washi. In one scene she would exclaim how she would not do this or take part in this and then the very next scene she would be continuing on her path at whatever cost. I am not sure if it was merely meant to be her internal dilemma but it didn't come off written to be like that.

The book also featured small snippets or episodes of Rachel's podcast throughout the book. And while I thoroughly enjoyed these chapters narrated by the very talented January Lavoy; they did not seem to ever reveal anything that you as the reader a. didn't explicitly already know or b. could've easily surmised by the previous chapter. I found this incredibly frustrating as this was a thread that also featured in the courtroom scenes throughout the book. Nothing shocking was every revealed. And I definitely was expecting something shocking to be revealed in the courtroom near the end of the book. That simply was not the case. In fact, one of the things Rachel wanted this season to be was unbiased. For people to come to their own conclusions despite that the narrative of the actual podcast was extremely biased. Not that I would blame Rachel for such bias because the crime is truly disgusting but the actual podcast element I thought should have been written from a more biased position as you already knew were Rachel stood based on her own narrative.

Through the entirety of the book, Rachel is receiving letters from Hannah, who claims that her sister Jenny was murdered years before and goes into great detail about the events surrounding her sister's drowning/murder. I loved the twin narration; as it mirrored the case that Rachel was covering. But it also became more and more problematic. I kept wondering why Hannah never came forward; why she was staying hidden. Something that even at the end is never fully explained. Nor is the erratic delivery of the letters themselves ever explained. If I ever received a letter in some of the methods Rachel did I would be losing my shit. Honestly, I think the story may have been better and made more sense if she had revealed herself sooner.

And finally the reveal itself. This title didn't seem like a thriller but much more of a mystery. You are given so much information and each nugget gets you closer to uncovering the truth. I'd be lying if I didn't say I guessed both reveals somewhat early on. This was not a complete deal-breaker for me. But I would be remiss if I didn't say the ending reveal was muddled and very lackluster. It just didn't ring true. Particularly the revelation of the antagonist and their comeuppance.

Overall, I enjoyed reading this. I enjoyed the podcast element and all of the narration was top notch. I felt both the podcast and the scenes in the courtroom should have been more revealing vs being given that information before in Rachel's narrative. The story kept me entertained throughout.

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This book was provided by NetGalley on behalf of St. Martin's Press / Macmillian Audio for an honest review.
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CAWPILE: 3 STARS
𝙲𝙷𝙰𝚁𝙰𝙲𝚃𝙴𝚁𝚂: 6 𝙰𝚃𝙼𝙾𝚂𝙿𝙷𝙴𝚁𝙴: 8 𝚆𝚁𝙸𝚃𝙸𝙽𝙶: 7 𝙿𝙻𝙾𝚃: 7 𝙸𝙽𝚃𝚁𝙸𝙶𝚄𝙴: 6 𝙻𝙾𝙶𝙸𝙲: 6 𝙴𝙽𝙹𝙾𝚈𝙼𝙴𝙽𝚃: 7

I was a little disappointed in this book. When I heard that it was a thriller surrounding a true crime podcast, I was super excited! But I think I set my expectations a little too high. It just wasn't gripping enough for me, and it was too much of a slow burn. Not very thrilling!

The audiobook was well done. There are three separate narrators - one for each character the story flips back and forth between, and one for the podcast portions. I liked that the podcast sounded like an actual podcast with the intro and everything.

The topic is very important, and I love the premise. I just didn't feel like the book delivered, unfortunately.

3.5 stars

Rachel Krall hosts a true crime podcast, and is heading to the small town of Neapolis, NC to cover a rape trial on her show. She keeps her face out of the public eye though and is only recognized by her voice. When she finds a note on her car windshield addressed to her asking for help, she wonders how this person knows who she is. These letters keep showing up until Rachel gets involved in solving this mystery from 25 years ago which seems to have connections to the rape trial she’s covering.

I had a hard time with my rating. I went between 3 and 4 stars so ended up giving it 3.5 stars. I received the audiobook ARC to review, and I think that had something to do with my rating. I probably would have preferred to read it myself. The narrator who voiced Rachel spoke very slowly, and I didn’t get a lot of emotion from her. With a book about two different rape cases, you would think the main character would be more emotional, but she was very flat.

The book goes back and forth between Rachel’s narrative, snippets of Rachel’s podcast, and another narrator, Hannah Stills. Hannah’s sister drown 25 years before, but she believes it was murder. I did prefer her storyline and narration. Most of her chapters were a flashback leading up to what happened to her sister. I found her more invested and these chapters more intriguing.

There is a very strong storyline of sexual assault and violence against women. If this is a trigger for you, I would avoid this book. I do think this is an important topic to focus on, and I thought the author did a good job of showing us a rape trial and how the victim can be unfairly judged by the lawyers and public.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

An amazing thriller that's perfect for lovers of podcasts and true crime! Goldin's previous book, The Escape Room, set my expectations high, and she does not disappoint with The Night Swim. Rachel hosts a popular true crime podcast, which brings her to small town Neapolis to cover a rape case. High school golden boy and Olympic swimmer hopeful stands accused of raping the granddaughter of the former town sheriff. While Rachel is busy covering a town divided by opposing views, she comes across an older case. Hannah is reaching out to the podcaster to get justice for her murdered sister, Jenny, whose death was swept under the town's proverbial rug twenty five years ago. As much as I love audiobooks, I don't always feel strongly that a book is better in one format versus another, but this is pretty much the perfect book for listening to! Narrators Bailey Carr, January LaVoy, and Samantha Desz draw you in, keep you trapped and tense and riveted until the thrilling end. Another Goldin book worthy of the top ten of 2020!

3.5 stars
I loved the way this was written as a dual POV with letters written to the main character as a way of getting the second POV. I thought that was really clever and broke up the main story well. This was a well written thriller with an interesting plot and a good cast of characters.

So why 3.5 stars and not more? It was a good thriller but not a great thriller. A few of the reveals I had called early on in the book and some of the tertiary characters could’ve used a little more fleshing out.

I listened to the audiobook so I want to say that the narrator was great and the quality was exceptional. Would definitely look for more books narrated by her.

This was like a modern day crime story. Famous podcaster takes on a rape case that brings her back to the crime scene of another case 25 years ago. While she’s focusing her efforts and podcast on the current case, the past case starts to become a distraction she quickly gets wrapped up in. Loved this fast-passed thriller. The plot was developed well, characters were created with depth and the storyline hooked me from the beginning!