I really enjoyed this book. Character development was good. The plot was very interesting. Not a lot of typos.

Like most novels with supernatural plots and twist endings this book is difficult to summarize in a fascinating way that does not give things away and ruin the reading experience..

Author, Jennifer McMahon spins out this novel in chapters alternating between 1929 and the present. In 1929 Ethel Monroe and her husband Will visit a luxury hotel and fall under the spell of its spring fed pool, rumored to grant wishes. In the present Jackie, a young woman who spent most of her life in the shadow of her electrifying older sister Lexie has returned to Sparrow Crest, the family home (once the site of that very same luxury hotel and its infamous haunted pool) after learning that her sister has drowned in the infamous waters..

The narrative crisscrosses between characters and eras that, early on, can be confusing but once the characters and their desires come into focus you will find THE DROWNING KIND to be an ominous, rich and very readable tale.

Jax is living a drama free life in Washington state when she gets a call informing her that one half of the dynamic "x girls" duo, her sister Lex has drowned in the family's pool, infamous for its magical and healing abilities. When Jax returns home to the Sparrow Crest estate, she regrets the "x girls" estrangement due in part to Lex's mental illness but mostly due to Jax's jealousy of Lex's inheriting Sparrow Crest. Eager for answers on what led to her sister's death, Jax retraces her sister's final moments examining chaotic diary entries to life like paintings, which all led back to the magical pool's killing, oops, I meant healing ability.

The Drowning Kind by Jennifer Mchanon is a literary horror ghost story set in two timelines present day, where the reader follows Jax as she discovers the secrets of the Sparrow Crest estate which may have led to her sister's demise, and the early 20th century where the reader mets Ethel a distant relative of Jax and Lex, from whom we learn the origin of those Sparrow Crest secrets. Mchanon does all this while crafting a moving sub-plots which tackle: family trauma, self-harm, a sapphic love story, and themes such as scientific logic versus the supernatural. I really enjoyed this story, if you enjoy methodical storytelling mixed with literary horror then I suspect you will too. Hence, The Drowning Kind will leave the reader with one burning question: How far would you go to be close with the one you love? I rate 4.5 stars.

I loved this so much!! Centering around the natural springs on this family’s land that have the power to heal and grant wishes — but the healing and wishes always comes with a price. Told in dual timelines (1929 and 2019) we learn about the spring and the price our characters have had to pay. Usually in dual timeline stories like this I will enjoy the historical timeline more, but both timelines were so strong in this story. The atmosphere and dread were so good throughout, I found myself not wanting to put it down at all. While reading I was wondering how the author would manage to end the story and I will say I thought the ending was PERFECT. Definitely my favorite kind of ending. I can’t wait to read more from this author!

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the chance to read this book for free in exchange for an honest review.

Spooky story based on a "magic" spring that can grant wishes deemed impossible but.... beware this spring will extract a price for the redemption of that wish. Jax and Lexie are two sisters that grew up spending summers at their grandmothers who had a seeming endlessly deep and cold pool at her home in Maine. Yes, this deep and cold pool is this same "magic" spring....Jax is all grown up now and her sister Lexie has passed away-"The Drowning Kind" alternates between Jax's current life and her great-grandmother Edith's ife in the past to give us a full view of just how dark and cold this spring really is. I recommend to anyone looking for a few shivers down their spine.

The Drowning Kind by Jennifer McMahon
“We floated, my sister and I. Two dead girls, side by side, bodies bumping against each other. Alone, but together.”

Absolutely chilling.
Jennifer McMahon does it again, friends. When I created my NetGalley account and saw that there was a new book from Jennifer McMahon, I knew I would do whatever to get my hands on that book. As haunting as her other works, I have just finished and feel as pulled to the springs as the characters were.

Jax is a social worker, who seems desperate to be there for others in a way that she feels she never could for her own family members. One day she receives a call telling her that her estranged sister, Lexie, has drowned in the pool on their late grandmother’s estate and this isn’t the first life the pool has taken. When Jax arrives back at Sparrow Crest, she quickly becomes consumed with the research that Lexie left behind on the estate and their family and it is much darker than she could have ever imagined.

It is 1929 and Ethel and her new husband want nothing more than to have a baby. While on vacation at a new hotel, Ethel takes a chance when she learns that the hotel’s springs are whispered to perform miracles. Locals say the water gives, but is also takes. Is Ethel willing to pay the price?

McMahon weaves ghost stories like you wouldn’t believe, but I was also impressed with how much emotion she was able to bring out in me when discussing the mental illness that plagues Jax’s family. Ted, Lexie and Jax father, is undiagnosed but Jax is sure he self medicates with alcohol because of a possible bipolar disorder. Lexie on the other hand is diagnosed, but Ted is constantly disagreeing with the treatments recommended and claiming she just has an “artist’s soul.” Jax is constantly plagued with guilt throughout the book because she feels she has let her sister down time and time again. While reading, it felt like an impossible place to be in. How do you support your sibling, but maintain a boundary so as not to lose yourself?
Thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for the advanced copy, all thoughts are my own. The Drowning Kind releases on 4/6/2021.

If you pick this up, please discuss with me because there are so many details I want to discuss but don’t want to spoil for anyone!

CW: mental illness, fertility, loss of loved one, downing, alcohol abuse

I finished #thedrowningkind by @jennifermcmahonwrites a few days ago and it did not disappoint! This was my first read by this author and I absolutely loved every page of this book. The writing style, character development and creativity of the plot was amazing and addicting.

This thriller kept me at the edge of my seat and honestly it was actually really creepy. The fact that I am not a water person and am pretty freaked out by bodies of water made this story even more creepy for me!

I loved how there were two different stories occurring and I couldn’t wait to figure out how these two stories connected! This is not your typical drowning story, there’s so much more involved such as bottomless springs and spirits that urge others to stay underwater with them😬!

100% recommend this book! Not only is it an addictive read but the cover is absolutely gorgeous! I need a paper copy of this book ASAP so I can show off it’s beauty on my bookshelf💕

The Drowning Kind is out April 2021- set yourself a reminder to order this one! Special thanks to @netgalley @jennifermcmahonwrites @gallerybooks for the early e-copy!

This was an atmospheric, supernatural thriller with dual time periods. A hotsprings pool with miraculous healing capabilities is center stage. But as the pool heals and grants wishes, it takes something in return and the results are deadly.

McMahon is an excellent writer and this was intense and scary at times. I’m not a huge fan of plots with supernatural elements and this was the primary focus. There wasn’t much of a mystery that needed to be solved in a conventional sense, so although I was engaged, I did not find this to be a page-turner. This will definitely appeal to readers who enjoy supernatural suspenses.

Sisters, Lexi and Jax spent summer's at Sparrow's Crest, their Grandmother's Estate. The pool, fed by the springs, was dark and mysterious. They loved to swim in the pool, especially Lexi. She loved to scare Jax about there being something in the water. Is it their Aunt Rita that had drown in the pool as a child? Lexi believes so. Their Grandmother tells them they cannot go into the pool at night. Is there really something in the water?

In the 1929 Edith and her husband Will, want desperately to have a child. Will takes his wife on a getaway to Brandenburg Springs Hotel and Resort, where Edith becomes friends with the owner's wife, Eliza. where they are told of the Springs healing powers. But are they healing?

As grown ups, Lexi inherits the Estate, and Jax moved far away, bitter that she did not inherit anything. Lexi calls Jax frantically but Lexi won't take her calls. She figures Lexi has gone off her meds and she can't deal with Lexi's mania. Jax gets the upsetting phone call, her sister, Lexi has drown in the pool. Jax returns to Sparrow Crest, with alot guilt for not picking up her sister's calls. She finds the house complete disarray by her sister. What did she discover?

Told in dual timelines from Edith's point of you and Jax's journey to uncover what was going on in her sister's mind. It all ties together in the last pages for a shocking ending.

This is the first book I've read by Jennifer McMahon and I enjoyed it. I was pulled in from the beginning and did not want to put it down.

I'd like to thank NetGalley and Gallery Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This one kept me reading. The two stories (past and present) were equally interesting and suspenseful. You could feel the ache and loneliness of those who were held captive by the pool's waters. Vivid storytelling from the characters, to the setting, to the gut wrenching ending. Highly recommended.

"The Drowning Kind" is deliciously creepy and spooky. The story f0llows two timelines, and two main characters. Ethel, in 1929, is recently married and hopes for a baby. She hopes that the healing powers of the Brandenburg springs can help her conceive the child she longs for.

Jax, in 2019, is a social worker who moved far away from her family to distance herself from her needy, emotionally unstable sister. When her sister suddenly drowns in the pool at the family home, Jax is consumed with guilt and determined to trace the actions of her sisters last days.

I really enjoyed the two different timelines, especially Ethel's story, Her story helped establish the history of the springs very effectively.

Through Ethel we learn about the Brandenburg Hotel, which is built around the springs. People come from all over to enjoy the springs, which have the power to cure blindness and make men walk again. The water is also said to grant wishes, but the water does not give without taking.

Through Jax we learn about her family's long history with the springs. Her great-grandparents bought the land where the Brandenburg Hotel used to sit, and built a large pool for the springs. Her grandmother lived in the house her entire life, never straying far from the family home even though her youngest daughter drowned in the pool as a child. Jax and her sister, Lexie, spent every summer there when they were young and love the house.

The suspense slowly builds in the story, as you discover what prince Ethel must pay for the miracle of her baby and what exactly happened to Lexie--and all the people who have drowned in the pool before her.

I really enjoyed this story by McMahon, and won't hesitate to recommend it.

The Drowning Kind by Jennifer McMahon was my first, but not my last, book by this author. She grabbed me by my fears and shook the daylights out of me. Scared of ghosts--check. Scared of deep dark water--oh yeah. Do I believe that there's always a price to pay? You betcha! If you're like me, this one will keep you shivering from the beginning to the end. I warned you. Don't go near the water.

Thanks to Gallery Books, #NetGalley, and the author of #TheDrowningKind for the ARC in exchange for my honest feedback, this is it!

McMahon's stories are eerie and atmospheric and this was no exception. The setting alone transported the reader into this story and I felt completely immersed while reading this novel.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
This was my first Jennifer McMahon book and I was just medium on it. The cover is gorgeous and the premise sounded promising, but, overall, it was just kind of boring and repetitive. I was never really scared or creeped out, which I expected to be. The characters also were not very well-developed and the ending was pretty predictable. Unless you are a diehard McMahon fan, I would probably skip this.

I've always been told that unanswered prayers are answers in themselves. Wishing for something is one thing, but sometimes, not getting what you wish for is truly best. Told from two different times, The Drowning Kind explores this entire concept with a sinister twist.

IVF wasn't a "thing" back in the late 20's when Ethel is wishing for a baby. Instead, she makes her wish on a "magical" spring. However, having your wish come true means giving something up in return...

When Lexie is found drowned in the pool of her grandmother's estate, Jax learns just what Lexie was doing - digging up the past. As she too picks up the "shovel", she learns exactly what happens when your wishes come true.

While it sounds somewhat magical, it's really metaphorical. Unable to put it down, I was able to read this in 1 sitting and I'm sure that anyone who loves a good mystery with a historical twist will love this one too!

This is one of the better books I’ve reviewed before the publish date! It was creepy, eerie, & very mysterious. I spent the majority of the book wanting to scream at every character to believe Jax because she’s not crazy. The writing style was magnificent. I loved the flip back and forth between past and present while putting together all the pieces of family history. I thought I knew where the book was going then the book took such a turn. The last few pages had my jaw on the ground.

"The spring does not give without taking."

A chilling story involving dark waters that grant wishes, but not in a way the wisher expects. It's told through the POVs of two characters : Jackie (present day), who ignores multiple calls from her mentally ill sister, only to later find out that she has drowned in the pool at their grandmother's house in Vermont. It then switches to Ethel (1929), who hears of a natural healing spring in Vermont and goes there with her husband in hopes that it can grant her wish of having a child. The back and forth helps provide history and intrigue as well as ups the creep-factor, especially when they start to intersect.

This is the second book from Jennifer McMahon that I've read and I've noticed that she really has that "beautifully atmospheric writing" thing down. The suspense is built well, the story is haunting, and the characters are very interesting. The kind of book that you get pulled into and end up staying up late to finish. However, the lack of five stars for this is in that staying up late to finish and finding the ending to be somewhat anti-climactic. There's also a few threads left hanging, which is both frustrating and disappointing because it seemed like they were important.

Unfortunately, I can't do half stars on the ratings, so just pretend it says 3.5 stars. It's really good, up until the very end.

Thanks to Netgalley for a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is definitely a page turner. Once I started, I could not stop until I was done.

If you like a bit of folk lore, haunting, ghost stories, family secrets and everything that goes with; then this is the book for you. Jennifer McMahon does not disappoint in her latest.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Gallery Books for this advanced readers copy. This book is due to release in April 2021.

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Sisters bond through childhoods spent with their grandmother. They swim in a spring fed pool that is believed to have both healing and mystical powers.

I LOVED THIS BOOK! I will forever recommend it to anyone who loves a good creepy story. There are aspects of historical fiction as the timeline changes between the 1930's and current time, yet Sparrow Crest's mysterious springs remain unchanged. The suspense builds throughout the story, and I continually found myself questioning Jax and her sanity. Even at the end, I still had questions, and I was completely surprised. I would say that the only thing I hesitated about is that there were a few points that weren't really resolved at the end, so I wasn't sure if they were really needed in the story, or if they were just red herrings.