Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC and review opportunity of The Newcomer by Mary Kay Andrews. I had every intention of reading this, but after the author's recent behavior on bookstagram towards other bookstagrammers that I do not condone, I will not be reading or supporting her work.

After she discovers her sister Tanya dead on the floor of her fashionable New York City
townhouse, Letty Carnahan is certain she knows who did it: Tanya’s ex; sleazy real estate
entrepreneur Evan Wingfield. Even in the grip of grief and panic Letty heeds her late sister’s
warnings: “If anything bad happens to me—it’s Evan. Promise me you’ll take Maya and run.
Promise me.” So Letty grabs her sister’s Mercedes and hits the road . . .

As Mary Kay Andrews recently wrote on instagram post near the end of December 2020, "Dear [person's first name], that book you just devoured in hours and trashed, in minutes, tooth author months to write. you followers are delighting haha! in this trashing. As a fellow author who's been on the receiving end of n'honest review' I can say that it hurts. Deeply. No matter how successful you are, that pain lingers and erodes your sense of self worth. Bud you do you." This was in connection and support to another author openly bashing a reviewer. After I saw this, I wrote NG and said I would not be able to review this due to the mistreatmeant and bullying Mary Kay Andrews was doing to us reviewers but I was told that wasn't possible.  The note that came with my approval for this copy asked for honest reviews. I cannot in good faith take my time to read and review a book for someone who does not appreciate the time we put into reviewing. And this deeply saddens me.

Pros - the summary and the cover were nice, which is what drew me to the book.

This is a newer to me author, but of the books I’ve read so far, I really like her books!  This one was a bit different than others I’ve read by her, but it was just as amazing as the other ones.  Letty and her 4 year old niece Maya are on the run after Letty shows up to pick up Maya for a girls day, only to find her sister (and Maya’s mother) has been murdered.  Her sister Tanya had warned Letty that if anything ever happened to her, the culprit would be Evan, Maya’s father and Tanya’s ex-boyfriend and if anything happens Letty is to take Maya and run in order to keep Maya away from him.  They end up at a beachfront hotel, and Letty and Maya quickly become like family to the owner.  As things heat up and Evan starts searching for them there are some other interesting developments that occur that link Tanya to the hotel Letty and Maya are at.  No spoilers but OMG I could not put this book down!  So much happened, the characters were all so well written, especially the other guests at the hotel who all end up playing a part in the story.  Love love love this one!!

Great beach read...keep you turning the pages and excited about were the story was going.  Fun setting and characters!

The Newcomer follows the story of Letty who after finding her sister murdered takes her niece and runs. It wasn't my favorite book.  The characters felt under developed and the story line felt like a Hallmark movie or a book I had read before. However, there is comfort in reading a book you feel like you've read before.

I loved that this story was a bit different for MKA!  It was set during summer but in Florida this time and had some suspense thrown in throughout most of the story.  There was definitely family drama and love which her stories are known for but this story added another layer.

Mary Kay Andrews never disappoints, and her newest, The Newcomer might be my very favorite yet!  LOVED this book...has a little mystery, a little romance, and characters that you love and are rooting for.  Great book to read on the beach, in the mountains, or anywhere you can.  Will hook you from the first page until the last!  

Thank you to netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

This book has it all mystery, deep family love, quirky characters and some romance.  The characters where believable. This is going to be a great summer read when it comes out.

This book had me hooked from the first page! My curiosity was piqued, keeping glued to each page. The author reveals answers to gripping questions as the story layers are slowly peeled back. While you are trying to determine who did it and what happens next, the author wraps you in a wonderful cocoon of family created at the hotel. A menagerie of misfits that just fit, each adding to the story in a way you would never suspect. The varying personalities brought realism and definite humor! I found myself really enjoying their antics. I greatly appreciated that the plot kept me on my toes, was suspenseful and intriguing. This story is a romantic suspense, but really to me, it’s mostly about family or the family that is formed by the bonds developed amongst the hotel regulars. A well told and captivating read!

Letty grabbed her niece, 4-year-old Maya, and the to go bag her sister Tanya instructed her to take if anything happened to her.  Tanya is dead, most likely killed by her ex and powerful but corrupt Evan.  Tanya, not wanting to relinquish custody of Maya, informed Evan she would talk about all his illicit activities if he threatened to take Maya.  Letty found an out of the way motel in Florida and is hiding out.  The manager loves having Letty and Maya there but her son, detective Joe.  feels there is something going on.  This book is wonderful!  Warm romance, mystery that will keep you guessing, thriller as Letty is discovered, and full of humor as the residents who stay over the summer at the motel believe they own the place.  Everyone is enchanted by Letty and her niece Maya.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of The Newcomer!

The Newcomer fell a bit flat for me. Somehow it felt both hurried in its plot yet too lengthy. We meet Letty and Maya as they've arrived in Florida at The Murmuring Surf, "on the run" after discovering Letty's sister and Maya's mother, Tanya, dead in her NYC apartment. It takes quite a bit of time for the plot to unravel without much happening in the meantime. Once we finally get to the resolution of the plot, it doesn't feel very satisfying. Unfortunately, this is a novel where the description of the plot makes it sound a lot more exciting than it really is. It ended up being much less of a "whodunnit" than it was made out to be. 

There are many remaining questions about characters that aren't quite fleshed out, especially with Rooney and Evan. I don't need realism in my beach read since MKA's books are always an escape for me, but the characters' behavior was often inconsistent with their status in life or previous experiences (ESPECIALLY Joe - I don't want to say too much because it would spoil things, but his complete dismissal of a BOLO about a presumed kidnapped child is disturbing...). I didn't particularly like any of the characters. I usually love MKA's female leads, but I just didn't connect with Letty at all. It didn't feel as if she was the main character; I ultimately knew more about Tanya by the end of the book than I did Letty.

I'm hoping MKA's next release will offer her usual characters with more depth and a plot that isn't so convoluted.

When Letty finds her sister, Tanya, dead, in her New York townhouse, she does what she has to do.  She grabs her four year old niece, and hits the road, putting as many miles away from the crime scene, as she can.  This story is full of family dynamics, eclectic characters, wonderful setting, and page turning mystery.  Great beach read, or, great curl up in front of fire, read.  5 stars!

I throughly enjoyed The Newcomer! It’s a beach read, family drama and murder mystery rolled into one. I felt an immediate connection to the characters, their pain, fear and emotions. The moments of suspense kept me reading and turning pages to discover how it would end. 
4 stars.

The Newcomer by Mary Kay Andrews will definitely be a hot book for Summer 2021.

Letty finds her sister Tanya dead, and she knows she has to go on the run with her four-year-old niece Maya. She knows this because Tanya warned her before she died that something might happen to her, and if it did, Letty should blame her ex. 

From that start, readers follow Letty and Maya as they flee to Florida where Letty will meet a cast of characters, including potential love interest-slash-local police detective Joe. 

It's the classic mix of love and intrigue from Andrews. It's perhaps a bit long, but it'll be an enjoyable summer read for fans. 

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book. All thoughts are my own.

“If anything bad happens to me—it’s Evan. Promise me you’ll take Maya and run.
Promise me.”
A life in peril. A disaster in the making. A con artist able to manipulate, gaslight, and terrorize an entire family.
Nobody knew the real Evan. However, he's had a history of abuse. A man that would do anything to save face, to receive a source of supply, to replenish his benefits for himself. A selfish man devoid of empathy. A man that literally sold out his own for the sake of himself.
A family should be primary concern above all else. It should by your top priority.
In this case 'tax dodger' was a more fitting terminology for this madman who destroyed the very thing he claimed to love with no remorse.
When Tanya was murdered it was their only daughter who was left to deal with the disturbing trauma. A trauma so devastating that it caused Letty to take Maya and flee for their lives.
This story is the remarkable journey on the run, hiding in hotels, seeking justice for Tanya and Maya.
The money trail was vast but the murder trail was anything but easily enforced. After all, for abuse victims we have to wait till we are harmed before sadly anything can be done. Threats are not necessarily against the law. It's the action to carry them out that violated any rules.
This hit home deeply because I lived a similar lifestyle while fighting for custody and child support. Prior to those filings being brought to court I spent many nights out at local hotels to protect us all and would call them 'mini vacations' for our kids safety.
I'll never forget the calls upon him uncovering the truth that I not only filed for support but also for protection from abuse.
In my case my abuser violated both with warrants and his arrest imminent but not till 15k arrears accrued.
Trust me it was a nightmare but one that those who survived malignant narcissism no all too well.
The fact that wills were discussed, marital assets, transfer of titles/property deeds, hiding of bank accounts into offshore funds was something many of us know all too well.
You have to protect yourself from these toxic individuals as they don't stop until you're destroyed!
Hiring someone to do one's dirty deeds was never a concern in my case but in this one it was central and pivotal to this masterful plot.
As a longtime fan of Mary Kay Andrews she simply gets better with each novel. She's like a glass of fine wine. Aging gracefully and beautifully.
There's nothing I didn't love in this book. It flowed incredibly well. It was a super mystery from the start. It felt like you were literally on a Bonny and Clyde scenario watching over your shoulder at all times.
An incredible and exhilarating new work that I highly recommend.
I'm thrilled that the ending worked out the way it did into the epilogue.

This is a very fun beach read! (Okay, none of us can go to the beach right now, but this is *almost* as if you went to stay in a motel in Florida yourself.) A bit soapy, a bit mysterious, with a handsome, kind hero... What more could you want in an escapist read? 

THE NEWCOMER follows Letty and her four-year-old niece Maya, who, fleeing New York after Letty's sister is murdered, find themselves living at the Murmuring Surf, a Florida motel run by kind Ava and home to an eclectic cast of elderly regulars who summer at the motel. The book is zippy but also dwells on its characters, paying attention not only to the central conflicts--the murder of Letty's sister Tanya, and an old crime that Tanya herself may have committed--but also to the day-to-day of raising a four-year-old in a motel room and finding a new community after your world has been shaken apart. Overall, THE NEWCOMER is a fun, easy women's fiction read that feels like a vacation in itself.

The Newcomer is another great book by Mary Kay Andrews. It follows the main character as she flees NY with her sister’s daughter after she finds her sister dead. She heads to Florida to hide out in a little motel after finding the name circled in a magazine article of her dead sisters. Her journey brings her south as she strives to grieve with her niece while trying to figure out what happened to her sister. Great book! Definitely had some surprises in there!

The Newcomer is a novel by Mary Kay Andrews. It has a main character named Letty who is on the run with her 4 year old niece. She began running after her sister was brutally murdered. She runs to a motel in Florida where the owner befriends her and helps her and the niece who's name is Maya. The mystery was easily predictable and that's ok. The characters were very likable. I laughed throughout the book at the small town vibe I felt. It was a good read I just felt like the story drug out for way too long. It was an enjoyable beach kind of read, but it definitely could have been a hundred pages shorter. I got a little bored toward the end. Thank you NetGally for the chance to read this!!!

The Newcomer: A Novel by Mary Kay Andrews was an excellent read. Ms. Andrews has been a very good author but her last two novels have shown a definite growth in her work. I would definitely recommend this book as well as Ms. Andrews previous novels.

Absolutely loved The Newcomer.  The setting was a fun little motel on the coast in Florida.  My parents and grandparents were snowbirds in Florida, so it was especially fun to read about all of the Bingo games and shuffleboard games, etc.  I loved the development of the snowbird characters.  I think it really captured their lives down there.  

The Newcomer was part romance, part mystery.  I highly recommend this book and would love to join them at the motel for a week sometime.  

Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley for an ARC of this book.