The Drowning Kind is an adult paranormal thriller about a family that has both gained and lost loved ones to the waters of the natural springs on their property in rural Vermont,

The book is told in alternating POV’s between current day Jax and Agatha in the late 1920’s. Jax has just received the devastating news that her sister Lexie has drowned on the grounds of their ancestral family home. And Agatha is starting to suspect that her blissful marriage might be one without any children. As Jax seeks answers to her sister’s sudden death Agatha discovers an unusual solution to her infertility. Both women, born generations apart will have to face the consequences of asking the waters for miracles and what it might take in return.

The Drowning Kind is spooky and atmospheric and similar to books like Pet Semetary it asks what would you do to save the people you love even if it means sacrifices you can’t imagine. The reader feels for all characters because each woman is both drawn to and repulsed by the springs. They can’t leave it behind but they also can’t bear to see what is looking back when they stare into it’s dark depths.

I highly recommend this one for readers and audiobook listeners that like their thriller with a side of paranormal horror and family drama.

My audiobook copy was provided by NetGalley and the publisher for review purposes.

First, I want to thank NetGalley, Simon and Schuster Audio, and Jennifer McMahon for my audio ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Synopsis: When Jax, a social worker, receives nine missed calls from her sister, Lexie, Jax assumes Lexie is in one of her manic episodes. Jax has pushed her sister away for the last year for these reasons. But the next day, Lexie is dead. She drowned in their deceased grandmother’s pool they swam all their life. When Jax arrives at the estate, she discovers Lexie was looking into the history of the property and their family.
From another view point, in 1929, thirty-seven year old Newlywed, Ethel, is desperately hoping for a child. Her husband whisks her away to the newest hotel with a spring to get her mind off their current infertility. Ethel learns that the spring will grant wishes but she doesn’t realize the spring also takes.

Rating: 3.75/5

I was really excited to listen to this audio on my long commute to work! I was interested to find out more about the story because the synopsis seemed to give a lot of information away. As the story unfolded, I learned the story had more twists to come! The story gave me a Tuck Everlasting vibes with a creepy spin- even better!!

I found it interesting of the two perspectives from 2019 and 1929 as it was a long time between. At first, I thought I wouldn’t be interested in Ethel’s side. I found her to be very interesting and I emphasized with her infertility issues. I sure was rooting for her and her husband to have a child!

I found Jax to be very relatable at first, especially professionally as a social worker. Her career was very fitting and made perfect sense for the story! When she arrived to Sparrowcrest, I found her to be more difficult to relate to. Her grief was as normal as grief could be, but there was almost too much detail at time that seemed unnecessary. I also felt some of the chapters for Jax were very long and I found myself hoping for the next chapter.

The story; however, was intertwined beautifully and I loved the flashbacks of Jax and Lexie at Sparrowcrest. I felt as there was a cliff hanger that made the story really interesting. **SPOILER ALERT**
Did Declan really call the house phone? It was this in Lexie’s mind?? Beautifully done to make the reader question.

Overall, the story was a haunting, eerie, slow burn, but worth the ending. There were a few twists I didn’t see coming although I was really unsure how the story would unfold. I will definitely remember this story anytime I’m near a body of water and likely get chills. And remember, be careful what you wish for.

I'll start off with saying it was an interesting idea and all, but I did not find myself caring for any of the characters. I liked the eerie atmosphere and how natural springs are said to heal you but there's a cost down the line (unknowingly for some). The characters seemed flat to me and some questions were never answered so I still don't know how or why things occured. Also, Jax is supposed to work with individuals with psychiatric disorders and keeps referring to her sister as going crazy.
Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for providing me with this audiobook.

Thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster audio for the ARC of this audio book.

Jax pushed her sister Lexie away for over a year to get away from her manic episodes. She moves away and ignores her phone calls. One day when Lexie calls and Jax decides to call her back, she gets no answer. The next day, Lexie is dead: drowned in the pool at their grandmother’s estate. Jax begins digging into the history of her grandmother's estate and learns others have drown in that same pool. It has been said that the pool grants wishes, but not without taking something in return....

I went into this book after just having read "The Winter People" by Jennifer McMahon, which is one of my favorites reads! In my opinion, this book isn't as good as "The Winter People", but the book was creepy and left you guessing. Much like "The Winter People" it bounces back and forth between past and present day. The book is very well written and I enjoyed the storyline. The audio book had good narrators as well. If you like Jennifer McMahon's writing, read this book. A great read!

This was the first book I have read by this author. I had seen this book around Instagram and was curious, but didn’t know much about it beyond that. It turned out to be another amazingly creepy supernatural thriller.

I loved the pacing of this book. The chapters switch between present-day from Jax’s perspective and the 1920s from Ethel’s perspective. I enjoyed trying to parse out what the two timelines had to do with each other.

I found Jax to be a reasonable relatable MC. I was uncomfortable with her dismissal of her sister’s rants as part of her bipolar disorder, but I can see how this is a very human reaction to dealing with a close family member who has this disorder. Jax was a social worker, though, so I think I would have expected her to have a bit more patience for Lexie and tried to help her a bit more.

Suspension of belief is definitely required to enjoy this read, as there were some plot holes. However, I found the premise interesting enough to be able to overlook these gaps.

I’ve had mixed feelings about supernatural thrillers in general, and I somewhat prefer when they have real-world explanations to the supernatural elements.

For the audiobook review, these narrators were great. No complaints here!

First line: “The dead have nothing to fear,” Lexie said.

Summary: Lexie and Jackie spend each summer at their grandmother’s house in Brandenberg, Vermont. They love the lazy days in the natural spring pool in the backyard. But they have to follow their grandmother’s strict rules about the pool. But years later after Lexie inherits the house, she is found dead in the pool. Was it an accidental drowning or something more sinister?

Its 1929, Ethel Monroe and her new husband, Will, decide to take a weekend away at the new hotel in Brandenberg. As they arrive in town they hear people talking about the mysterious springs located behind the hotel. Some say the water has healing powers. Others claim it is cursed. The Monroe’s don’t know what to believe as they arrive at the hotel. But after Ethel strikes up a friendship with the hotel owner’s wife she learns that there is more to the springs than even the locals know.

My Thoughts: I loved how the author weaved in the paranormal with the thriller. I could never decide which was more prominent in the story. Is it a ghost story or a mystery? Or maybe it’s both? I was quickly caught up in the mystery of the springs. I sped through the chapters as I read, listened to the audiobook at a higher speed and needed to finish it as soon as I could.

It seems that dual timelines is a big theme lately. Nearly every story I have read in the last few months have had this style. I like it but I do like a simple timeline as well.

I wished we could have gotten more of Lexie, especially the adult Lexie before she drowned. We got looks at her as a child but I wish we could have seen more of her side of the story.

The ending was truly chilling. That last chapter was so well written. I didn’t get the twist until the very end.

FYI: Death, drowning, self-harm, drinking and ghosts.

Jennifer McMahon never disappoints. She is a master of the spooky, unexplained world. The Drowning Kind is a story of two sisters, Lexie and Jackie. Jackie, who is a social worker, has a complicated relationship with her sister who struggles with mental issues. Jackie ignores calls from her sister for several weeks and is horrified to discover that Lexie has drowned in the pool at her late grandmother's estate in Vermont. She travels there to take care of the arrangements and discovers that Lexie had been researching her family history, and the origins of the natural pool on the estate, where Lexie eventually drowned. Jackie gets drawn into the legends regarding the pool, mainly its power to grant wishes.

I really enjoyed this book. Thank you to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for allowing me to enjoy this audiobook.

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Audio for this ARC!

Overall, I think this was a decent book with an intriguing plotline about two sisters, Jax and Lexie. Jax misses 9 calls from her sister Lexie who is bipolar and Jax assumes that these calls are a manic episode. But come to find out Lexie is dead and drowned in the pool at their grandmother's estate. This story is told in two timelines, the current and the past back in the 1920s. The story follows as Jax is trying to put together what happened to Lexie and she starts researching the history of their family and the property.

I think Jennifer McMahon did a good job at character development and describing the pool in when Lexie drowned amazingly. Throughout the story, you actually come to think of the pool as it's own creepy character. The story is a good ghost story. However, I found myself not invested in any of the characters and it wasn't a story that I couldn't put down. In fact, it took quite sometime to finish this audiobook.

Additionally, it bothered me that Jax refers to her several time throughout the book as "going crazy" when she's supposed to be a social worker working with patients with psychiatric disorders. You'd think she'd have more of an understanding of these situations.

OMG! This book is definitely one of Jennifer McMahon's BEST! I loved every minute. So creepy and atmospheric. Jackie is a social worker living in Tacoma, Washington, about as far as she could get from her bi-polar sister, Lexi. Lexi inherited the old family mansion complete w/ fresh springs pool in Vermont. But there is something, ahem, wrong, w/ the pool. Many creepy stories surround it has claimed more than a few lives.
Jax hasn't spoken to Lexi in a year when she gets the call that her sister, the best swimmer, has drowned in the pool. Suicide? An accident? A murder? Can Jax solve the mystery of the pool before it's too late for her?

*Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio version and an early e-ARC.*

I have yet to read a book by McMahon that I didn’t enjoy. She is fantastic at atmospheric creepy vibes-which is what I love.
This book is written with alternating timelines form the POV of two different women. Both timelines are focused on mineral springs water that while offers healing properties and may possibly even grant wishes also takes as it give. Reading this is like waiting for the other shoe
to drop. You constantly feel uneasy and are waiting to see how these stories will connect. The ending was awesome and the narration was fantastic. I highly recommend it.
Many thanks to Netgalley, Gallery Books and Jennifer McMahon for my ARC.

The Drowning Kind is a mystery told in 2 different storylines. I enjoy 2 storyline books because I like trying to solve how the characters are connected. This book was no different in that regard! I was constantly trying to figure out how the characters fit into each other’s storylines, I was close, but I did miss some parts. I liked the characters and the bond between sisters. I am not a big fan of “ghost stories” so when it took a supernatural turn, I lost a little interest. I enjoyed the narrator and thought she did a great job with the different characters. I also liked how the book tied up the loose ends in the end. Overall, this book was enjoyable!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced audio copy in exchange for an honest review.

I realized that I didn't want to continue reading about servile female characters. The concept is somewhat interesting but the book couldn't hold my interest.

The Drowning Kind by Jennifer McMahon⁣
🌟🌟🌟💫⁣
⁣
What a dark, creepy and twisty read! ⁣
⁣
The book was a bit of a slow starter for me, which is understandable when developing more than on storyline. I love interconnected stories, getting nuggets of information and puzzling them together. ⁣
⁣
McMahon does a great job of keeping you guessing ,never sure what is reality.⁣
⁣
This is the first book I've read from this author, but it will not be the last.

The narration was good, I believe both narrator voices added to the story, one in sheer unsettling creepiness and the other in love and adoration.

Big thanks to NetGalley, Scout Press, and Simon Schuster Audio for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

This ghost story is told from two perspectives: that of Jax, the sister of a young woman who has recently drowned at “The Springs,” and Ethel Monroe, known more as Mrs. Monroe than Ethel, in the late 1920s and early 1930s. The narrative swings back and forth between the two, with the only connection being their location until mid-book when their full connection becomes clearer. Nothing is really completely clear in the book, with events that seem to be supernatural but which the reader, like Jax, attempts to bring under logical scrutiny.

I listed to this book, which is narrated by two women (one for each of the two perspectives). Jax’ narrator brings her no-nonsense approach to life as she is confronted with seemingly impossible events, while Mrs. Monroe’s narrator helps the listener see the character as more ethereal. Mrs. Monroe’s sections move at a slower pace, more reflective of the time, than do Jax’ sections. This is all very well done, with the sections coming together over time but each fully engaging the listener.

The writing about the location is evocative and, whether it is in present times or in the past, the reader/listener will feel as though they have actually been to Brandenburg, Vermont.

There’s a twist at the end of this book that reminds me of a movie from the late 90s that shall remain nameless. If you saw the movie and you read the book, you’ll know what I mean. The reader gets a little warning of what’s coming, but only a very small bit and only at the end of the book. I’m not surprised to see that Simone St. James gave this book a 5-star rating on Goodreads, since there are similarities to St. James’ The Sun Down Motel.

Thank you NetGalley for the ALC!

I dove into this book without reading the synopsis, and I'm glad I did. I loved listening to the mysterious story unfold.

The story toggles back and forth between the point of view of Ethel Monroe in 1929 and Lexie's in present day. Ethel Monroe is drawn to spring that is showcased by a smart, new hotel in Vermont. Meanwhile, Lexie revisits her old home when she learns her sister has drowned in their grandmother's pool.

What connects these two women is slowly revealed throughout the course of the novel.

I requested this book because I loved the eerie atmosphere of the Winter People, and The Drowning Kind is even better with its macabre feel and slow burn. McMahon's writing is crisp as she examines the lives of these 2 very different women, and how they are both drawn to the inexplicable power of something that's right in their own backyards.

This book was thrilling and totally gave me goosebumps. I love how the author doesn't fully explain everything and lets the reader draw their own conclusions. The ending is just so shocking, yet presented so subtly that I had to listen to it twice! (P.S. I was also super creeped out when I was listening to certain parts of it that I had to make sure to stop listening when it got dark)..

I really enjoyed it and highly recommend it!

This book gives a whole new meaning to the adage be careful what you wish for!! Jax is a social worker who returns to her family home after her sister Lexi is found dead in the pool. Ethel is a wife in the 1920's who wants to have a child more than anything. The story follows these two timelines to unwind a history of strange occurrences that center around a natural spring on the property. The water is believed to have healing powers, but Jax and Ethel both learn there is more to it than that. This is a super creepy tale that makes me oh so glad that I don't have a pool!! Thank you @netgalley and @simonandschuster for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This poignant and ethereal story is nothing less than an outstanding literary masterpiece! As I slowly approached the close of the epilogue, I felt shivers all over my body.

My full book review will be posted soon on my book review blog site.

This was a very creepy and chilling audiobook! It kept me on my toes and questioning what would come next and how the characters were all connected. There were parts of the story that dragged on and I found to be unnecessary, however did not overall stop me from wanting to continue the book - or rate it poorly!

The book is written alternating between two women during two different time periods - all surrounding water found on a property in the Northeast. Although this sounds like it may be confusing, it is not. You spend much of the story questioning the connection between these two women and the property.

Present Day, Jax, a social worker, learns that her sister Lexie, drowns at the pool in their grandmother’s estate. Jax arrives at the house, confused, as her sister was an incredibly strong swimmer. Over time, she discovers that her sister was researching the property and her family. Learning that the past and land hold many dark secrets.

1929, Ethel Monroe, a newlywed, wishes at a natural spring in Vermont for a baby. After learning of her pregnancy, she learns that the water grants wishes, but also takes just as much as it gives. Will she and her husband be able to avoid heartbreak?

Throughout the story I felt uneasy and untrustworthy of the stories being told. Never knowing when something new would be thrown my way. Is there something special and haunted about the water or property? Are the characters assuming things or is there something else going on? And how are these two stories connected? Jennifer McMahon is an incredibly talented author, writing a story that keeps you questioning what will happen next.

Thank you to Netgalley, Gallery Books and Jennifer McMahon for my advanced reader copy!

This spooky ghost story is told in two timelines – 1929 and 2019, with Ethel the early speaker, and Jax our current. The story centers around a beautiful natural spring that appears to have the power to heal and grant your wishes, but always at a personal cost. Both timelines are so well written, and drew you deeper into the story of the spring. It was nice and creepy, and I had a hard time putting it down at night, just one more chapter. A great follow up to the The Winter People. If you are looking for a good night read, with a candle as your only light and maybe the wind howling outside, then this is for you!

2.5/5
I was thrilled when I was approved to listen to this early release! The cover is stunning, the synopsis piqued my interest, and McMahon is an author I’ve seen around social media with rave reviews for The Winter People. I dove in with pretty high expectations.
Unfortunately, this book wasn’t for me. I found it difficult to get into - I couldn’t connect with any of the characters. I did appreciate the haunting atmosphere and some parts really creeped me out!
While this particular title wasn’t my favorite, I am interested in reading The Winter People.

Thank you so much for this opportunity!