The Woman in the Library is very much an intellectual, classical who done it mystery. I liked the twist of the author writing to the fan, and the characters finding an unlikely friendship through unlikely scenarios. At times, it seemed a little slow burn and dry, but overall strong literary mystery.

Inception but in writer/book style. A story within a story within a story. At first I thought the letter POV chapters were annoying and out of place, but in the end they tie the story together. I liked the characters and felt there was good development throughout plus a good mystery that kept you guessing. Overall a good story!

Great thrilling summer read! I loved the layered mystery and had to pay close attention, as there was a story within the story. Do not want to say to much as it may give the story away. Thoroughly enjoyed!

This is my first read by this author and I will definitely be seeking out more from her.

I want to thank NetGalley, Sulari Gentill and Poisoned Pen Press for the e-ARC of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are honest, my own and left voluntarily.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill.

Freddie is an Australian working in Boston as a writer, using whatever characters and plot points at her disposal. But one day while in the library, there is a terrible scream that instantly bonds Freddie to the young academics around her, Whit, Cain, and Marigold. It doesn't take long until they learn that the scream came from a woman who was found murdered, and now they are all being questioned. Not just questioned though, attacked. Could one of them have something to do with it, and are the others in danger?

I loved this book for it's really fun way of breaking the fourth wall, something you'll see when you read it. I loved the outside letters and relationship happening around the story, so interesting and super creepy! My only complaint that that I feel like the outer story didn't quite match up with the core story like it had the potential too. Just my personal opinion.

First off, Thank you to netgalley, the publisher and the author for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. These opinions are my own.

DNF at 50%. Im not sure if my mood just wasn't right or if it was the story itself. I was feel unconnected to the characters and uninterested in the story. I do however plan to pick this one back up in the future to see if its just simply that my mood was off when I started it.

The Woman in the Library is a smart, subtle thriller. A great summer read! I really appreciated the unique format of this book - an author is writing a manuscript, as well as corresponding with another author about her work... the mysteries are layered and perfectly put together. The nuances of the relationships between the characters in the manuscript plus the authors (Hannah and Leo) are so great. You really have to be paying attention with this one!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced ebook copy. All opinions are my own.

A clever murder mystery inside a story. Four people are in the Boston library when a woman screams. The woman in the library. But as with all good murder mysteries things are not as they seem. A gentle murder mystery with a little kick in the tale.

This starts with four strangers while in the Reading Room of the Boston Public Library, hear a woman's scream. The group of four develop a friendship and find themselves trying to solve the mystery. Within the story is another story of the author of the manuscript corresponding with Leo, a fan, who isn't what he seems. The story and premise were definitely interesting.

A promising description, that lacked in execution and elaboration. The concept of story within a story was interesting at first, but I found myself barely attentive while reading. 3 stars cos the audiobook helped me finish reading this! I guess I wasn’t in the mood for this murder mystery.

Thank you Sourcebooks via Netgalley for the reader’s copy.

A story is hidden inside another story about a writer’s building another thriller story: are you confused with the story line reminding us of smart thriller book version of Inception screenplay! But not everything is as clear cut as it might appear.

Each chapter of Hannah’s book, is followed by the latest correspondence from Leo, who becomes more and more invested in her novel, as Freddie’s story progresses. There are TWO mysteries-one for each author, and BOTH were equally as engaging!

I loved the idea of this clever mystery within a mystery. The way the fictional reality in the story played alongside the fictional in a unique format. The different plots/ two stories playing out chapter by chapter.

Thank you to netgalley for providing an e-galley for review. This was an interesting set up. An author is writing a story to catch a killer, from Australia and her suspect is in Boston! I would have liked to have more of the "reality" story, but this was such a compelling read! Short review because I don't want to give too much away!

Four unsuspecting strangers find themselves working at the same shared table in the Boston Public Library when an ear-shattering scream that sets off a string of murders. Worst of all, this foursome finds themselves in the dead center of the investigation. Will their newfound friendship be the exact key to them solving this mystery? The clock is ticking!

This story gives me a lot of the same energy as A Good Girl's Guide to Murder: a classic who-done-it murder mystery with fun characters, sans gore. It's a fun and quick read, so if you're looking for depth or twists and turns, maybe look elsewhere. There is a rather confusing element to the story. The protagonist is in the library writing a book about four strangers, which parallels the main story here, so it's hard to decipher what is real and what is part of her fictional world. Then, she sends her edits to her publisher/editor, and the story incorporates this feedback? It's all done to create an air of confusion as to what is attributed to the story you're reading versus the story being written, which distracted me. Just something to bear in mind before you begin!

What a way to write a novel!
As we move through each chapter of this murderous plot, we also get a reviewer who is providing some increasingly dark and dreary feedback to the author.
It was so cool getting to read this whodunit and then being drawn back out and into "reality" as our reviewer both criticizes our author but also shows a sort of strange fascination and stalker status for them.

The actual content pertaining to the "Woman in the Library" sees four strangers linked together by an unfortunate event (see murder mentioned above) as they navigate a new friendship/relationship. Each with secrets of their own, we find out how each of them came to be in the library at that moment in time. But who is telling the truth and who is hiding their connection to the deceased and why?

Special thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the advance copy.

📚 THE WOMAN IN THE LIBRARY by Sulari Gentil 📚

🍷 Drink pairing: A classic glass of chardonnay! Honestly needed a glass of wine while reading this to calm my nerves 😂
Thank you to NetGalley and SourceBooks for the gifted ARC in exchange for my honest review!

🌟 Review: Murder in a library and authors are solving the case? Say no more. This book was a wild ride! It took me a little to get into it, but once I did I binged it in one sitting. There were SO many twists and turns and I loved the concept of how we were reading a novel that was in the works and being actively written. The characters were well developed and I honestly was suspicious of everyone for the majority of the entire book. At the end, I saw the twist coming but was still happy with how it played out and how the characters respectively found out “whodunnit”! Overall - highly recommend to any mystery/book lovers!

I loved this book so much! I was waiting for it for months lol this is my first netgalley review so i don’t want to give too much away. The Woman In the Library summed up in one word: mystery. It keeps you GUESSING!! It demands your full attention from the start, and even after you finish it. To me, that’s the perfect mystery book when it requires a lot of after thoughts. Thank you so much for giving me this copy! I loved the book and recommend it

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. The Woman in the Library initially caught my attention because well, it deals with a library, writers and a murder mystery. It also contains an interesting concept of a story within a story, using a frame for the rest of the story.
With that said, however, I could easily put this book down. For some reason, it just did not hold my interest. The characters were not very interesting, and the storyline moved at a slow pace.
While there were a few unexpected twists along the way, I totally knew whodunnit before the end of the book. I think getting to the end of the book was anticlimactic, and the frame story ended abruptly. That part could have been developed to be a much more interesting and integral part of the novel. It felt like the author kind of gave up or became too bogged down trying to carry both storylines all the way to the finish.
This book had potential, but for me, it didn’t quite reach it.

This was a literary thriller with a thriller and I enjoyed the fast-paced plot thoroughly. I really liked all of the characters but I felt the plot was a little jumbled getting closer to the end. I did like the plot and I couldn't put it down. I might have to read it again to get all the puzzling motives.

Thank you to Netgalley for my advanced readers copy in lieu for an honest review.

I loved the premise of this book, the book within a book, how a book is written, and the fact that it takes place in Boston was a bonus. I think this book would have very wide appeal and I love that the killer was not readily apparent.

I'm so torn by this book. On one end, it kept me intrigued. On the other end, it felt like a big ole mess. I'll be honest, I still have no idea what actually happened in the end. There were just so many characters and it's written as a story within a story, and some overlapping characters, just became so jumbled. It also didn't feel like it added to the story, it more so detracted and took us out of the story.

Within the story you have an author (Hannah) writing a story, but we never hear from her. We only hear from a beta reading fan who quickly becomes... a lot. He writes to her after each chapter of her story and provides thoughts which turn very concerning. It was weird that we never hear back from the author to his messages. Add to it that he starts talking about Covid and telling her she should include it in her novel. It felt SOOO out of place.

The characters within the story of the story were tough to feel attached to. They were falling in love with one another after only a few weeks and not knowing anything about each other. And because of this they constantly overlook very serious concerns for the other characters actions, It felt very uncomfortable.

I can't say that I would recommend; it seems that a lot of readers have been very disappointed for similar reasons.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Poison Pen Press for an e-arc of this novel.. It was enjoyable. I would give it a 3 1/2 stars rounded up to a 4 star rating.

This novel is really a story within a story. I really enjoyed the main story line. The secondaray story line I think could have been left out.

The writing was good and the characters were likable. Overall, a good read.