This one was middle of the road for me. I expected it to be a huge summer winner, but it fell somewhat flat for me.

Received a digital ARC of this via NetGalley. While I felt the beginning seemed a bit slow, it had an interesting twist that made the rest of the story much more compelling.

I have so many questions after finishing this book.

Starting off on a positive note, I stayed up well past my bedtime to finish this one - 2:45 a.m. I couldn't put it down!

But.

I was left with so many questions about so many plot holes. One that seriously impacts the murder, and others that just make for too many coincidences in the story.

As someone who reads a lot of mysteries, I thought this one was very unique. The "story within a story" involves a mystery writer who is in a library when she hears a scream. She forms a bond with the three people she is sitting with, and they begin to try to solve the mystery. As the book progresses, you realize that this narrative is actually a book being written by another writer; we get to read the correspondence the writer receives from a fan/reviewer, which becomes its own story. Confusing? A bit - but it keeps you engaged and thinking!

I liked the premise (murder in a library!) and the structure of the book was really clever. At times I was frustrated with the characters and their behaviour (I wouldn't have formed bonds with these strangers so quickly, I don't think). If you are a fan of mysteries and feel like books recently have been a lot of the same plot, this is a well-written change.

I was lucky to receive an advance copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review and opinion. This was a very interesting read as it's basically a story within a story and I found myself really having to focus to keep everything straight. I thought it was good read but can't say it was one of my favorite reads. Lots of twists and turns.

This one feel flat for me. I am wondering if I should start avoiding books with "The Woman in the" in the title.....

The Woman in the Library is a "story within a story." I didn't find this as confusing as other readers and could keep it straight. I actually found the letters written from Leo interesting and they added a fun side plot to the story. What lost me was about 75% in when the letters started to get bizarre-referencing the pandemic, etc. It seemed like there were so many plot holes I couldn't keep up.

Overall, I was not a fan. The premise intrigued me, but about half way through I completely forgot the main concept of the book, which was that there is a woman murdered in the library. Too much going on, not enough to connect the dots and plenty of plot holes to fall into.

The Woman in the Library immediately caught my attention because who doesn't like books about books -- but what I didn't realize was that this book was a book IN a book! Or was a it a book IN a book IN a book? Let me try to explain...

The book opens up with a letter from a reader to Hannah Tigone, a writer who cannot travel to Boston to research her current book due to restrictions. The reader is there to offer suggestions, insights, and research. Then, the book moves onto Chapter 1 (of Hannah's book) where we meet Winifred aka Freddie as she's writing her own novel. As she's researching her own novel at the Boston Public Library, she and three others hear a scream. From that moment, those four were all immediately bonded. From then on, each chapter of Hannah's book is followed by a latest letter from Leo, the reader. You learn more and more about Leo as both stories progress -- ultimately leading to TWO mysteries.

While I enjoyed this premise, there were so many parts that left me feeling confused and parts that felt not incredibly realistic. One thing that bothered me was how immediately obsessed the group of four was with each other -- kept me wondering "didn't they have other friends or aspects of their life?"

If this sounds like your type of book, I would highly recommend skipping the audiobook version and getting your hands on a physical copy. With the changing stories, it was really hard to keep track of what storyline we were in while listening to the audiobook.

Thank you Netgalley for an advanced ebook and e-audiobook in exchange for an honest review!

Loved this book! Have placed on a table at the front of our store and it sold very well.. 5 stars! Books about bookstores and libraries are always a favorite.

Fun and fast paced read. I absolutely loved it. A story about four people, brought together while at the Boston Public Library Reading Room and they hear a woman scream. There has been a murder. These four people develop a friendship and decide that they owe it to the woman who was murdered to try and discover what happened to her.

A book I loved to Hate.

I wanted to so much give up on this book and found myself stopping numerous times only to pick it up once again and having to read it.

It's a good story. And the premise grabs you from the start. A Scream, followed by the discovery of a body. Has all the makings of a good psychological thriller. and it does deliver.

So why wasn't in working for me. The dialogue. I couldn't stand reading the dialogue. It was tedious. chapter - book mystery followed by email notice to "friend" turned stalker (not giving a spoiler - you can figure that one out from the get go.

The author was brilliant how she brought the group together and how she fleshed out their story. I mean, we are really reading a book as it's being created and proofed, followed by friend/stalker giving advise on what changes need to be made to appease to an American audience.

I had to finish reading it and discover the fictional murderer in the story and the downward spiral of the friend stalker. This book made into a screen play would be a great Netflix/Hulu story.

My star rating reflects that fact that it is a good story, just the writing did not work for me.

What a page turner! The mystery is actually a plot within a plot and very cleverly conceived. The main character is an author, who lives in Australia, and is sending one chapter at a time to an author friend in Boston to preview and critique. Their friendship and events surrounding their conversations become their own suspenseful mystery which keeps the reader flying through the chapters to see what their next email correspondence may bring.

Meanwhile, the chapters of the new murder mystery novel, that are sent via email from the author in Australia, also keep you on the edge of your seat. This story centers around four main characters who meet in the reading room of the Boston Public Library. They become acquaintances, and eventually friends, after hearing the scream of a woman nearby. As they look around, they are unable to discover the the lady in distress. The next day, they learn that a local reporter was found murdered in the Library and they soon become part of the murder investigation since they were all present at the time of the murder.

I thoroughly enjoyed the cleverness and suspense of this story-within-a-story. Highly recommended for fans of past-paced murder mysteries, especially those with cunning plot lines. Thanks to NetGalley, Sulari Gentill, and Poisoned Pen Press for an advanced eBook is exchange for my honest review.

Great crime story! I like the way it was written. Nice writing style, good plot. It's hard to say more without revealing the story. So... I'll say this: very good read!

A copy of this book was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a book I’ll definitely remember.

It opens in a strange way. A writer named Leo is writing to Hannah, and you learn that they have an established relationship of some kind. It seemed a little out of place, but you go along with it. Then you’re introduced to Freddie in the library, where the title made a bit more sense. You wonder if the book is printed right.

Then, just as you’re about to finish Chapter One, you see the following letter from Leo, complimenting the recipient and giving American cultural pointers. It breaks the 4th wall, takes a meta turn and ruined all initial understanding of what a story is. Suddenly, you have no idea what you’ve signed up for.

I didn't expect to be immediately drawn to the story by Hannah’s first paragraph. In her manuscript, the main character, Freddie, is a writer who was turning to the people around her in the Boston Public Library as her muse for a story she was writing. We are then introduced to Freud Girl, a psychology student whose arms were heavily tattooed, Heroic Chin, a law student whose looks reminded her of a typical hero, and Handsome Man, another writer who she is drawn to immediately. Then a woman’s scream broke out in the library, leaving these four confused and it seems like an appropriate way to start a conversation with these strangers.

Leo’s letters were a great addition to the storyline. I love the foreshadowing of having 3 potential suspects, and how each person had developed reasons why they would be suspicious. The events were so meticulously planned and everything seemed to be working against them. There were so many questions, suspicions, and twists and turns at every corner. I’ve doubted everyone, even the protagonist, Freddie.

Leo’s letters made this book stand out from all the other mysteries I’ve read so far. And while I have no clue what inspired the author to include such a plot, I’m absolutely grateful for it.

I definitely, highly recommend it.

This one was different and unique with the idea of a book within a book within a book.

A woman's scream at Boston Public Library strucks friendship between four strangers who happened to be at same table. Everyone with a reason of their own to be present there however one amongst them is the murderer.

The writing was good and smart. I need answers to some questions. The emails were a nice touch though turning dark, at times they didn't add much. The mystery had a decent twist but still I did find myself wanting more as if something was missing.

The characters were good but Freddie at times was irrational with her thinking. I understand her thought process but she can't be blind to everything and every thought that seemed logical. It was good that every chapter added something more and new to the story and characters.

Overall this was an entertaining read.

Oh, my hat! A murder mystery set in a library? Yes, please! Just my cup of tea. This is a fun whodunnit that doesn't take itself too seriously but rolls along at a happy pace. I will definitely be exploring more of Sulari Gentill's work.

Three and a half stars.

With thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for my ARC.

Thank you NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the chance to read and review The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill.

Sulari Gentill's new book is set towards the start of the pandemic. It starts off fairly wholesome. Our main character, Hannah, is writing another book (she’s a published writer) and corresponding with her pen pal and fan, Leo, and sending him chapters. Leo is also writing a novel but has been getting turned down by agents and publishers. As the pandemic sets in Hannah’s plans to visit the US get derailed, but she keeps writing the book. It’s an amateur sleuth novel (which is one of the genre’s that The Woman in the Library belongs to), while Leo keeps helping her by digging up information on the city the book is set in. Of course, as the novel progresses, we realise that there is much more going on.

Within the novel that Hannah writes we have four strangers bonded by a scream in the library. They end up becoming friends bonded by the murder and the weird stuff that happens to Freddie, the main character. We’re told by Leo who the killer is early (we can only presume that this is an email from Hannah to Leo as we never do see her emails), and it’s interesting to see the characters come to that conclusion slowly. We’re shown that Freddie really liked the killer and doesn’t want to believe it’s him; she’s the unreliable narrator but we’re also still curious to see if she’s right or not.

The woman in the library has a banging plot. Like the plot is phenomenal (I’m not revealing anymore because spoilers) and so interesting that I had to finish the book. I just wish that Sulari Gentills writing matched up. This book has so much potential but it just fell short and it’s hard to explain that to another person unless they’ve read it but I’ll try.

Hannah sends each chapter to Leo to read. Leo reads the chapter and writes a short email back on how much he loves everything and sends her helpful information on the US. Those chapters are not well written. I couldn’t fathom anyone liking Cain or Freddie or chapter-Leo, or Whit or Marigold. Leo’s love of Marigold and love for everything Hannah wrote was a little annoying. On the one hand, that could be intentional, to show that this is a writer working through things, but on the other hand, as it formed the bulk of the book, it also took away from the novel, even though that plot was great. I would have liked to have seen better chapters sent from Hannah to Leo, and smaller corrections like phrases and things.

I saw the thing with email-Leo coming. I don’t know if other readers did or did not, but I didn’t mind that. I loved that whole we have two writers bonding over their mutual love of fiction, and then that slap in your face. Again, the plot is great. But my problem is that the chapters were not good enough to hold my interest and by the end I was skimming; at that point if there was a change in the style of Hannahs writing (which Leo pointed out was getting heavy handed), I didn’t pick up on it. Had those earlier chapters been more put together I would have loved seeing this happen.

Interesting format that’s different from other mysteries I’ve read. I really enjoyed the story and the different approach to the narrative.

I liked the premise but the execution didn't really work. The 2nd narrative wasnt fleshed out and I really only know what happened because my partner also read it and sussed it out. I, however, was super confused until he explained it. The 1st narrative was also not that interesting and the explanation seemed weak. Bummer because I was excited for this one.

Thank you go Netgalley for providing a copy of this book to review.

I was really excited to delve in to this book, and i am happy to say i did not disappoint. A very engrossing whodunit, that is well written and clever.

The Woman in the Library
The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
On sale: June 7, 2022

And now for something completely different. Author Sulari Gentill has concocted an unexpected format for her mystery. It's a story within a story within a story. Similar to locked room puzzles, there seem to be only four possibilities for the murderer, but are there?

FIRST SENTENCE: "Dear Hannah, What are you writing?"

QUOTE: "And so we go to the Map Room to found a friendship, and I have my first coffee with a killer."

THE STORY: Hannah Tigone, an Australian author had planned to visit Boston to write her next book. When the pandemic puts a halt to her traveling, Leo, a colleague who lives there becomes her beta reader. Every chapter ends with a letter from Leo offering advice and details about Boston and American life.

Then there's the story of the book itself. Winifred better known as "Freddie" is writing "The Woman in the Library". She has won a Marriot Scholarship to enable her to write her mystery set in Boston. Working in the Boston Public Library, she is attempting to decide the plot for her mystery when a woman screams. Four other people seated nearby begin to talk about what might have just happened and they quickly become friends. When they discover the woman has been killed, they become sleuths.

WHAT I THOUGHT: The author has written a carefully written and plotted mystery adding humor as the story unfolds with its many twists and turns. Besides the puzzle the friends seek to solve, the story is about friendship and writing (every character is writing a book). It's always fun to recognize the current references to things we know that are scattered throughout.

More than once, especially in the beginning, I found myself wondering what story I was reading, but it's worth the struggle. Although you can listen to the audio book, I would expect it could add another level of confusion.

The book also includes A Reading Group Guide and ‘A Conversation with the Author’ about how she stumbled on her plot.

BOTTOM LINE: RECOMMENDED

DISCLAIMER: I received a free e-copy of "The Woman in the Library" by Sulari Gentill from NetGalley/Europa for my honest review.