As a fan of Gentill’s Rowland Sinclair series, I was quick to request an ARC of her newest book from NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press. Perhaps I just prefer my mysteries to be set in bygone eras, like the 1930s Australia setting of the Rowland Sinclair series, but this modern-day stand-alone just wasn’t my cup of tea.
Our main character Freddie is an Australian writer on a fellowship in Boston. One day as she is struggling to write at the Boston Public Library, surrounded by strangers, the silence is interrupted by a woman’s terrified scream. This strange occurrence leads her to befriend the three people sitting closest to her: Cain, also a novelist, Whit, a failing law student, and Marigold, a psychology graduate student. Later, they learn that a woman was killed in the library that day. Soon, Freddie is receiving strange calls and messages, suggesting that her new friends are in danger…and one of them might be a killer.
Thrillers are not my preferred genres and the more I read, the more I find that I prefer mysteries to have historical settings. In her Rowland Sinclair series, Gentill masterfully wove in political events of the day with each mystery. She also created a group of characters that were charming, witty, and fun to be with, characters that I was happy to visit with again and again. In the Woman in the Library, the characters never felt real, and none of them seemed like people I’d be particularly drawn to spending time with. They became strangely close and loyal to one another in a very short span of time which was necessary for the story but felt forced. There was also another story in the form of letters to the “author” of Freddie’s story, Hannah, and a reader named Leo. Leo praises Hannah’s work which feels strange as its basically Gentill praising her own writing, and offers suggestions, including that Hannah should include mentions of the pandemic and address the races of her characters. It was a strange and, in my opinion, unnecessary addition to the book to include these side letters.
This is a quick, short read tied up in an implausible explanation lacking a good motive- but maybe that’s the way with most thrillers. I will continue to read any historical mysteries Gentill writes in future, but I’ll stay away from modern-day thrillers. I might just be done with thrillers in general.

Stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

PUBLICATION DAY: June 7, 2022

Four strangers are seated together in a library (Freddie, Cain, Whit and Marigold) when suddenly they hear a woman’s nearby scream. A connection is instantly formed as they react to the interruption - should they investigate? Ignore? Their confusion leads to introductions, a conversation and a newly formed friendship…one in which apparently one of them is a killer. But whom???

PROS and CONS:
Clever, clever, clever! I loved this story within a story, such an incredibly unique storytelling device. The exchange of emails between the “real” author Hannah and Leo, intermixed with the mystery evolving between the “fictional” author Freddie and her newly found group of friends - well it was downright genius. Neither plot was particularly earth shattering, but when placed together…what can I say…I’m a fan!

READ IT?
A unique mystery when you’re in the mood for something completely different (which I clearly was!)

5 Stars

I received this from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The premise of this story is great, especially for a reader. A woman murdered inside a library and a group of friends in the library set out to find out what happened to her. It was definitely an interesting premise and it kept me engaged and wanting to know how this was all going to turn out. However, there were several problematic parts. The fact with how fast our 4 main characters become friends and are staying over each others house is completely unbelievable. Several technology things with cell phones made the plot highly unlikely and in the end the killers motives were really off to me. In this story not only do we get the murder to solve but we get a duel story with the writer of the story and a would be fan reading parts of her story and making commentary on the plot and characters. That part was also intriguing and you could not really tell how it was going to go. I will say that I did want to read to the end, I did care what the outcome of both stories were but when I got to the end of both I was just a little let down. If you love a good murder mystery or stories set in Boston then this book may be for you.

A gripping book within a book within a book!
We start in the Boston Public Library where Winnifred (Freddie) is trying to write at a table with three strangers, when they are interrupted by a woman screaming…
What follows is a whodunnit interspersed with Leo’s feedback emails to Hannah, our Aussie author after each chapter.
The sub-plot was interesting (although Leo’s mansplaining drove me mad, if I where Hannah I’d never have replied in the first place!), although I found myself wishing I knew a bit more about Hannah!
Overall 4 stars, I really enjoyed this.

I'd rate this like 4.5 stars! I loved the story within a story, within a story element! This was a super fun, middle-paced crime novel, less about the twists and more about the story and character arcs and I was here for all of it! The four plus one main characters all had endearing qualities and you were rooting for ALL of them to NOT be a killer. I was so hooked.

I have read other books by Sulari Gentil and just LOVED them.

As a result, I was looking forward to reading The Woman in the Library. Somehow though, it just wasn't what I expected. Perhaps the many stories running in parallel, particularly the ongoing dialogue with a 'pen pal' were distracting from the main thread? I also didn't find it hard to work out who the murderer was. The motive, however, had quite escaped me.

Sulari writes beautifully so I am sure there are others that will thoroughly enjoy this murder mystery.

Perhaps a different introduction to this book, by the publisher, would have given me a better idea of the storyline, this one seems just doesn't capture the essence of the story for me.

With thanks to @Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for my advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill is a unique book (for me) that unfortunately didn't work for me. I was really looking forward to this one. The premise was interesting but the execution was disappointing. It begins at Boston Public Library with a woman's scream, four strangers and the beginning of friendships. There is a murder mystery, a correspondence between two authors, hidden past, friendship, relationships, pandemic and a lot more.
The most interesting part was that in this one there is a book in a book in a book (I think). But that was a major let down. The correspondence didn't add to the story. In fact, it took me away from the story. I think I would have enjoyed it much more if it was a book on it's own or if it wasn't there at the end of every chapter. The discussion about cultural differences and use of language was really interesting. The parts where we get to see how writers work were good. The mystery part was alright. Nothing out of the box. The characters weren't very interesting. I might try something else by this author but this one just wasn't for me.

I enjoyed the ebook , good story inside of another story. However, the audiobook was extremely hard to follow. Definitely recommend reading over listening. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC

A fast-paced suspense novel set in and around the Boston Public Library. Four strangers are in the library researching and writing when a scream is heard. The usually silent reading room buzzes with conversation about the scream, and these four quickly form a friendship. The story-within-a-story in epistolary format gives an additional, unique perspective. This is quite a page-turner and I finished the book in about 36-hours, anxious to find out who-dunit! It had everything I look for in a book - mystery, books, libraries, writers, readers, red herrings. Highly recommended!

I don’t usually read mysteries or thrillers, but this one spiked my interest. Much to my surprise, this not only exceeded my expectations but it’s also a story within a story! I got to admit that at first it was a little bit confusing to understand these were to separate storylines, but once I got it, it was a smooth, high tension, addictive, unputdownable read. I don’t want to get into details, because I believe the best way to pick up this book is to know absolutely nothing about it; but the fact that there are two plots at the same time, it keeps us a little confuse (in the best way) and makes us constantly question about the motives of each character. The surprising ending was also remarkable.

I’d like to thank Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for providing me the e-arc. This book comes out June 7th and if you like mysteries, you can’t go wrong with this one!

The Woman in the Library is an exquisitely elegant and utterly unique book that combines so many elements that it is sure to leave a lasting impression long after the reader has turned the last page.
At the core of the book, Sulari Gentill crafts a riveting mystery following the four main characters who were sitting in the Boston Public Library when a woman's scream echoes through the building, bringing them together when they would otherwise have gone their separate ways. The mystery is well crafted, the characters are complex and compelling, and the solution to the mystery keeps the reader vacillating back and forth throughout the book.
Another element that is just as fascinating as the mystery itself, is the process the writer follows, as shown in letters inserted at the end of each chapter from her Beta reader. In those letters, the Beta reader points out instances where the wording of the Australian writer needs to change to American vernacular, pointers on locations in Boston, where the reader is located, and other items the reader deems necessary to point out.
Finally, as the book progresses, the Beta reader's letters become increasingly alarming and obsessive, giving another tension to an already fascinating novel.
#TheWomanintheLibrary is a multi-faceted, fascinating novel that is sure to be a hit. Thank you to #NetGalley for providing me with an early copy.

Sulari Gentill’s The Woman in the Library hooked me immediately. It opens with a letter from an American writer to an Australian one, a chatty note about writing and an offer to review chapters as the Australian author, a successful mystery writer, works on a new book.

Then comes the new book. From the opening sentences it’s clear the Australian author is incorporating things the American correspondent suggests, and even names a character after him. The action of the actual novel takes place pre-pandemic, but the correspondent writes about contemporary affairs, from the wildfires in Australia in 2019 to COVID to race. The ultimate fate of the correspondent becomes a second narrative.

In the main narrative, set in Boston, a writer has gone to the public library to work on her book, taking inspiration from the three strangers at the same table. Then, they hear a woman’s blood-curdling scream. Having met under such circumstances, the four soon become fast friends. Each character is hiding something and acting suspiciously even as they pair off. The writer – an Australian on a fellowship – keeps courting the muse and also practicing subterfuge to support her new lover until the final reveal.

The unusual construction of The Woman in the Library adds a great deal of interest and complexity to what would have been a fine, straight-forward mystery. I appreciated that the secondary narrative allowed for discussion of the craft of writing and real-life events. Sulari Gentill does a fine job throwing doubt on each of the writer’s new friends from the library, and I felt like I was working extra hard to figure out which leads were false, as the correspondent shared his own theories.

I found the main character easy to root for and enjoyed delightful touches such as one of the friends from the library being covered in tattoos and swearing most charmingly. Highly recommended for readers who enjoy a locked-room mystery and can tolerate two interwoven narratives.

I think most of the bookish community mirrors my sentiment when I write that the title and description of this book had me buzzing with frenzied anticipation to read it.. Who wouldn't love a book that begins in a library with a murder and gives the reader a group of strangers becoming friends and trying to solve the case?
Almost every review of this book references the "story within a story"; however, as I've struggled to read through this book I've suspected that most of the good reviews were written by people who didn't get past the first few chapters. Had they read the book and not just blurbed it, they would have recognized that this book is not just a story within a story but is instead a story within a story within a story. We are not just reading about the author and her beta and "Freddie" and her new friends,
but we are also reading along with Freddie as she writes her book. So,
when I read the good reviews and found myself struggling to read page after page, I at first felt discouraged to be in the minority... until I realized the rave reviews were likely written prematurity.

This book is unfortunately and, much to my disappointment, too much for the reader. The protagonist in each story references writing as being on a bus and letting the bus as her muse guide her story. The book overall is a bus gone rogue with too many passengers too many drivers, too many destinations. and too many turns. I couldn't keep track of all of the names. We had the absolutely ridiculous names in the 1st story in progress, AND the names Freddie assigns them the 2nd work in progress. Then, we have the author and her Beta, whose name is duplicated in the 1st writing. Also, it is inconceivable that the Beta reader would not point out to the author that Americans, especially those in their 20s, don't have names like Marigold and Cain and Whit. They need more millennial names. It is also unbelievable that the Beta reader would have to point out to an established author that Americans don't use certain words that are used commonly in Australia. It does make sense that he has to explain certain Boston locations and popular businesses. The Beta reader aspect of this book was fun.

The characters are ridiculous and do ridiculous things. Example: Who loses their phone and does absolutely nothing about it? Who doesn't use a find-my-phone feature? Who are these people?

I couldn't get past 50 percent, though. Too much. I kept begging the bus to stop pickup up passengers. I got carsick reading this one.

The overall story was entertaining as well as it was confusing.
You have two writers, one in Boston and the other in Australia.
They are correspondents who communicate with each other and
critique each other's stories.

One of these has two different authors who are the main characters
of the mystery part of the story.
When one section closes one of the "real" authors comments and offer
advice of what may have happened and where to location may have been.

To make things even more confusing? The one "real" author also includes
the other one as a character into the "mystery" part of thier story.

When a woman is murdered at the Boston Public Library, four strangers who sit at the same table and all happen to be there when the murder occurs strike up a friendship, despite the fact that it looks like one of them might be a murderer.

I... wanted to like this more than I ended up liking it. At first glance, I thought this would hit all the spots, the murder, the library, the protagonist being an author. Unfortunately, I was less than satisfied with how the mystery carried out. I found myself more interested in the letters that Hannah was receiving from Leo which interspersed the actual action. That being said, I did find the author's capacity for prose and dialogue very well done, and the structure and style definitely executed the whodunit but just not to the level I was hoping for.

Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I've not read Sulari Gentill's popular Rowland Sinclair series given I tend to stay away from historical fiction but I absolutely adored the Ned Kelly award-winning After She Wrote Him, which I read in 2020, also known as Crossing the Lines.

It was a complete mindf*ck in many ways, but rather than find it frustrating I thought it incredibly clever and kinda jealous that I'd never be able to think of anything quite so complex and twisted.

Thankfully Gentill does it again in her latest release, The Woman in the Library. Again it's about a writer. Or rather two writers and one - or maybe both - are using the other's life as inspiration. And just to make things twistier, one of the writers is actually writing about a writer and events taking place in her life and those she meets.

The book opens with Leo - a wannabe author, writing to fellow author Hannah, who he admires but hasn't met. I assumed the pair were acquainted as he's fairly familiar - deferential in that slightly wanky way fans feel they need to be - but also seemingly a colleague, a contemporary rather than an overzealous reader.

And it seems the feeling is mutual as Hannah sends Leo chapters of her novel for feedback. She's in Australia and the novel is set in the US, so Leo's offering advice on relevance, language and feasibility.

And he's chuffed that Hannah uses some of his suggestions, or indeed some of his observations, in her novel. Leo discusses his own work a little and Hannah even offers to have her agent look at his work.

Leo's feedback becomes increasingly critical however and his tone goes from fervent to annoyed and back to the deferential admiration... if Hannah's plot is moving in a direction of which he approves.

We actually only see his correspondence to Hannah, which is interspersed with chapters of her novel. We only hear her voice through her novel so we're unsure how similar she is to her protagonist Winifred (Freddie).

Hannah's novel is actually written in first person and features Freddie, an Australian in the US and who happens across three other students while at the Boston Library at the time someone is killed. The murder brings them together and they form a bond of sorts. We later realise their presence at the library was the result of some coincides and have to ask ourselves if their meeting was (perhaps) contrived and to what end game.

The murder of the woman at the library is - of course - the crux of the novel within the novel, but it plays out against the backdrop of Leo's correspondence with Hannah as she writes.

Again, Gentill carries this off brilliantly and and it's well-paced with a sense of menace building as the stories unfold - both the novel Hannah's writing as well as the communication and relationship between Leo and Hannah.

Gentill's writing is seamless but the characters and the plot are the stars here. And did I mention it's clever? Not only the premise itself but the way everything unfolds (or should I say unravels?!) at the end. 

4.5 stars

The Woman in the Library is a nifty Russian nesting doll of a novel, and I loved it! At the top (or the biggest doll) we have an Australian mystery writer named Hannah. She's working on a new novel that's set in Boston, but because of the pandemic, she can't travel there. However, she has an email pen pal in Boston named Leo, and he is reviewing chapters of her book as she produces them in order to assure American authenticity.

The book she's writing starts at the Boston Public Library (BPL) where her lead character, Aussie Winifred Kincaid (Freddie), who is also a writer, is writing a novel. Freddie is in Boston on a Marriott Scholarship, allowing her to live in a charming brownstone in a very nice neighborhood. Hannah's novel begins with Freddie and three strangers quietly working in the BPL when suddenly a woman's scream is heard. Freddie and the three strangers are all stunned, start talking with one another, and decide to go for a coffee at the BPL Map Room. The first chapter ends with the line "And so we go to the Map Room to found a friendship, and I have my first coffee with a killer." I am 100% hooked at this point!!

The three other strangers at the BPL are potential characters for Freddie, and in her head she calls them Freud Girl (real name Marigold Anastas), Heroic Chin (Whit Metters), and Handsome Man (Cain McLeod). As we get to know them, we learn that Marigold is actually a psychology student, Whit is a law student who has no interest in being a lawyer despite his wealthy family's hope. And Cain is also a writer. Rounding out the characters is one named Leo (in honor of Hannah's pen pal). Leo is also a recipient of a fellowship and is a neighbor of Freddie's. Although the BPL guards who went to investigate after everyone heard the scream found nothing, a dead young woman is later found under a table in another room of the library. Our four main characters are now each other's alibis.

Each chapter of The Woman in the Library concludes with correspondence from Leo to Hannah giving his comments on what Hannah has written. It all starts out well enough, but Leo's comments eventually turn to disturbing content. Meanwhile, Freddie and her new friends start having their own strange encounters, and they're all invested in discovering who killed the woman in the library and who is now threatening Freddie and Whit.

Hopefully, this review hasn't confused you too much, because you really need to read this incredibly smart murder mystery. All of the characters are fully fleshed out by author Sulari Gentill, and the action is brisk. I loved the book within a book within a book. I give it 5 bright, shining stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for providing me an eGalley. I will be recommending this novel to everyone!

I have no idea how I'm going to explain this other than try...

The Woman in the Library is a book about an author writing a book about an author writing a book. There. Sounds crazy? Sulari Gentill has managed to write a book about Hannah, an author liaising with a beta reader called Leo, writing a book about Winifred, who is just beginning her journey of starting a new story with her experience at a library. Take a pause and let that sink in. Okay. So in said library, Winifred, or Freddie, along with her other inspirations scattered around the library but sitting not too far off from her, heard a woman scream. But when the security guard went to have a look, he couldn't find the source of it. This scream was what brought Freddie and three others together. They managed to bond from a shared, strange experience. The next day, the news reports that a woman had been murdered at said library.

I really enjoyed the process with which Freddie started off her book: people watching, and real-life experiences with these people that help inspire her story. It would have been welcome if she shared a little more about the story she's written.

The Woman in the Library is different in that it's a work-in-progress, so there would be changes along the way, like the age of Marigold, based on the suggestions made by Leo. I would imagine that the process that Hannah went through, with her beta reader, was something that most writers would have done during the peak period of the pandemic. Hannah, being in Australia, needed Leo's input to help her write her book that is set in America. At the beginning, the exchange, in the form of emails, between Hannah and Leo intrigued and confused me. They hardly added to the story, and they cut off the flow. Later on, when I understood the main point of this exchange, I still did not appreciate it. Let's just say Hannah was also thrust into the genre that she was writing, just as Freddie was. It was all rather messy.

Characters-wise, none of them left much of an impression. The Woman in the Library was quite bland even though there were moments that jumped out at me, and I don't feel for the romantic pairing at all. I don't believe I'll remember much about this book as time goes by, even if the concept was out-of-this-world.

This review is written based on the ARC provided by the publisher through Netgalley.

There seems to be a solid line between readers that either firmly do or do not enjoy the “book within a book” trope, and I find myself with the former. Even in thrillers I was underwhelmed by (Riley Sager’s Home Before Dark I’m looking at you), I feel that it adds an extra dimension to the novel that sometimes even a dual timeline cannot do. The Woman in the Library takes full advantage of this with its main mystery-thriller plotline offset by a series of letters between the fictional thriller author and an over-eager colleague named Leo. The threat then is not found in the main storyline. But it’s Leo’s correspondence that is actually able to play into the sense of dread that builds as the story progresses.

I don’t think this thriller - at least the “book within a book” piece of it - is particularly groundbreaking or does anything exceptionally shocking. But then again, it doesn’t have to. The author can bypass any criticism on not scheming up something totally new in the genre by presenting the story as a fictionalized work of another author entirely. Having Leo as a sounding board for some (questionable) critique in itself allows for some of the more convenient coincidences and plot twists to be scrutinized. It’s a clever way, be it intentional or not, to avoid criticism of the actual execution of one plot in the story.

Where I struggle with this book is how it almost already reads as dated, with Leo’s interludes frequently reminding the fictional author of the global pandemic she is very pointedly not including in the story. He argues this is an insult to the reader, a kind of escapism the current global crisis should not allow. While presenting to characters firmly in two different minds on this matter, the author doesn’t have to take a stance. But it makes this almost a period piece of 2020 already, being that most thriller releases being published in 2022 have already worked past this authorial dilemma and are ignoring it entirely, slotting back into this 2019-esque idealism that allows for more maneuvering in the genre. It was strangely off-putting to be so frequently reminded of this, and I don’t think that’s going to age well to make this a timeless edition to the genre.

Where this book loses points for me in originality in the main thriller plotline I did thoroughly appreciate the way the author gradually built in Leo’s increasing derangement over the course of the novel. It was a solid balance of both storylines, something that I think is hard to capture in any dual timeline piece - thriller or otherwise. So while this was a fun and compulsively readable release, I don’t think it will stick in my mind as a standout in the genre.

Thank you to the publisher Poisoned Pen Press for providing an e-ARC via NetGalley for an honest review.

The Woman in the Library
A Novel
by Sulari Gentill
Pub Date 07 Jun 2022
Poisoned Pen Press
General Fiction (Adult) | Mystery & Thrillers



I am reviewing a copy of The Woman in the Library through Poisoned Press Library and Netgalley:



In the ornate reading room at the Boston Public Library is quiet, but soon the tranquility is shattered by a woman's terrified scream. The security guards take charge immediately, instructing everyone inside to stay put until the threat is identified and contained.




While waiting for the all clear four strangers, who'd happened to sit at the same table, pass the time in conversation and friendships are struck. Each has his or her own reasons for being in the reading room that morning—it just happens that one is a murderer.





I give The Woman in the Library five out of five stars!


Happy Reading!