Thank you Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book before publication.

Full disclosure: I did not read the first book in this series. I've jumped in mid-series in different series (how many times can I use this word in two sentences???) and didn't feel like I was missing much, but in this case, reading the first book definitely would've helped. There's clearly some recurring characters with little context, and mention of past events, again without much context. However, you can definitely read it as a standalone, but expect to be a little confused in some regards.

I would rate this a 3.75 if we're being precise. It's not a 3/5, but I can't say it's a 4/5. The writing alone is a 5/5, but that ending is a 2/5. In the spirit of fairness and mathematics, I've rounded up to a 4.

THE PLOT

Investigative journalist, Laura, is back playing Nancy Drew after she receives frantic final phone calls from a mystery woman killed in a hit and run. Who was she? And why was she calling? And what, if anything, does this have to do with the upcoming execution of the Shotgun Slayer, a Hillsboro local legend?

MY OPINION

J.G Hetherton deserves ALLLL the flowers for his beautiful writing. WOW. He is a true writer; an artist with words. He could take the mundane and describe it in ways I've never considered. I can't say enough good things about the writing quality of this novel. Hetherton is truly talented.

Now, if your preference is a book crammed with action and twist after twist after twist, I can't say this book is for you. Yes, there is action, and yes there are twists (packed in at the end). But really, it's the beautiful writing that keeps you turning the pages. The author spends a lot of time with the character's inner thoughts. I loved the flashbacks to Laura's childhood, although there's no way in hell 8-year-olds were THAT self-aware. He painted a picture of small-town, southern, stricken poverty without spelling it out for you. You could feel the heat in your bones. The pace of the novel was great as well, but like I said, it's not a CRAZY thriller. This is the indie movie of books—a thoughtfully constructed police procedural with more layers than an onion.

Now, onto my famous gripes :) 1) I found Laura to be unlikeable. She seemed incapable of accepting responsibility and had an almost sociopathic-like tendency to manipulate those around her. As someone who was a journalist for a hot minute, she's not doing the public's perspective of the industry any good with her lack of boundaries, regular obstructions of justice, and just general abuse of trust.

2) The ending was doing way too much. It was a leisurely walk to the last 10% of the book and then the author just threw in every rando storyline possible. It kinda reminded me of Oprah's infamous: You get a car! You get a car! You get a car! but more like You get a prostitution ring! You get a deeply corrupted police force! You get a surprise paternity reveal! Just slow your roll. Pick something actually feasible. And this is all in the context that Hillsboro has 6,000 residents, but more crime syndicate activity than Miami. My disbelief was chucked off the side of Mount Everest.

If Hetherton had stayed the course until the very end, I would've felt more confident in my 4-star rating. But since I put a high price tag on GOOD writing, 4 stars it is. I think the ending was just extra disappointing to me because I really enjoyed the journey. I will check out his other book and continue reading the series, should there be more books to come.

PROS AND CONS:

Pros: INCREDIBLE writing, good pace
Cons: Ending was overwhelming in a bad way

This is apparently the second in a series but I found it worked as a standalone.
It focuses on Laura Chambers a reporter who is drawn into the death of an unknown woman as she is the last person called. Laura is tenacious and not always by the book which gets her on the wrong side of the local law enforcement. This is a multilayered novel mixing past events with current events.

I found the characters well defined although not necessarily likeable. As the story developed, I found it interesting, but did find it dragged at times and I found my interest wane. The ending tired up loose ends but has left an opening for a sequel.

A Psychological Rollercoaster!

Small town secrets and coverups are about to be exposed when journalist Laura Chambers receives a phone call moments before a Jane Doe is disfigured beyond recognition in a truck vs. pedestrian tragedy. Unsure why this mystery woman would be calling her, the town’s police department is now convinced that Laura knows more than she is letting on and wants to find out what she may be hiding.

Concurrently, Laura had recently written an article on “Shotgun Slayer Barrow,” whom is about to be executed for murdering Bob and Linda Merritt 23 years prior. Emily Merritt, their 8-year-old daughter survived that terrible night but was put in the system right after and moved away to live with her surviving family. Emily and Laura, being the same age and having property that bordered each other, were best friends; but after that fateful night Laura was told by her parents never to speak of the Merritts again. Now, Laura is on a quest to find out what secrets her family are hiding, who Jane Doe is and what her relation is to the Merritts, and what secrets lie beneath Hillsborough, North Carolina.

J.G. Hetherton writes like no other – invoking levels of imagery and details that suck you in until you feel like you are involved in the scene. Little by little you are given puzzle pieces that start fitting together, and the hits keep coming – up until the last chapter. This is an action-packed thriller revolving around coverups, small town bureaucracies, the news media vs. the police, the depth of the father-daughter relationship, and the cost of the truth.

Though this is the second book in the Laura Chambers series, I feel you can read this as a standalone novel, able to pick up on the history of the characters easily without having to read the first installment. The book started out slow but once it got going, I couldn’t put it down. Some of the imagery I feel dragged out some and wasn’t fully necessary, but the detailed web Hetherton created is well worth the read.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this novel, I am so glad I read it and all opinions are my own!

Thank you to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel. I hadn't read the initial novel featuring Laura Chambers, "Last Girl Gone" and I don't feel it's necessary to have done so to enjoy this book. I found myself immediately drawn to the main character, Laura, and did not want to stop reading it, as there were so many twists throughout the story. Fortunately those twists are written cleverly enough that you can't guess them. Highly recommend this for a nice rainy day of reading at home by the fire!

A gripping and fast paced thriller with an original storyline.
I read it in 1 sitting, unputdownable!
A definite recommendation for fans of crime/psychological thrillers.

I received an advanced readers copy of this book, and I am so glad that I did!

A woman runs onto the interstate on a dark rainy night. She is struck and killed by a motorist, but nobody can figure out who she is. Her last call? It was to a reporter, Laura, four times in a row. The last left a voicemail with no voices, just heavy breathing and background noise. Who was she? Why was she calling Laura? What is the connection?

Laura is not the type to leave a good mystery behind, especially if it means a solid story. While she searches for the truth and the story she finds more than she bargained for. Secrets long buried begin coming to the surface challenging what an entire community has believed, challenging her own identity, the memories she held close, and those she'd rather forget.

The author, J.G. Hetherton, is new to me. I did not read Laura Chambers Mystery #1 (Last Girl Gone) and I don't think you will have to either, although I am adding it to my list! I think I have found a new author to add to my favorites list! His writing is beautifully woven together with stunning imagery. A particular passage I liked, that is an excellent example of his imagery follows:
"Once she'd seen a video about ferromagnetic fluids, black oily liquids juiced with particles of iron, then twisted by magnetic fields into nightmarish, spike-laden sculptures. That was how she often imagined herself: an object with a jagged surface. Some spikes pointed outward, impaling the people she was supposed to love. Most pointed inward, lancing down through all her soft spots, stalactites of anger and depression and self-doubt."

I really liked that passage because a) I instantly knew the magnetic material he was speaking of. Remember the Wooly Willy toys as kids? You would drag the iron fragments to the blank face to make eyebrows and a beard and whatnot. The liquid version of that was in tubes you could find at the museum gift shops or science magazines. I loved them, but moreover, I resonated with the description. Jagged edges pointing at anyone daring to come near, and they turn harshly to me too, hurting myself with my own stalactites.

Do I recommend this book? Absolutely. Pre-order it, buy it, rent it. You will love it if you love a good mystery - this book was filled with twists and turns you don't see coming.


J.G. Hetherton What Lies Beneath

Hello everyone!

The first thing I want to note is what a bombastic cover the book has! The cover is fascinating!
This is the second book in the series Laura Chambers Novel What Lies Beneath by JG Hetherton. And i love this fast paced, well-written crime story.

Synopsis: When a mangled woman beyond recognition is found on the highway, the connection is made with her last phone call to Laura. Without knowledge of who she is and Laura never taking the call, the tension between the sheriff and Laura rises. This would not be the first rodeo she has had with the police. All of these are connected and the hunt for the truth begins with what happened years ago and to present.

This book gives me the creeps, and the book tickled my nerves! But it is an easy book to read. As perfect as it gets in my world: sophisticated but not as log. I am very very stingy with five stars but realized I liked this that much.

Thank you for ARC! I will be happy to buy a paperback edition when it comes out.

This book is a must read. One of the best thriller books i have read for a long time. It captures your attention from the start and keeps you interested all the way through. A nice twist at the end too. A great author and great storyline. I will happily read more of JG Hetherton books. Thank you.

A really good Thriller which has you twisting & turning between characters trying to see if you can work out who the real Bad Guys are! It also in some ways shows that corruption within the Police Force especially in the American Southern Counties has not altered much over the years ,& often Politics & Money come before basic human rights especially amid the poorer communities. It's a really good read & I highly recommend it. #NetGalley, #Goodreads, #FB, #Instagram, #Amazon.co.uk, # <img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/358a5cecda71b11036ec19d9f7bf5c96d13e2c55" width="80" height="80" alt="100 Book Reviews" title="100 Book Reviews"/>, #<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/ef856e6ce35e6d2d729539aa1808a5fb4326a415" width="80" height="80" alt="Reviews Published" title="Reviews Published"/>, #<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/aa60c7e77cc330186f26ea1f647542df8af8326a" width="80" height="80" alt="Professional Reader" title="Professional Reader"/>.

This book was a definite Wow! Once I started the story, I couldn't put the book down until I was done. This story started as a jog with the hit-by-car death of an unknown woman, and gradually worked up to a sprint to determine who the stranger was and why she was killed. Mistakes are made, trust is misplaced, and random memories resurface to help bring the details of the events into focus. There are so many things going on that you will be kept guessing. There are enough twists in the story that I managed to get turned around and made a couple of wrong deductions. All of the little surprises will come together like fireworks - little flashes of light that start coming at you faster until it is a brilliant mosaic of events that coalesce into a grande finale. Fantastically written thriller that I highly recommend! Hetherton is an author to follow!

I enjoyed this one. I love the characters and it had the kind of plot that keeps you guessing till the end . It has a good spoof place also . Wonderful book!

What Lies Beneath is a story of family secrets and attempt to find the truth to forgotten memories.
Laura Chambers is trying to unravel what happened to her father as well as a long ago murder of the family that lived next door to her. There is someone that doesn't want her to find the answers to those questions and will stop her in her tracks.
As Laura works through the information and meets with the man accused of killing her neighbors she finds evidence that doesn't add up. What reasons would someone have to kill?

She is in danger and she needs to watch her back.

This is an interest suspense with an ending you didn't see coming.

Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for this advanced copy.

A good solid mystery with decent character development and some nice, likeable characters.
Laura was a good heroine, determined to find the ultimate truth and tell the story of her highway victim.
The plot was full of suspense about the true criminals and the pace of the story nice and fast, I raced through until the end, dying to know how things turned out.
Well written and definitely an author I’ll try again.

This is the second book in the series and bought the preceding story to read before I embarked on this one. Whilst this could be easily a standalone story, I would highly recommend reading Last Girl Gone prior to this one, so that you have a better background on all of the characters and events leading to this story. That said, if you decide to dive straight into this story, there are references that will get you up to speed.

As per the previous book, Laura isn't a character I could warm to but as the story is unraveled through her connection to the crime, it is an interesting one to take you the journey of the story. As with the first book in the series, Don Rodgers (the previous Sheriff) and his trusty dog Cooper, remain my favourite characters of the series thus far.

I enjoyed the story, as whilst I was correct about how I thought some of the story would evolve, I really enjoyed the twists that I didn't see coming. If you enjoy a good small town crime series, with unexpected plot twists, then I would recommend this book and series. I look forward to reading more of this series as it is released.

Thank you to the Author, Crooked Lane and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review a complimentary advanced reader digital copy of the story and give my honest and unbiased opinion.

This was a wonderful who-dun-it...utterly engaging, with a plucky yet imperfect heroine, a riveting story, and unique plot twists. Truly, I stayed up late reading this one and couldn't put it down. Really digs in to the ways in which small towns protect their own...

As i started reading this book, i realized that its the second book in a serise, so i now have to read the fisrt book so i wont be able to post an acctual review because it takes time for me to buy and read the firs book. But the book sound awesome.

Laura Chambers is a reporter in North Carolina. She writes an article on "Shotgun Slayer Barrow" who has been on death row for 20 years for killing Robert and Linda Merritt. The Meritt's lived next door to the Chambers and Laura's best friend was Emily Merritt. After her parents were killed Emily moved away and Laura never spoke to her again and her parents told her never to mention the Emily's name again.

Now a woman is killed and the last thing she did is call Laura. WhyLaura? Why not the police? Laura is determined to figure out who this woman is and why she was killed. Laura soon discovers that her parents have been lying to her and all is not as it seems. Finally Laura is running through a cornfield trying to remember all her father taught her.

This is second in a series but I didn't read the first book so you can read as a stand alone.

Thank you NetGalley for my eARC copy.

As I was starting this book I found out this is actually the second book. And although I read you don’t need to read the first book to enjoy this book- I would just prefer to read the first one before starting this. So I put this book on hold for just a moment while I find and read the first one. I am so excited though, the concept sounds amazing. Small town mystery is always a good time.

Thank you Netgalley and Crooked Lane books for my E-Arc copy of What Lies Beneath. I requested this book not knowing it was the second book in "A Laura Chambers Mystery" series. I did read the first book "Last Girl Gone" and you don't need to read it first, but I highly recommend reading it also.

"What Lies Beneath" starts off a little bit slower. It picks up two years after the events of the first book. Laura Chambers is now investigating and reporting the accident of Jane Doe since the woman called her right before she was run over by a semi on the interstate. Laura quickly finds out that Jane Doe was running from someone trying to murder her. Laura has a lot going against her, but she can't walk away and has to investigate before the local police try to blame her for the murder.

I love the twist and turns in this book. The second half of this book is so fast paced and it took a very surprising turn. I did not see it coming! Highly recommend it if you're looking for a fast paced Mystery/Thriller.

Looking forward to more books on Laura Chambers.

While at first I was not sure if I was going to enjoy this book, I very quickly changed my mind. Or at least the author did. I ended up quite invested in the book and its characters, and while I guessed who one of the real bad guys was early on, it did not stop any of the total enjoyment I had when the mystery was eventually solved. A must read to fill the dark evenings!