Megan Abbott is an automatic-read for me. She is an unparalleled talent in writing, and I've enjoyed many of her books. This latest just reinforces my belief that there really isn't a writer out there that's doing it at this level.

Thank you to Putnam and NetGalley for the ARC! The vibes in this book are immaculate. Jacy’s sense of disorientation, unease and the overwhelming question of, “is this just a fever dream?” are palpable. I was enthralled and infuriated and silently begging for the reg flags to stop showing up through rose-colored glasses. What a journey. While I wish the ending was a bit more satisfying, this was so well done and I highly recommend. 4.5 stars!

Thank you Megan Abbott, PENGUIN GROUP Putnam and Net Galley for allowing me to read this ARC e-book. This book had me questioning EVERYONE. Throughout the story it makes you wonder "nothing is every perfect" or you're just being paranoid. I don't know but paranoia in mysteries happen to be my all time favorite since logically you could chalk it up to whatever but there's always that chance.... and in terms of questioning things this book did not disappoint. I was on the pins and needles waiting to figure out the truth and devoured this book in one sitting.

This is certainly a well-structured thriller with a satisfying ending, but I think there are some significant problems with subject matter and presentation that need to be addressed, because this book made me very uncomfortable.

While I think it’s good that we have modern fiction addressing the topic of how dangerous it is to be a woman in this country right now (especially a pregnant one), I’m not sure it’s appropriate subject matter for a thriller. In a post-Roe world, I don’t think I’m ok with all of us getting our kicks and excitement reading about a woman, virtually alone and pregnant in an isolated location, trapped by a scary group of men who shame her for a past abortion and seek to effectively take over control of her body and decision making.

I understand what Abbott was trying to do here and I’m sure her intentions were good, but this belongs only in a completely different kind of fiction given the state of the world. I’m not ok with having a thrilling and exciting time reading about a woman in a situation like this at the moment.

Abbott has a habit of veering too close to uncomfortable ick territory to drive plot, and this one just felt like a bridge too far with the state of the country being what it is and women losing more and more of their bodily autonomy all the time.

The intention was fine, but this can’t be how we get our kicks as women right now. There are so many choices for material for a thriller, and Abbott is an excellent writer with a flair for uniqueness, so there were plenty of equally compelling and eerie directions she could have gone in instead of this.

Beware the Woman is jaw dropping. I’m not sure what I just read. I’d categorize this as a psychological thriller with some horror. This is my first book by Megan Abbott, and I found the writing style to be drawn out – which may have been brilliant because I felt all things, but it also made for a slowwwww burn.

The plot was shocking. It’s haunting and claustrophobic. The story takes a bit to get going but when it does it’s best to hold on for the ride because the family Jacy’s married into is bizarre with a capital B. I was riding the rollercoaster and getting right into until the ending left me feeling unsatisfied. I get the reason for going what the author did but I didn’t love it.

Megan Abbott can do no wrong and this book is amazing. Such a great thriller with so many twists and turns. I loved the feminism

Would recommend for fans of…
🌳 Rosemary’s Baby
🌳 The Stepford Wives
🌳 Hereditary

Megan Abbott is known for writing chilling tales exploring what it means to be a woman in modern society. Her books often blur the lines between the thriller, horror, and literary fiction genres, and she’s back with a new Rosemary’s Baby inspired tale.

While this book wasn’t my favorite, I think fans of Abbott will eat it up. It’s creepy and unsettling and leaves the reader with a lot to think about. I will warn you that it is one of those books that feels as though it was purposefully written to be confusing as a way of having the reader experience the same disorientation as the main character. As I read, I was never 100% certain about what was actually happening. I think this is a cool effect, but at the same time, it can be frustrating when you just want to understand what’s going on.

Even though this wasn’t my favorite, I think it would make a great horror movie and would totally check it out if it makes it to the silver screen.

Beware the Woman is out today. Thanks to G.P. Putnam's Sons and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This author just knows how to write thrillers. Highly recommend for psychological thriller readers. The narrative and charachter developmemnt was my favorite

3 stars.

"Beware the Woman" by Megan Abbott is a menacing gothic thriller/drama that's way too slow-burning and repetitive to be successful. Honestly? I didn't think it was worth the payoff. Unreliable things continue to go on as Jacy and Jed, a newly married couple about to have their first child, visit Jed's doctor father in the backwoods of Michigan. With a father-in-law like Jacy's, ehh?! Yikes! Now I get why people say they hate their in-laws.

What Megan Abbott sure knows how to do is weave an intricate, visceral picture. Her word choices and descriptions are incredible, grisly, creepy, gross, borderline horrifying. While it is well written in this way, unfortunately, the rest of the story leaves a lot to be desired. I hate to be one of those people who brags about "knowing the ending," but this one wraps up pretty obviously. Even if the methodically slow pacing is on purpose, I found my mind wandering because it wasn't super exciting. I liked the feminist undertones here as well. "We all marry strangers." Keep that in mind as you read. I wish I had been more entranced by this one.

Thank you to NetGalley, Megan Abbott, and Penguin Group Putnam/G.P. Putnam's Sons for the ARC of this book. All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for my review.

2.5 ⭐️‘s
There’s the slow burn and then there’s the spark that really never catches on fire. This book was the latter for me. It was easy to see where it was going from the beginning, but it took way too long to get there. Because it was so slow, it never really held my interest for any length of time, but I continued slogging through until it’s bitter open ending. Thank you to Penguin and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

I hate giving a negative review. I really do, while I really enjoy the authors other books, I just could not vibe with this one. I think it was a bit of a trigger for me, because of the violence and pregnancy scares. Morgan is a fantastic writer and paints a picture so vivid and well written. I just couldn’t finish because my own issues.

Hit the road with recent-weds Jacy and Jed on a bumpy trip to visit his father in a remote house in the wilds of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. But if I were you, I'd stay home. "Beware the Woman” (on sale May 30) isn’t really a mystery, or a thriller. It’s best categorized as domestic suspense, with a big nod to a classic that, if you read with the connection in mind, will totally spoil the ending.


Jacy and Jed fell in love and married impulsively; now she’s pregnant. His father, Dr. Ash, is warm and welcoming; the housekeeper, Mrs. Brandt, is chilly and used to doing things her own way. Everything about the visit seems fine until Jacy has a pregnancy complication and winds up stuck in a house that feels increasingly claustrophobic and creepy.

Abbott’s 10 previous novels, in this same vein, have gained her legions of fans. Those readers may enjoy “Beware the Woman,” but I found it painfully slow, with almost everything happening inside Jacy’s annoying head for a long, long time. Almost nothing anyone did made sense, or made me care about any of them, except possibly the roaming mountain lion.

“Beware the Woman” does boast a rousing conclusion that you may see coming. But getting there is a bumpy road

Megan Abbot’s book had me checked behind doors and ensuring all my doors were locked at night. This thriller had me going back to my childhood fears and being scared of the dark. I mean this all in a good way! While the story progresses slowly, the moment the action hits, you better buckle up and take a seat because the ride will have you twisting and turning through every page to the end. The tension was palpable between characters. The most terrifying aspect of the story, the monsters are not fictional, but standing right next to you. Abbot had me questioning every hint she gave me and pulled through to the ending. Though the story overall had me on the edge of my seat, there were certain aspects keeping this from being a five star read. Aspects of the writing felt disjointed and unrealistic. The inner monologue made me wish the beginning was set to a faster pace, but thankfully once the story truly began, I was satisfied.

I would like to thank NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for providing me with an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Look for it now in your local and online bookstores and libraries.

⭐️⭐️.5

Jed and Jacy are in their second year of marriage and are expecting their first baby when they take a roadtrip to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula to visit Jed’s father. The remote cabin is idyllic and Jacy feels very welcomed by Jed’s father, if less so by the house manager, Mrs. Brandt. Soon, though, a pregnancy scare will change the vibes and have Jacy questioning everything.

This book was troublesome for me. There were plot holes and storylines that should have been better explained. The characters weren’t fleshed out, and their motives were unclear. I didn’t enjoy it very much.

Jacy was walking home from hanging out with her fellow teachers at a local bar when she stopped at his shop. She’d seen the shop before, a man making neon signs. She had been drawn to him the first time she’d seen him. She’d walked past his shop several times before, hoping to bump into him. But that night was different. She went in.

That started a whirlwind love affair between Jacy and Jed that burned hot. Within a couple of years, they were married and expecting a baby. That’s when Jed insisted that they go visit his father, a retired doctor living in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

Jacy isn’t sure what to expect from the area or from Jed’s father. He appears welcoming and kind, but Jed changes as soon as they get to Doctor Ash’s house. The house is nice, and the area is dense with woods and wildlife, but they are informed that there may be a mountain lion nearby, a very dangerous wildcat who won’t hesitate to kill given the chance.

Also on the property is Mrs. Brandt, the caretaker for those years that Doctor Ash had practiced medicine and only came to the U.P. during the summers. But when he retired, she stayed on, living in a small cabin out back and still helping with the cleaning and cooking.

Jacy decides to make the best of things, although something feels a little off about the whole situation. But it’s only for a couple of days, and then they’ll head back to the city. However, a hiccup with her pregnancy means that she shouldn’t travel just yet and those couple of days just keep adding up.

Jed spends a lot of time hanging out with his old friends and drinking, leaving Jacy at the house with Doctor Ash and Mrs. Brandt. She’s bored. She’s isolated. There is no wifi, no television, no way for her to go anywhere except on foot, and then there are the warnings about the mountain lion. She feels trapped, and Jed is not around to help.

As her pregnancy stirs up strange sensations, morning sickness, odd cravings, Jacy also has to deal with the tension in the air. She wants to leave, but Jed thinks they should stay. She can’t tell if her nightmares are real, if she’s in danger, if she’s going a little crazy. But she does know that something in that house is not right, and she’ll need to find a way out if she’s going to protect her child.

Bestselling author Megan Abbott is back with Beware the Woman, a fiercely creepy slow-burning domestic thriller about what it means to be a wife and mother. With the tang of iron and the smell of blood, there is an earthiness to this story that is palpable. You can smell it in the air, feel it like sweat, hear it in the fireworks for the Fourth of July. Beware the Woman is visceral, and once you start reading, it stalks you like that mountain lion.

I struggled some with this one. The writing is beautiful and raw, but the family wounds of many of these characters are deep and painful. The fear is very real, and it hangs in the humid summer air like gnats. This reminded me more of a ghost story than the thriller I’ve come to expect from Abbott. And I like a good ghost story. But this one got under my skin pretty badly. I couldn’t stop reading, because I had to get to the end of the story, but it took all of my strength to keep on the journey of these wounded characters. Beware the Woman is an exceptional book, but it is not an easy read. In this case, the phrase “Beware the Woman” might refer to Abbott herself.

Egalleys for Beware the Woman were provided by G.P. Putnam’s Sons through NetGalley, with many thanks.

I just read the book Beware the Woman by Megan Abbott. #NetGalley This is the second or third Megan Abbott book I have read and unfortunately this one fell flat for me. It was a slow burn, psychological thriller. I don't mind the slow burn aspect, however throughout most of the book I felt like I wasn't sure where things were going or what the end goal was going to be. The ending definitely cleared up some of the questions I had throughout the book, however there were many things throughout the story that I thought could have been better explained. There were several plot points as well as characters I thought had potential that wasn't explored.

While this wasn't a favorite for me, it might be just the ticket for someone else! Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced reader copy.

Wow! Fabulous read by Megan Abbott! This was a refreshing new thriller. Absolutely loved the characters, flaws and all. I was hooked from the beginning and intensity just kept building.
Great read!
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I would not recommend this book to anyone that 1) is currently pregnant or 2) doesn't enjoy gothic literature. I fall into both categories, so I'll exit the convo. Megan Abbott is my favorite author, but this just didn't land for me.

If you need a book to read poolside, this is for you. I finished it in one sitting- completely addicting! Thank you netgalley & the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

‼️ ᴛʀɪɢɢᴇʀ ᴡᴀʀɴɪɴɢ: ᴘʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴄʏ ᴄᴏᴍᴘʟɪᴄᴀᴛɪᴏɴs ‼️

ᴍᴇɢᴀɴ ᴀʙʙᴏᴛᴛ ᴅᴏᴇs sʟᴏᴡ ʙᴜʀɴ ʀɪɢʜᴛ. ɪ ɴᴏʀᴍᴀʟʟʏ ᴀᴍ ᴄᴏᴍᴘʟᴇᴛᴇʟʏ ᴛᴜʀɴᴇᴅ ᴏғғ ᴡʜᴇɴ ɪ ʜᴇᴀʀ sʟᴏᴡ ʙᴜʀɴ, ʙᴜᴛ ᴛʜɪs sʟᴏᴡ ʙᴜʀɴ ᴀᴄᴛᴜᴀʟʟʏ ʙᴜʀɴs ᴛʜʀᴏᴜɢʜᴏᴜᴛ. sʜᴇ ᴅɪᴅ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ɪɴ ʜᴇʀ ᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛᴜʀɴᴏᴜᴛ ᴀs ᴡᴇʟʟ. ᴛʜᴇʀᴇ ɪs ᴀɴ ᴏᴠᴇʀᴀʀᴄʜɪɴɢ ᴏᴍɪɴᴏᴜs ᴛᴏɴᴇ ɪɴ ᴡʜɪᴄʜ ʏᴏᴜ ᴄᴀɴ’ᴛ ǫᴜɪᴛᴇ ᴘᴇɢ ᴡʜᴀᴛ ɪs ɢᴏɪɴɢ ᴏɴ ғᴏʀ ᴀ ʟᴏɴɢ ᴡʜɪʟᴇ. ɪ ᴛʜɪɴᴋ ᴛʜᴇ ғᴀᴄᴛ ᴊᴀᴄʏ ɪs ᴘʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴛ ʜᴇʟᴘᴇᴅ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴛʜɪs ᴇᴇʀɪᴇ ғᴇᴇʟ ᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴏᴏᴋ. ᴄᴏᴍᴘᴀʀᴀᴛɪᴠᴇʟʏ, ᴛʜɪs ᴏɴᴇ ᴡᴀsɴ’ᴛ ᴏᴠᴇʀʟᴏᴀᴅᴇᴅ ᴡɪᴛʜ sᴇxᴜᴀʟ ᴏᴠᴇʀᴛᴏɴᴇs ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛᴜʀɴᴏᴜᴛ ᴡᴀs. ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴡᴀs ᴍʏ ᴍᴀᴊᴏʀ ɢʀɪᴘᴇ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʙᴏᴏᴋ ʙᴇᴄᴀᴜsᴇ ɪ ᴅᴏɴ’ᴛ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴀɴʏ ʟᴇᴠᴇʟ ᴏғ sᴍᴜᴛ. ʜᴜɢᴇ ʀᴇᴀᴅɪɴɢ ᴘʀᴜᴅᴇ ʀɪɢʜᴛ ʜᴇʀᴇ! ᴛʜɪs ʙᴏᴏᴋ ʜᴀᴅ ᴊᴜsᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴀᴘᴘʀᴏᴘʀɪᴀᴛᴇ ᴀᴍᴏᴜɴᴛ ᴏғ sᴇx ᴛʜᴀᴛ ғᴇʟᴛ ɴᴇᴄᴇssᴀʀʏ ᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘʟᴏᴛ.

ʜᴏɴᴇsᴛʟʏ, ʜᴀᴅ ɴᴏ ᴄʟᴜᴇ ᴡʜᴀᴛ ᴡᴀs ɢᴏɪɴɢ ᴏɴ ғᴏʀ ᴀʙᴏᴜᴛ 𝟼𝟶% ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴏᴏᴋ- ᴀɴᴅ ʙʏ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ɪ ᴍᴇᴀɴ ɪ ʜᴀᴅ ɴᴏ ɢᴜᴇssᴇs ᴀs ᴛᴏ ʜᴏᴡ ᴛʜɪɴɢs ᴡᴏᴜʟᴅ ᴜɴғᴏʟᴅ.

ᴛʜɪs ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ɪs ᴏɴᴇ ᴘᴏᴠ - ᴀᴜᴛʜᴏʀs sᴏᴍᴇᴛɪᴍᴇs ᴛʀʏ ᴀɴᴅ ᴏᴠᴇʀᴄᴏᴍᴘʟɪᴄᴀᴛᴇ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴍᴜʟᴛɪᴘʟᴇ ᴘᴏᴠs ᴀɴᴅ ғᴏʀɢᴇᴛ ʜᴏᴡ ɪᴍᴘᴀᴄᴛғᴜʟ ᴏɴᴇ sᴛʀᴏɴɢ ᴘᴏᴠ ᴄᴀɴ ʙᴇ. ɪ ᴀʟsᴏ ʟᴏᴠᴇᴅ ʜᴏᴡ ᴇᴠᴇʀʏᴛʜɪɴɢ ᴛɪᴇᴅ ᴛᴏɢᴇᴛʜᴇʀ. ᴛʜɪɴɢs ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴅɪᴅɴ’ᴛ sᴇᴇᴍ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴛʜᴇʏ ᴍɪɢʜᴛ ʙᴇ ʀᴇʟᴇᴠᴀɴᴛ - ᴇɴᴅᴇᴅ ᴜᴘ ʜᴀᴠɪɴɢ ᴀ ᴄᴀʟʟʙᴀᴄᴋ ᴀᴛ sᴏᴍᴇ ᴘᴏɪɴᴛ.

ɪ ᴛʜᴏʀᴏᴜɢʜʟʏ ᴇɴᴊᴏʏᴇᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛʜᴇᴍᴇ ᴏғ ᴍᴇɴ ᴠs. ᴡᴏᴍᴇɴ ᴛʜʀᴏᴜɢʜᴏᴜᴛ. ɪ ᴀʟsᴏ ʟᴏᴠᴇᴅ ʜᴏᴡ sᴛʀᴏɴɢ ᴊᴀᴄʏ ᴡᴀs- ᴠᴇʀʏ ɪɴᴛᴜɪᴛɪᴠᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ᴘɪᴄᴋᴇᴅ ᴜᴘ ᴏɴ ᴀʟʟ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴜᴇs. ᴏᴠᴇʀᴀʟʟ ᴛʜɪs ɪs ᴍʏ ɴᴇᴡ ғᴀᴠᴏʀɪᴛᴇ ʙʏ ᴛʜɪs ᴀᴜᴛʜᴏʀ.


📖 ʜᴜɢᴇ ᴛʜᴀɴᴋ ʏᴏᴜ ᴛᴏ @ᴘᴜᴛɴᴀᴍʙᴏᴏᴋs ᴀɴᴅ @ɴᴇᴛɢᴀʟʟᴇʏ ғᴏʀ ᴛʜɪs ᴀʀᴄ ᴄᴏᴘʏ ɪɴ ᴇxᴄʜᴀɴɢᴇ ғᴏʀ ᴀɴ ʜᴏɴᴇsᴛ ʀᴇᴠɪᴇᴡ 📖