Title: A Mediocre Thriller

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

"Dark Corners" by Megan Goldin had all the makings of a gripping thriller, but it fell short of my expectations. The premise was intriguing, promising a tangled web of secrets and suspense. The author's writing style was decent, allowing for easy reading, and the pacing kept me engaged throughout.

However, where the book faltered was in its character development and plot execution. The characters lacked depth, often coming across as one-dimensional and predictable. I struggled to connect with their motivations, which hindered my investment in their fates. The plot had potential, but it often veered into clichés and convenient resolutions, robbing the story of genuine surprises.

Despite these shortcomings, I can't deny that the book did manage to maintain a certain level of tension that kept me flipping the pages. There were moments of genuine intrigue that hinted at the author's ability to craft a compelling narrative.

In the end, "Dark Corners" is a book that offers a moderate level of entertainment for readers looking for a quick thriller fix. However, if you're seeking a more immersive and thought-provoking mystery, you might find yourself slightly disappointed by this book's lack of depth and originality.

DNF at 25% Rachel has lost all her spunk from the first book. Also we get it she has a sexy voice. It was just repetitive and dull.

Shortly before being released from a six-year prison sentence, suspected serial killer Terrence Bailey receives a visit from a popular social media influencer, Maddison Logan. Immediately after that visit, Maddison goes missing and the FBI is unable to locate her. The FBI reaches out to Rachel Krall, a popular true crime podcaster, for help for two reasons: 1) her name came up in their investigation and 2) she has been able to solve cases in the past that the police could not.

I really liked this one! Podcasts have become very popular in books and I don't mind it one bit - I liked the podcast aspect in this one but I do wish some of the transcripts would have been included to really add to that element of the book. This book was a really quick read and had a creepy feel to the whole thing, which I really liked. I also appreciated the very short chapters and though there were a lot of moving parts in this one, I was never confused or bored. I was very unsure how it would all come together in the end and I was very satisfied with how it all worked out. If you're looking for a fast paced, twisty thriller then this is definitely a good one to pick up!

I read The Night Swim back in 2020 when it was first released and though I know I loved it, I don't remember the details so I honestly can't fairly compare the two books. If you're wondering if you need to read The Night Swim before reading this one my answer is no, this book can stand on its own. Try it!

"Dark Corners" by Megan Goldin is an electrifying thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. With its well-crafted plot and intricate character development, the book takes readers on a roller-coaster ride of suspense and mystery. Goldin's writing style is engaging and immersive, making it difficult to put the book down. If you're a fan of psychological thrillers with unexpected twists, "Dark Corners" is a must-read. However, be prepared for some intense and chilling moments that will leave you thinking long after you've turned the last page.

Dark, ominous, and unnerving!

Dark Corners is an intense, well-crafted tale that takes us back into the life of podcaster Rachel Krall as she heads to Florida to help the FBI with a case involving a missing influencer with ties to a convicted killer that will see her using her talents to infiltrate BuzzCon, a cutthroat convention of influencers, where everyone is willing to do anything they have to in order to be the next big thing.

The writing is sharp and crisp. The characters are sly, self-obsessed, and competitive. And the plot is an intricate, gripping tall full of twists, turns, secrets, deception, manipulation, obsession, greed, jealousy, gossip-mongering, red herrings, malicious intentions, and murder.

Overall, Dark Corners is an unpredictable, eerie, entertaining tale by Goldin that didn’t have as much of that podcast feel as the first novel in the series, The Night Swim, but was nevertheless still an intricate, creepy, fantastic thrill ride.

Megan Goldin has done it again! I fast paced thriller that keeps a reader hooked throughout. Rachel Krall is back! This time she is brought into an investigation because a convicted inmate wants to see her. Seemingly unconnected to the story, Rachel finds herself caught in the web of missing influencers, murder, and FBI investigations all while still using her podcast to share what she discovers as the truth.

This novel is twisty and fun, and kept me wanting to know how it would turn out in the end!

I was excited to see Dark Corners by Megan Goldin as I really enjoyed Night Swim. This was a solid mystery and I liked the character of Rachel. I would love to read more in this series and hope FBI Agent Joe Martinez shows up again.

Thanks to #NetGalley and the publishers for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 4/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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Rachel Krall is back! This time she is in Florida, helping the FBI search for a missing person while simultaneously help keep a man behind bars all while doing a bit of her own investigation on her own for her podcast.
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Once again, this was a fun read. This was once again in the format where we are reading the story through Rachel’s podcast but also through the present as to what Rachel was doing with the FBI and her own investigation. I liked how one piece of the puzzle always led to something more significant.
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There was definitely a bunch of filler in this one in my opinion, but that didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the book. I liked the aspect of Rachel doing her own thing, I liked the “undercover” aspect if you will and I found the ending satisfying. I definitely figured out part of the major twist, which basically means I am certified detective now… or just that it’s moreso eluded to throughout the novel. Either way, I did figure out part of it.
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I was able to listen to this one and read via ebook. The narrators were incredible, the podcast parts were superb. Andre Santana, January LaVoy and Samantha Desz were incredible making this one such a fun listen. I highly highly highly recommend the audiobook if you’re looking into this one!
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This was a solid sequel to The Night Swim, and I would love to see if we get another installment to the Rachel Krall series. I would definitely like to see where life takes her next.
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Dark Corners released yesterday 8/8, be sure to check it out! Huge thank you to NetGalley, St. Martins Press, Macmillan Audio and Megan Goldin for the ALC and eARC in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 but rounding up

In many areas, this book is a much stronger addition to the Rachel Krall series than the first book, The Night Swim. The characters were more fully fleshed out, the plot had a higher degree of urgency from the start, and the podcast segments further developed the story. I enjoyed the complex multi-layered plot filled with mystery, intrigue, and suspense. That being said, there were elements that fell flat for me. A few of the reveals felt overly convenient or rushed. One plot element was very briefly tied up at the very end and ultimately had little to no impact to the story at large. While the touch of romance seemed a little out of place at times, it did add depth and humanity to the MC, Rachel Krall. Overall, it was an enjoyable listen, highly recommend the audio for this one!

Thank you to Megan Goldin, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for the gifted copy in exchange for my honest review!

Dark Corners
Megan Goldin
Rachel Krall #2



Megan Goldin’s latest thriller, Dark Corners, is creeptastic- disturbing and frightening, full of unexpected twists, dangerous turns and rollercoaster emotions that will keep readers/listeners interest from page one until the jaw dropping end and featuring Rachel Krall, the star of Night Swim.
Rachel is back and better than ever helping to solve another crime(s). However, in this read Rachel is more defensive than she seemed in Night Swim, now she’s got plenty of good reasons to be put-out, and one big reason is the cryptic fed Joe Martinez. As the story progresses the audience will once again see the kinder gentler Rachel and even experience some sparks flying between Rachel and the FBI agent. As usual Megan gifts her audience with one heck of an edgy and spellbinding tale this one is told from two POVs, Rachel’s and a rideshare driver named Thomas McCoy that is interspersed with a haunting Rachel Krall podcast of murder and mayhem. Megan will make her audience wait a long time until she leaves enough clues for readers to reach that ah-ha moment that will finally make every monstrous piece fall into place. Fans of Lisa Gardner, JT Ellison and this fabulous author will find it impossible to put this novel down.

Narration:
Samantha Desz and January LaVoy take this novel to new heights by giving a realistic voice to every emotion and scene. Brava!

When, Terence Bailey, a suspected serial killer is due to get out of prison and his only visitor in six years is a social media influencer who then turns up missing the feds are up against a wall and out of ideas, but FBI special Agent Joe Martinez has one trick up his sleeve and her name is Rachel Krall the star of the popular true crime podcast, Guilty or Not Guilty. But Joe isn’t aware of the Pandora’s Box he’s about to open.
Rachel Krall had plans for a short break between projects, that was until she was literally woken up by the FBI who had a small favor to ask. With little explanation Rachel is asked to fly to Florida and interview an inmate who’s about to be released. And oh by the way she’ll need to sign a non-disclosure before they’ll talk to her; now her interest is really piqued so Rachel agrees to the terms and learns that while Terence Bailey is in prison for robbery he’s always been suspected for a string of serial killings and that a few days ago social media influencer Madison Logan visited Bailey and then disappeared without a trace. And they need Rachel to try and get Bailey to spill some beans.

However, when the interview doesn’t get agent Martinez the answers he wants, he simply thanks Rachel and tells her to go home and forget the whole thing.

There are a few things that get Rachel’s craw and one of them is to pique her curiosity then shut her down. And it seems luck is on her side because Rachel’s been invited to the same influencer conference that the missing influencer came to Florida for. So, win-win she can investigate Madison’s disappearance and look into why the cops seem to think that Terence Bailey is a killer. And oh another win is that agent Joe Martinez is NOT happy.

This is a follow-up to Night Swim, featuring the same main character, but it can be read as a stand-alone. The book is very well written, and the character development is excellent. Lots of moving parts, but the author handles all of them well. Fast paced with some good twists.

"Dark corners can be danger points."

3.5 Stars rounded up.

When I read the night swim in 2020, I enjoyed the take on the thriller genre that Megan Goldin took and when I saw that there was going to be a second Rachel Krall book, I was excited to see where the story went next. Rachel, a true crime podcast host, is called down to Florida to assist in a case after an influencer goes missing shortly after visiting a serial killer in prison. I loved that this book still has the special episode transcript for Rachel's podcast alongside the story since I found that unique in the first book. One thing I enjoyed about The Night Swim was the use of courtroom drama and I found myself missing it when it wasn't in the sequel. This story really focuses on influencer culture and unraveling the connections between the characters. Like The Night Swim, this is a really fast-paced thriller with good twists and turns and I'm interested to see if we'll get more of Rachel Krall's story!

Thank you to St. Martin's and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I was so excited to get the next Rachel Krall book! I enjoyed the first book in this series, even though I did have serious qualms with how heavily it relied on a real-life case. I was glad this one didn't remind me of any actual case.

First, I loved the focus on influencers and the toxicity social media can creep into our lives. Different scenes definitely made me laugh because I could imagine people being so ridiculous in the name of being their "authentic selves" online.

With the overall plot, I enjoyed this one. The multiple perspectives kept it exciting and fast-paced.

My one issue was the romance felt a bit forced; I'm not sure it added much to the overall story.

Dark Corners by Megan Goldin is a page-turning thriller that I didn't want to put down! I absolutely loved Stay Awake and couldn't wait to read Dark Corners, and although I didn't love it quite as much as Stay Awake, it did not disappoint. (Note: this book features podcaster Rachel Krall, and is the second book of Goldin's to feature this character. I had not read the first one, Night Swim, and certainly don't think it's necessary to read it first, but those who prefer to read things "in order" may prefer to read Night Swim first and Dark Corners second.) One of the things that I love about Goldin's books is that I always learn something new. This book features a lot of social media influencers and what their lives are really like, as well as a strange disease that causes one to have terrible body odor that I'd never heard of before. The alternating viewpoints create a nice tension and set a good pace for this mystery/thriller. If you are a fan of Ruth Ware and haven't yet discovered Megan Goldin, now is the time to start reading her!

Megan is a must read for me. I loved The Night Swim so I was very excited to get my hands on this one and it didn’t disappoint. It’s an engaging thriller that you won’t be able to put it down. Filled with unexpected twists. This one is even better the first one. I truly hope there’s more books in the series. I can see this as tv show easily. So well written.

I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Look for it now in your local and online bookstores and libraries.

Rachel Krall is back! You might remember her from The Night Swim. She hosts a very successful true crime podcast, and it’s landed her in the middle of another investigation.

Set just a few weeks after the conclusion of The Night Swim, Rachel is hoping to enjoy some time off, but she quickly finds herself on a plane bound for Florida after the FBI calls and asks for her help with a missing persons case.

There is a lot going on in this book. There’s the missing persons case, several murders, a serial killer, an influencer convention, and more. Even with all that is happening, I thought it took a while to really get going. However, once it got going, it was unputdownable. I’ll be crossing my fingers for another Rachel Krall book!

I was a huge fan of the first novel (the night swim and I felt like this one disappointed a little. I still enjoyed the plot because of the interesting backdrop of influencers and how social media portrays things but the main character felt different. A 3.5 rounded to a 4!

3.5 stars. I really liked Rachel Krall in book one and found the story of her true crime podcast so unique, very much giving “Serial” vibes. This book continued with her coverage of a new case in Daytona, with peculiar circumstances and odd subjects. I was worried there would be some loose ends with some of the characters but everything was wrapped up nicely in a bow. While the story isn’t super likely, it’s totally different than the average mystery and kept me curious throughout.

I was so excited about this based on the author and didn’t realize it was a sequel nor that it was amateur detective. I just found the story was very “blah blah blah” and nothing happened. Also: our main character knew EVERYTHING not even the police knew. Lastly, in making it multiple POVs the story would first rewind and then catch up and then add to - which felt like a broken childhood game we used to play. It just didn’t work for me and I DNF’d at 30%

I was excited to receive the second installment in the Rachel Krall true crime series and it did not disappoint. This was a well thought out psychological twisted roller coaster of who is really behind what is happening. Other than an FBI Agent with questionable judgment and tactics and a few hard to believe why would you do that Rachel Krall moments I really enjoyed this book.

So, are we going to see Agent Martinez in Rachel’s future? Is Rachel going to continue walking the line and risk her safety to report on True Crime? Is there going to be a third and fourth installment soon? I am staying tuned and hopeful. Thank you St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for a copy.