I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book. Let's start with the good.
I really like the way Amanda McKinney writes...it's kind of no nonesense, straight to the point. I could picture the scene without feeling bogged down with details. I feel like this writing style enhances this particular novel, because it makes you pay attention to the areas where there are a lot of detail.
The plot is intriguing, I finished the book (novella?) in one setting. The first chapter was weird and unsettling, but it drew me in and I breezed through the rest of the book.
I also like that McKinney doesn't try to hind the fact that Betts is an unreliable narrator. You spend some time trying to figure out what is real and what is just Betts POV. The other twisty characters do a good job of adding to the feeling that you don't really know the whole story.

I was really engaged in this book until about three fourths of the way through. Then it kind of fell apart. First, all those wonderfully odd, mysterious characters had no real point. We didn't really see their stories... in the end it felt like McKinney just wanted to make everyone oddballs. Second, the twist? It didn't make sense. It wasn't one of those "Wow! How did I miss that?!" moments, it was more a feeling that the author just pulled an ending out of thin air.
Overall, it was mostly a miss for me. However, I will probably look for something else from this author because I think there is a lot of potential there.

Thank you to Netgalley for this book.

I had no idea what I was going into when I started this one. I didn't read the synopsis, but what I found was a disturbing, sociopathic main character, which is always fun and fascinating to read about, so long as it's fiction.

There were a few twists and surprises all the way to the very end, which I love. My favorite thing is when I think I've got it all figured out and a little surprise is thrown in there that I never would've even considered. Overall, great book, and I'd recommend to others.

When I scroll through my options on the app my local library provides, my usual go-to are mostly thrillers and whodunits. It's gotten to the point where the plots seem to have gotten tired and frayed around the edges for me. Until this one.

The book starts off with a really great hook. However, I've seen those a number of times too. I remained skeptical. Then I realized I wasn't given the chance to put it away. The chapters were short, quick, almost business-like. The style worked not because I like short and quick books (on the contrary, I'm not fazed by Stephen King tomes having grown up on James Michener's epic tales), but because it gives the reader a kind of insight into the main character's frame of mind. This pacing as a tool works even more when the final twist happens--the slowing down, the exhale--not yours, though.

I don't want to put in spoilers so I prefer to leave my review at that. If this gets picked up for film, I hope they do it justice.

This book was a hot mess from the get go. It was hard to tell if the character Betts was so unlikeable or if it was the writing that was so annoying. I was irritated with the Southern slurs, constant “joke” that every woman wants her husband dead, and the not at all sexy sex. I upped it to two stars for the “surprise” ending. By that point I was just glad it was over.
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

The Widow of Weeping Pines can best be described as a bit unsettling, but I mean that in the best possible way!

In this story we have Betty Lou Abbott, who is a therapist who runs a clinic in the basement of the Gadleigh Estate. The Gadleigh Estate was left to Betts, by her deceased husband. Betts is also in the process of becoming a writer. She dreams of being a famous author one day. In the estate with Betts is her fiancé, Ian Bailey. Ian is also the town dentist. We also have Carmen Marquis, who is one of Betts’ clients at her clinic. We then have the town detective of Nicholas Stahl. Trust me when I say that between these characters, there is a lot of bizarre behavior going on!

This was a fast read, which contained short chapters with lots of twists! This is a book that you can and will want to read in one sitting because you can’t turn the pages fast enough, and you need to know what happens next! I am so glad that I found this book as I am now looking forward to reading more books from this author.

My first read by this author.
Do YOU ever wish your husband was dead?
Not that I do, of course, but an amazing start to a great book!
It was a slower read at first, but I still never wanted to put it down! Then suddenly the twists and turns were crazy! There wasn't any pointless ramblings of unimportant details like I have seen in so many other author's work. She kept the chapters short, and definitely kept my attention.
I will be reading many more of her books!
She really caught me with this one

Was a good book, but a little bit confusing, once I got the flashbacks into the past down, I was able to keep up. It was a quick read that included love and marriage, deception, cheating, and death. Betts was a nut bag and should've gotten a worse taste of her own medicine than she actually did! The ending was a twist that I did not expect!

Told in alternate view points, this the story of Betty Lou Abbot, or Betts, and how she came to be a widow in a big house in the town of Whispering Pines. Betts met Jack at a medical conference in New York, they married quickly and returned to his hometown of Whispering Pines. Within a year, Jack is dead and the entire estate is left to Betts. Now, she is engaged to Ian and operating an illegal therapy clinic in her basement. But things are not what they seem at the Gadleigh estate - not with Betts, not with her clients and definitely not with Detective Stahl, who doesn’t trust Betts a bit.

Twisty and fast paced, this is an easy, quick read. But, because it was a novella, I felt the end was rushed and rather jumbled. McKinney definitely kept me on my toes though!

I loved this domestic thriller! A counselor runs an illegal therapy office out of her basement. Every character is hiding something. This book was around 180 pages so the author wasted no time getting down to business. After I post this, I will be researching (and downloading) all other books by this author!

The Widow of Weeping Pines was a dark, dark, dark book. It was a very quick read, and I absolutely enjoyed every minute of it!

Betty Lou is a doctor/aspiring writer who moves from NYC to the quiet, tiny town of Weeping Pines (where it’s always grey and everyone knows everyone’s business). When Betty Lou’s husband dies of a heart attack, she stays in Weeping Pines, and ends up opening an underground psychology clinic in her basement. She’s content, despite it being completely illegal.

The plot line jumps from 5 years ago in New York, to 3 years ago, when Betty Lou’s husband is dying, and to present day, where Betty Lou is at odds with her fiancé, is tangled up with a local detective, and may have an unhealthy obsession with one of her clients.

Buckle up for this delightfully dark story!

I flew through this book; read it in one afternoon. What an interesting combination of narrator views and a bizarre story. Now I need to find more books by this author.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

If you like mentally unstable women and a quick read you will love this book. The story takes place in present day and flashbacks to earlier periods in her first marriage. I thought the characters were a fun break from my work day however they did not have enough depth to make me care about them after the book was marked complete on my kindle.

It was a fun quick mystery to burn through on a rainy day and you’re stuck inside or perhaps waiting on a turn and burn flight in the airport. The plot was easy to follow which is an aspiring writer is telling her story as to how she murdered a bunch of people almost died herself then wound up in prison writing her best seller. I hope for her sake that then book did in fact reach the best seller list.

There were some times that I wanted to start seriously thinking about the plot holes. I get that the woman was mentally unstable and behind on her medication or not taking it at all at times but you mean to tell me that she didn’t know her husband faked his death and half the town was in on it and she continued to live in this town without suspicion or one person unable to control themselves showed someone form of hatred toward her?

That aside I am grateful for netgalley loaning me a copy to read and review and I would definitely recommend this book to others who are a fan of jock fun crime mysteries to kill some time!

The Widow of Weeping Pines by Amanda McKinney. This is a tangled web between Betts Abbot a therapist and aspiring author, Jack Holden her husband, Carmen Marquis a well known author who returns home and Detective Nicholas Stahl. This is not a very long story. It is well written and to the point. The author feeds you tidbits from the past to explain the present. I would recommend this book and I would like to read some more by this author. Thank you NetGalley for letting me review this book.

Betty Lou Abbet has the gritty honesty one only possesses one they no longer give a flying flip what others think, she also possesses the cunning kind of craziness that unless you’re paying close attention or know her well some may miss. Would we meet Betty Lou better known as Dr. Betts she is a widow to Jack in the fiancé to the local dentist. She is obsessed with a famous thriller writer who recently moved back to weeping pines her name is Carmen and she has been seeing Dr. bets in her illegal clinic in The Mansions basement. She also gets frequent visits from her deceased husband‘s nephew who is also the local detective. His name is Nick Stahl and he loves to stop by dropping little clues so Dr. Betts doesn’t forget he doesn’t think is uncle died from a heart attack or any other natural happening. Nick is also obsessed and ultimately the question is who is more obsessed Dr. Betts or Detective Nick… But wait there’s someone else obsessed. The third obsessed person is also very patient but he will not have to wait long. The story bills like a snowball rolling down a snowing mountain in the farther it goes the bigger it gets leading to a big catastrophe but who will be standing when it’s all over? This book wasn’t that long but it was really good I haven’t read the other books in the series and so it can definitely be red as a stand alone. I thoroughly enjoyed this book it is crazy wacky and it was lacking with some parts of the plot I think the goodness in other areas totally made up with that. I would definitely highly recommend this book if you love thrillers with a great mystery you’ll love The Widow of Weeping Pines. I received this book from NetGalley and the publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

The Widow of Weeping Pines
by Amanda McKinney

I am not sure exactly what to call this book – a murder mystery, a thriller – well, whatever. It is actually rather clever. The narrator, Betts, is a "Doctor" of psychology, practicing illegally out of her home. She has been diagnosed since childhood with various mental illnesses. She is the widow of the title.

The book presents many questions: was Betts' husband Jack murdered and if so, by whom? Is her patient Carmen (a successful author) having an affair with Betts' fiancé, Ian? Is Detective Nicholas Stahl – her deceased husband's protégé – trying to set her up for the murder of her husband? And how does Ian fit in to all this?

I enjoyed the author's plot twists right up until the end – but the last chapter left me confused as to what really happened here. I re-read it and still felt dissatisfied with the ending. I wish the author had been a little clearer between fact and fiction.

Don’t waste your money…
Better yet, don’t waste your time. Unfortunately, I did the latter. I should have known better when advanced reader copies were still being offered after the publication data, and I was approved within a matter of minutes.

From the first chapter, I was turned off. Actually, the dedication (yes I read those) left a bad taste in my mouth and gave me a glimpse at the author’s character and attitude. But because I’d received a free copy, I continued to read.

The main character is a “doctor,” and I say that in the loosest sense of the word. Extremely unlikable—she has a bad attitude about marriages and small towns. She’s dishonest, runs an illegal clinic on a cash-only basis to avoid the IRS, and consumes a large amount of vodka prior to seeing her “clients.” If that’s not enough do I really care she’s buying Monistat in the grocery store?

Really??? Give me a break.

It only got worse and I ended up skimming the last half of the book, not caring less what would happen. Trust me on this one. It’s not worth opening the pages and no more of this author for me.

HH Tisvich and NetGalley gifted me an ARC. This was a fun, quick, twisty read. Enjoyable! Three stars.

I enjoyed this book overall and I’ll recommend it to others looking for a quick novella. The use of the term clip vs magazine in the final chapter needs corrected. I didn’t think some parts of the book made sense, but it’s a book and not real life. It’s ok. Overall, it’s a good book.

The Widow of Weeping Pines can best be described as a bit unsettling… but I mean that in the best possible way!

In this story we have Betty Lou Abbott (Betts), who is a therapist who runs a clinic in the basement of the Gadleigh Estate. The Gadleigh Estate was left to Betts, by her deceased husband. Betts is also in the process of becoming a writer. She dreams of being a famous author one day. In the estate with Betts is her fiancé, Ian Bailey. Ian is also the town dentist. We also have Carmen Marquis, who is one of Betts’ clients at her clinic. We then have the town detective of Nicholas Stahl. Trust me when I say that between these characters, there is a lot of bizarre behavior going on! Who is crazy? And is Carmen having an affair with Ian? 😳

This was a fast read, which contained short chapters (my favorite), with lots of twists! This is a book that you can and will want to read in one sitting because you can’t turn the pages fast enough, and you need to know what happens next! I am so glad that I found this book as I am now looking forward to reading more books from this author.

Many thanks to NetGalley, HH Tisevich, and the author for a digital copy of this book. This book is available to read now- Publication date: December 2, 2022.

Wow from the first line of the book, this book was able to pull me in. Betts was a nutcase, but a likeable one. The details in the book really make the book a winner in my opinion. I would recommend this book to others.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and HH Tisevich, I am leaving my review voluntarily.