The premise had intrigue when I read it. Loved the idea of the girls trip gone wrong and years later secrets about that night are going to be revealed, and what each one has been hiding since Vanessa disappeared. The problem it fell so flat I couldn't stay into it. I hate really long chapters and for most of the book they were so long! I think the story had potential but fell flat with the way it was presented and lacked so much from characters to backstory details. It felt like a lot of plot holes, not really leading up to events more like they were just thrown there when it seemed time. I don't think it was broken up well to really be able to pick up where I left off which is how I read most of the time as a mom with a hectic schedule. I like my reads to be versatile enough so that I can do more reading on the go if I don't have a lot of time. I didn't really like any characters as Vanessa and Brittany were the spoiled entitled ones in their own way, then you have Emily who just kind of existed but was always trying to be the likable one, and Paige and Lydia were pretty forgettable. There wasn't much else to the characters or character development. I'm not a fan of reading an actual book like a screenplay so as soon as the writing changed to that I couldn't get into any of the character conversations. I found it hard to get through this book. I don't mind predictable but this one was a complete miss for me for too many reasons. There have only been a handful of books I haven't been able to finish and this was almost one of them. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the gifted copy to review with my honest opinions.

This book held a lot of promise based on description and there were definite strengths!
What I loved:
1. The setting - Oregon Coast, winery, windy days and nights - all felt very real and authentic!
2. Loved the screenplay within the book (however it makes it hard to determine what is real and what is not).

What I wished was different:
1. There was a formulaic feeling to the book in so many places.
2. The characters were all "mean girls" and I had a hard time believing that they would come back together again - there seemed to be no reason for them to be friends in the first place.
3. It was a slow start and while it wrapped up in a great way - still found it could have been stronger.

Thank You to Random House and Net Galley who provided a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Five girlfriends go on a trip to an island winery. Everything is going great until one of them disappears. Years later the remaining friends get together again. This time to solve the mystery. Can they solve the mystery or will someone else disappear?

This was a good read with an unreliable narrator. It centers on Emily, whose friend Vanessa vanished without a trace during a girls weekend at a winery. 15 years later, Emily gets the girls back together to see if she can find out the truth so she can write a screenplay about it.

Nobody in this story was all that likable but that didn’t bother me. The toxicity of some female friendships is real and I thought the author captured the dynamic well. The story was told in both past and present times and also includes chapters from the screenplay where the reader gets to decide just how many liberties Emily is taking. The atmosphere was cool and creepy and there was tension throughout. I thought the ending worked well.

Overall, I thought this was a unique and enjoyable read and I’d recommend to those who enjoy mysteries and psychological thrillers. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

In "Scenes of the Crime" by Jilly Gagnon, I found an intriguing storyline complemented by solid writing. However, the characters were only passable, making it challenging to connect with them. The narrative's back & forth structure, alternating between reality & Emily's screenplay, proved confusing. Despite these shortcomings, Gagnon's writing style impressed me, prompting me to explore more of her works in the future. While the book didn't resonate with me, I believe others may find it an enjoyable read. Thank you #ScenesoftheCrime, #NetGalley & Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Bantam for the ARC. My review is strictly voluntary.

Unfortunately, this book didn't work for me as much I hoped based on the premise. None of the characters were very likable and it didn't seem like we knew what drew them together as friends in the first place, as they seemed to be barely tolerant of each other at best. It became increasingly more obvious about what really happened and who was involved, and it made the story drag a bit.

Excellent and exciting read. Completed the book in a couple of readings. While the characters ran the gauntlet from likeable to not likeable, I was still heavily invested in the story and couldn't wait to see how things ended. The writing just flowed and I couldn't believe how quickly I was able to get into the story. There were a few chapters that could have been rewritten or removed completely, but it still didn't take away from the story overall.

#NETGALLEY #SCENESOFTHECRIME. #JILLYGAGNON

Writing: 4/5
Characters: 4/5
Plot: 3/5
Enjoyment: 4/5

Scenes of the Crime is about a group of past friends that go back to a vineyard where a member of their group had disapeared years earlier. Strange things start happening and their secrets are soon threatened to be exposed as one of them tries to figure out what truely happened that night. The characters and the basis of the story was good. It was a quick read and did hold my attention. I found the screen writing pieces a little confusing and it was sometimes hard to tell where we were in the timeline. This had a similar feeling as Pritty Little Liars with a missing person and a group of friends with many secrets, so if you liked that show you will like this.

I received an arc and am leaving an honest review.

Scenes of the Crime started out fairly slow for me, but I was curious about it from the blurb, so I kept on reading. I think this was because there are five friends and the author takes a while to introduce each of them, but it is necessary to the building mystery. About fifty percent in, it finally grabbed my attention and I couldn’t put it down. The story is mixed with scenes from the movie the main character is writing, adding intrigue and suspense. I’m still not sure which version was the actual truth, but that’s what a great, unreliable narrator does for you. And a shocking twist ends the book leaving you wondering.

This was my second of Gagnon’s, and I really enjoyed this more than the first, although it was a little slow in the beginning and took a minute to pick up speed. It was interesting with the screenwriting element worked in, and I really enjoyed it. I always love a toxic friendship plot, and this one was no different. Secrets long held for years come to a head when these friends reunite at the scene of the crime for a weekend, minus the one that vanished without a trace back then, and one is trying to get to the bottom of what really happened years ago. It doesn’t go as planned of course and I thought this was an entertaining thriller that I enjoyed overall. The audio was great and I loved listening to this one, definitely recommend it.

Thank you to Berkley and PRH Audio for the copies to review.

Scenes of the Crime is a mystery novel with a promising premise. Emily Fischer, a screenwriter, returns to her hometown to investigate the disappearance of her friend Vanessa Morales, who vanished ten years ago. Emily soon discovers that Vanessa was involved in a complicated web of secrets and lies, and that her disappearance is connected to a series of unsolved murders.

The novel has some strengths. Gagnon writes well, and she creates a sense of suspense and dread throughout the story. The characters are also well-developed, and Emily is a likable and relatable protagonist.

However, the novel also has some flaws. The plot is convoluted and confusing, and there are too many twists and turns. The pacing is also uneven, and the novel drags in some places. Additionally, the ending is unsatisfying and leaves many unanswered questions.

Overall, Scenes of the Crime is an average mystery novel. It has some strengths, but it is also flawed. I would recommend it to readers who are looking for a quick and suspenseful read, but I would not recommend it to readers who are looking for a well-crafted and satisfying mystery.

Jilly Gagnon won me over with her unique but fun Clue-style novel All Dressed Up, so I was really excited to get started on Scenes of the Crime. This also had a unique setup, with past and present viewpoints as well as sections of the screenplay that Emily is writing. The theme of friendship is strong as the story involves 5 female friends, but keep in mind that these are toxic ones, and no one is all that likable. I sometimes thrive on unlikable characters, and I definitely did in this case. I did end up getting a little confused at times about what actually happened versus what Emily was making up, so I highly recommend making sure you pay attention.

I did enjoy the audiobook as well, and I thought the narrator Eileen Stevens did a great job. Her pacing was a bit on the slower side, so I sped it up to around 3x speed and that was just about perfect. The pace of the book is steady but also a bit slow, and I think listening to the audio was helpful in keeping me engaged. The remote winery was the perfect setting for Scenes of the Crime and I thought Gagnon did a fantastic job of bringing the location to life without getting too overzealous with the descriptions. The wine is flowing and the secrets are spilling, and I was there for all of the drama.

I was looking forward to Scenes of the Crime as I had enjoyed another Jilly Gagnon novel. This one, however, didn't really work for me. I found the beginning dragged to the extent that I really couldn't arouse much interest. The screenplay scenes were confusing in that I was unsure as to whether this was imagination or reality--a screenplay being written or flashbacks to what had actually occurred. The writing was good; I just wish I had been more invested in it.

Many thanks to the publisher for a copy.

I’m pretty baffled as to how this book has such a low average rating. Fast-paced with an intriguing mystery, it was better than a lot of the mysteries I’ve read recently, particularly the more popular ones. Each of the characters the book focuses on were pretty shitty people, even the MC Emily, who is the self-described peace keeper of the group of friends. What I found delightful about Emily is that, despite her Midwestern mannerisms and fear of conflict, she had some majorly callous inner dialogues throughout the book — not to mention the fact that she really only brought her friends back to the winery that was the scene of the crime 15 years prior so she could iron out the screenplay she was writing based on her friend’s disappearance! I’ve seen some reviews state confusion regarding whether the excerpts from her screenplay, revealed between most chapters of the book, were true or not, but I personally didn’t have a problem with that. Overall the mystery wasn’t the most creative, but it had enough originality as a whole that I ended up having a great time reading it.

DNF at 40%

Unfortunately, I couldn't finish this book. I was extremely bored throughout the 40% that I read and just didn't find anything pulling me back in.

1.5 stars.

So this book was super predictable and formulaic which definitely affected my rating of this book. you get the story of what happened in the past through one of the main character's screenplay.

The way that the characters are described kind of reminds me of the Breakfast Club. However, you don't learn anything else about the characters through the book. All of them know something about the night that the others don't and then we find out the truth and it was just not an enjoyable read.

I ended up kind of rage-reading the book because I was just frustrated and bored with it.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bantam for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really thought I would love this one, but Scenes of the Crime failed to capture my attention. It didn't help that I personally didn't like any of the characters and I just didn't feel compelled to care about what was going to happen or that the chapters felt incredibly long.

This book was extremely frustrating. Normally, I love when a story is told from alternating timelines (past & present), but this time the past was told in the form of a screenplay so you never knew if that was the truth or not. The twists & turns were not interesting enough to make it a worthwhile read.

I kept pushing this book to the bottom of the pile because the reviews were not great but I finally decided to suck it up and read it. Probably should've just skipped it altogether. I did not like it at all. The beginning moved pretty quickly but then it dragged on and on and made me want to just skim. None of the characters are likeable. Everything is a serious stretch (how could so many people literally forget murdering someone? Or believing that you did?). The ending was terrible. A knife, then a gun, then a bunch of confusing fighting. It kept reminding me of a Scooby Doo episode: "And I would've gotten away with it too, if not for those pesky kids!"

A wrote down this line because it made my eyes roll so much: "I believed I had finally found someone who cared about me. Not just my vagina, me."

The last sentence of the book (prior to the epilogue although that last sentence was pretty bad too) was almost as cringey.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Ballantine for the eARC.

The premise of this one had me hooked, but unfortunately the book fell flat for me. It did not hold my interest and I did not really love the way it unfolded.