I will never know how Willa died three times as I couldn't get into the book. I'm sure some readers will be spellbound, but I barely made it past the first half hour before promptly forgetting everything that happened in it.

The premise of this book was so interesting but unfortunately, that's about it. Willa was by far the most interesting and most developed character but we lose her POV around halfway through the book so that when it comes back for the epilogue, we're shocked.

Our protagonist Sawyer felt like a jumble of incomplete ideas. She would say or think something and then do the complete opposite of how she should act in that situation. The repeat mentions of her ED were a heavy-handed attempt at giving her some sort of character flaw, but it felt out of place and jarring every time it came up. And the topic went nowhere!

As a seasoned thriller reader, I guessed the twist early on and I did not like the way this book used serious topics (such as mental health, EDs and suicide) for shock value.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

The Three Deaths of Willa Stannard was a piercing thriller! I found myself surprised at the ending, in a great way. There were times I found myself struggling to keep up with the suspects and motivations, but it was tied up beautifully.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was spectacular! I wasn't sure what to expect when I started, and it exceeded all expectations. Told from the perspectives of two sisters, Willa and Sawyer, deep family secrets are revealed that I never saw coming. This book was a perfect combination of thriller and (fictionalized) true crime, I could not stop reading. It was unique, both in story and characters, which really makes this book standout and memorable.

🥀 A L C • R E V I E W 🥀
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Title: The Three Deaths Of Willa Stannard
Author: Kate Robards
Rating: 3.5/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ (Rounded up to 4 Stars)
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Willa and Sawyer are sisters, but they aren’t close, not anymore. It isn’t until Sawyer gets a visit from the police saying that Willa has died that Sawyer wants to investigate exactly what Willa was up too. This brings Sawyer to a small town with a missing child cold case. In a desperate attempt to figure out the truth, Sawyer puts herself against the small town with big secrets to hide.
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This was an interesting book, told in dual point of view via Sawyer and Willa. I really liked learning about the family dynamics and also found myself invested in the mystery of Willas death and what she was working on prior to said death. I actually think I cared more about the missing child case than I did Willa..
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The pacing was more of a slow burn , with some dragging in the middle, until the end. The end twist was really interesting, and it is one I didn’t see coming at all. It was suspenseful and gave me the chills, I found it to be a rather dark ending - not that I’m complaining. But I am sitting here with one question - what exactly were Willa’s three deaths? Cause I still have no idea
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I listened to this one via audiobook and I felt like I would have possibly enjoyed it more had I also had a physical copy too because, there felt like there were a few epistolary elements (there may not have been, I am just thinking more of the transcripts that were Willas) that I wish I could have read them. Also wish this was dually narrated even though Susannah Jones did a great job narrating.
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This was a solid debut novel. I liked this one, and am excited to see where Robards goes as an author! This was a fun mystery that I would say give a shot.
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Huge thank you to Kate Robards, NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the ALC in exchange for my honest review. The Three Deaths Of Willa Standard was just released on June 20th, check it out!

The fact that this a debut novel blows my mind. It is very well written, with very interesting characters. It was undoubtedly a pleasant experience and surprise, will keep my eye on other books by this author.

Thanks #netgalley for this book in exchange for a review. Excellent characters. The title is catchy and the book matches. Highly recommend

To begin with: I never thought I'd live this book so much!
In The Three Deaths of Willa Stannard, we get to know Willa, and her sister Sawyer. Willa died of an apparent suicide and Sawyer is left to find out what happened to her sister. Sawyer picks up where she figures her sister left off on investigating a decades-old cold case of a missing baby. I don't want to give away more but for everyone who likes mystery thrillers and books that make you guess all over this is it!!!
Thank you #Netgalley #Dreamscape Media for this audiobook

WOW! THIS IS A DEBUT?
THE THREE DEATHS OF WILLA STANNARD written by Kate Robards and beautifully narrated by Susannah Jones is one crazy ride of which I loved EVERY SINGLE WORD!
When TV personality Willa STANNARD has an on-air panic attack, she leaves the spotlight, becomes an investigative journalist and decides to look into a long ago, as yet unsolved kidnapping from her hometown when she was just seven. When Willa’s body is found in an apparent suicide, her younger sister, Sawyer cannot shake the feeling that it just seems wrong. Willa would not take her own life. So Sawyer decides to retrace Willa’s investigation, all the while trying to find Willa’s manuscript to “Cry of the Cicadas “, the book she was writing about the case.
Twenty-six years ago eighteen month old Melody Winn disappeared from her home, never to be seen again and although her body was never found, most people believe that she is dead; that a man with a low IQ, named Abel Bowen, who was convicted at 16 of second-degree murder and did prison time, had something to do with it. Then, a few years ago, a young woman named Lachlan Farmer came forward claiming to be the missing Melody only to be disproved.
As Sawyer meets with the townsfolk and begins to put the pieces together, she is being followed by some, ridiculed by others and told to leave it alone and move on by her own mother, yet Sawyer continues to dig. And what she learns is SHOCKING! Oh, so good.
I really liked the author’s writing style. I initially felt that there were just too many characters, but they were all integral to the whole picture as each held a tiny, single piece of the puzzle. I could feel my anxiety growing as Sawyer met with everyone. I was racing through the pages to see how it ends only to be crestfallen when it did. I was shocked to see that this was a debut for Kate Robards. This is definitely an author I will be following.
Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for this ARC opportunity. All opinions are my own and voluntarily left.

3.5 stars

Despite hard to like MC’s and a slightly over the top ending, I enjoyed this deeply psychological thriller & its carefully constructed twists. It’s a solid, well written book.

[What I liked:]

•Most of the twists are complex and foreshadowed and work really well with the plot. The story kept me guessing almost to the end in a satisfying way.

•Despite not liking the MC’s much, all the characters are complicated people who shape the story with their personalities & actions. They aren’t flat or boring.

•The structure & framing of the story are unique & worked well for the book.


[What I didn’t like as much:]

•It was hard to like any of the characters. Willa is portrayed as tough as nails, & cruel to those who loved her. Sawyer has little self respect & is annoyingly impulsive. Neither are completely terrible & both kind of grew on me by the end, but still meh.

•The ending is pretty over the top in terms of both melodrama & action.

CW: murder, suicide, mental illness, sexism, domestic violence, child abusers, substance abuse, infidelity, kidnapping

[I received an ARC ebook copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Thank you for the book!]

This book gave me a hard time to get into it. I couldn't really connect with the characters or the story.

I was surprised by this book. I expected a classic whodunit murder mystery, and that is not what I got. I loved it. It had depth, suspense. It was amazing.

The characters didn't fill classic, shut-in-a-box roles. I loved them. I see myself in Willa, and I'm not sure how that makes me feel, given everything.

It was a fascinating plot. It couldn't have been done better, especially the ending. I loved it.

The narrator was absolutely wonderful for the plot, as well. She did a great job, and I have no criticism.

For a first book, you've done amazing. Please, keep writing.

Sawyer cannot believe her sister, an investigative journalist who was at one time a big deal, could have committed suicide so she decides to investigate. Willa had been writing a book about a kidnapping that happened over 20 years ago when a toddler in a rural area disappeared. Sawyer assumes the pseudonymous identity Willa had been using and starts interviewing the parents of the missing child as well as others who were in the area at the time. Her investigation gets her into some page turning suspense when she uncovers long hidden secrets.

I found this mystery easy to start but around the 50% mark, I started to lose interest with all the investigative interviews. Overall, I enjoyed the story and mystery.

The Three Deaths of Willa Stannard took me on a wild ride and I most definitely didn't see the ending coming. I loved every moment of this book.

Lost interest halfway through.

Willa was recently found dead in her home. The police ruled it as suicide but Sawyer, Willa's sister, found that unbelievable. Sawyer knew her sister. Willa was strong-willed and would never do such a thing. Sawyer decided to take things into her own hands and tried to solve her sister's death.

I wanted to like the story, but unfortunately, it dragged around the middle. There wasn't enough going on to keep my interest. Also, the ending was predictable.

But overall, it wasn't for me.

***Thank you to NetGalley, Kate Robards, and Dreamscape Media for graciously sending me the audiobook to review. As always, all thoughts are my own.***

What initially drew me to this book was its gorgeous cover. From there the book hooked me and I couldn't stop reading. As a debut novel for Kate Robards, this took me by surprise. It's well-crafted and engaging.

I did halfway guess the major twist, but the full reality did take me aback. I sat there for a while after I finished reading just stunned. I will say that I didn't necessarily appreciate the correlation between abuse, mental health and violence that was demonstrated in one particular character. It wasn't necessary for the book to have the same outcome. The killer couple could have still been a killer couple and still kidnapped a child to cover it up. There were a couple of questions left at the end primarily about the aftermath of the climax, but they aren't niggling in a way that detracts from my overall experience with this book. As a sidenote, now that I've finished the book, I'm not entirely sure what inspired the title.

Overall, I think that this is a great thriller that's worth the read. The twists and turns kept me engaged and I really enjoyed my time with this book. I will definitely pick up this author's next release.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the audio-arc of this book!

Like 3.75 ⭐️ for me

After Sawyer’s sister Willa is found in her bathtub from an apparent suicide, Sawyer refuses to believe she would take her own life. When looking for clues to what may have happened, Sawyer discovers Willa was writing a true crime book about a cold case where an 18 month old girl who went missing from her home 26 years ago. Sawyer decides to look into why her sister was writing this book and if maybe she uncovered something that was meant to stay hidden. How far will people from a small town go to protect their secrets?

I felt like the twist was obvious but that’s okay. I felt like there was so much information that it just kind of dragged on for me but I think it’s still a decent read and others would really enjoy it.

Thank you Dreamscape Media for my audio version of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Oh my goodness, what did I just read?! Five stars all the way! This book had me questioning everything and then delivered in the most shocking way! I had no idea what was coming.

In The Three Deaths of Willa Stannard, we follow dual povs, one of Willa, and one of her sister Sawyer. Willa died of an apparent suicide and Sawyer is left wondering what went wrong and what truly happened to her sister. Sawyer picks up where she figures her sister left off on investigating a decades-old cold case of a missing baby. You see, Willa was writing a true crime novel about the cold case. In her search, Sawyer will find answers to questions she never knew she had and truths that will shake her reality.

If you like mystery thrillers and books where you're questioning your questions, pick this one up!

Thank you for the audio ARC!

Sawyers journalist sister has passed away and she had doubts that it was self inflicted. She begins to investigate the story that her sister had been working on and encounters a small town with dark secrets and people who could all have something to hide. . This read was a solid 3.5 for me, I really enjoyed the plot and that the perspective shifts from person to person.