Meg is a professional poker player, working in a casino catching loan sharks and cheaters. After an incident with one such bad guy went badly a year ago, Meg pops one too many pain pills to cope, combined with a lot of whiskey. She has taken a much different path than her sister, the beautiful Hollywood star Haley. But after reports surface that Haley committed suicide in a remote rehab facility, she can’t believe her sister would do that. Meg decides the best way to find out what really happened is to check into the rehab herself. In doing so, she is forced to confront her own addictions and the past she has tried so hard to keep buried.

I have read lots of thrillers with isolated settings - locked room is one of my favorite tropes - but the setting of a rehab facility added an extra layer of depth. All of the characters had interesting backstories, and quite frankly, all of them were unreliable. I couldn’t figure out who had a motive to harm Haley, and the twist of who it was totally threw me for a loop! The aspect of the treatment being used in this rehab facility was fascinating to me; it was one I had never heard of before. Though this story was a mystery, at its core was the important message of hope: hope for rehabilitation for addicts. The author painted a very respectful picture and showed just strong people entering rehab and working their programs can be. The author’s note at the end was also an important message.

“The Clinic” releases January 23, 2024. Thank you to Netgalley, Sourcebooks and Cate Quinn for the ARC! This review will be shared to my instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) shortly :)

" 𝑯𝒂𝒍𝒆𝒚 𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒏𝒐 𝒅𝒓𝒖𝒈 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑 𝒉𝒆𝒓. 𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒃𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒎 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒅𝒊𝒆 𝒊𝒏."

➡️ swipe for synopsis 👉🏼

Special thanks to @netgalley @bookmarked and @catequinnauthor for this #gifted ARC.

MY REVIEW:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨️[4.75]

Take 2 sisters.
1 gets famous
The other dives deep into the underbelly of the gambling world, catching the bad guys.

Meg can't be bothered by her famous sister Halry, until one day..... Haley dies and Megs life is flipped upside down because there's NO WAY its a suicide.

Meg has demons of her own that she could use some help with so why not try to find out what REALLY happened to Haley at the Clinic , just try not to get caught.
Weird messages start popping up, and feelings that Haley is still there with Meg fuel her to keep looking for answers......but at what cost?!

The ending seemed a little far-fetched for me, but overall, the writing and the whole storyline were great. I really enjoyed the book.

PUB DATE:
Jan 23, 2024

QOTD ❓️⁉️❓️ Would you or have you ever gotten plastic surgery to change a feature of yours?

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Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC. The book was very atmospheric, with an intriguing plot. I did not find this book to be stand out. It started off well, set in PNW in a remote clinic, but then fell flat for me. I read it and then a week later didn't really remember much about it. I had higher hopes for it.

I received this digital ARC free and many thanks to NetGalley. The plot kept me hooked until the very end. I did not want to not put this book down. I was interested and riveted to the storyline and characters. If you like a good psychological thriller, then this is a must read.

Meg and her sister Kate have never really been close. Too much trauma as kids prevented both of them from being close and lead both to being addicts. But when Meg learns Kate died at rehab she knows something is not right and decides to go to the rehab herself to try to learn what really happened to her sister.
The story alternates between Meg’s perspective and Cara’s who is the manager at the Clinic. What unfolds is a twisted tale of corruption, deceit, and secrets that all lead to a wonderful twisty ending. I loved the way the story evolves and how Meg has so much self discovery on the way. The author did an amazing job of showing a different side to the diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder and It was interesting to learn that some of it was based on her own experience in rehab.
Thank you to Netgalley and to the publishers for allowing me to read this advanced copy.

"The Clinic" by Cate Quinn was a psychological thriller set in a rehab center in the Pacific northwest. I would give it a 3.5 stars if I could. It was slow to start and build the characters and plot, but it did pick up about halfway through. The ending was unexpected and fabulously crafted plot twist.

Meg works in a casino to catch cheaters and has a pain pill and alcohol addiction. She checks herself into the same rehab center where her sister died to investigate the circumstances surrounding her death. This book does an excellent job presenting the life cycles of addiction, recovery and relapse. The book is told from several points of view, with Meg and the clinic manager, Cara as the main two.

The Clinic is definitely a luxurious rehab facility attracting the rich and famous. The patients at the rehab center is who Meg focuses her attention on to determine what happened to her sister.

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC and give my honest review.

This was my first Cate Quinn novel, and I'm kicking myself for not reading her books sooner. The Clinic was a binge! I couldn't put it down. I loved Meg, and her devotion to figuring out what happened to her sister. I saw the "big twist" early, but that didn't take away from the fact that I was fully immersed in this book! I look forward to reading more from this author! Be sure to read everything at the end so you can learn about the inspiration for this book.

This book grabbed my attention right away. I love a good thriller that takes place in a mental health setting. Definitely recommending to all my reader friends.

Meg is an undercover at the high roller section of a casino. Her sister Haley is a huge country music star. Haley goes to rehab and dies, and Meg, an alcoholic and addict herself decides to go investigate by admitting herself to the clinic.

When I first applied for this ARC, it just sounded like a decently interesting read.

I was SO WRONG. It was not "decently interesting" it was RIVETING. From the wild concepts inside the clinic, to that insane penultimate twist, every page was filled with great writing. If this is the beginning of this Author's career, she has a very promising library of bestsellers ahead.

I did receive this book as an ARC, from NetGalley, so there were definitely some typos and structure issues, but it didn't take away from how ABSOLUTELY MINDBLOWING this book was. Will 100% be recommending this to friends when it releases!

I enjoyed this thriller! It was unhinged, it all the good ways. There were good twists that I did not predict. If you enjoy short chapters this is perfect. I flew through this. I would just check trigger warnings before you start. This was a good one, would be sure to recommend. 4/5 stars

Meg finds herself addicted to pills to cope with her job. When her sister dies at a swanky rehab clinic, Meg decides to check in herself to try to find answers. Meg doesn’t believe that her sister would commit suicide and her investigation leads to some interesting answers. But the more she learns, the deeper the secrets seem to be, and Meg isn’t sure how far she will be able to dig to find answers.

I really enjoyed this book so much. This was one of my most anticipated reads of January, and I am so happy to say that it lived up to my internal hype. For me, the biggest distinguishment between a four and a five-star book is how memorable a book is for me. I’m still thinking about this one, and I think I will be for a while. What really took this over the top for me was the author’s note at the end. I think that it really highlighted and elevated what I had read to a new level. The writing was wonderful and well done, and there was so much heart that came through the pages. Because most of the characters were being treated for addiction, it was hard to know what was true, it was fun! There were so many secrets and everyone, even the staff, were hiding something. The plot twist on this one was a lot of fun; I didn’t see it coming at all! I love it when a book can surprise me, and that was the case here.

If you are looking for a wonderfully atmospheric mystery book, then check this one out.

Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmarks, @bookmarked and Netgalley @netgalley for this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I struggled with the inaccuracies portrayed in the clinic. As a nurse, I couldn’t get past it.

If you take away that part of it, I think it was an interesting story. I did like her writing style and I think she has a lot of potential. I would absolutely read more of her books.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

For a long book it was a fast read and I finished it in 2 sittings. Short chapters, alternating points of view and unreliable characters made it a binge worthy story for me.

When Meg hears that her famous, estranged sister has died by suicide in rehab she is highly sceptical. She knows her sister better than anyone and she would not take her own life. Struggling from addiction to prescription painkillers and alcohol herself, she checks into The Clinic to find out what really happened to her sister. It is a rehab facility for the rich and famous and one of them killed Haley. Who can she trust?

I loved this book. With all the patients being treated for some kind of addiction, it was hard to know what was true. The staff at the facility weren’t much better. So many secrets, so many lies. So much fun to read.

This was a super dark and ominous book, perfect for winter! I liked the original plot and twists throughout. Well done! I will be recommending to friends.

When Meg's sister is found dead of an apparent suicide at a fancy, hidden rehab clinic, she sees a golden opportunity to leave her casino job where she catches criminals to go undercover to determine what really happened to Haley. Despite being famous with a drug problem, Meg knows her sister was never a heroine user so she cannot believe the claims of suicide. Rehab might seem like an easy place to hide...unless you actually have an opioid problem yourself. From the first minute she's there, Meg can tell something is off and the treatments are anything but ordinary. The patients are all famous in one fashion or another and she fully believes that one of them killed Haley...but who?
I read this nearly in one sitting. It was very fast-paced and suspenseful.

Meg works undercover, catching cheaters in a casino. She’s also an addict, who pops pills to treat an injury acquired during a job gone wrong. When she learns her famous, estranged sister died of an overdose in a glamorous rehab center, Meg decides to check in and investigate what really happened to her sister. This book had me in a death grip and I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. Definitely PLL vibes, especially towards the end.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. This was a dreary read for me. Inasmuch as the author has had experience in a rehab situation, I'm surprised that the atmosphere described in the book seemed so unbelievable. By the time it ended, I was glad to have escaped not only my reading obligation, but also the resulting headache of living in a world of traumatized sociopaths.

To keep things general: this one just wasn’t for me. The overall concept and setting was intriguing, but the execution didn’t hit the mark. I struggled to stay interested from the start, which is really hard for a longer book, and it got a bit far fetched in the end. Most disappointing was the setting itself. Given the cover and descriptions, I was hoping for something creepy and gothic, but it was just too “LA Chic.” Don’t you look at that cover and get excited for something spine-tingly?? That part I’ll take the blame for - I shouldn’t have assumed. Despite that, the book still didn’t give me much. I liked the short chapters, as it made it easy to feel like I could keep going, but the overall plot never gave me a tug. Never the, “I have to know what happens next!!” The only way I got through this was the short chapters and “Ugh, I guess I can do one more because they’re only a couple pages," feeling.

Getting more specific (POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD): the “big killer reveal” was just blah. Maybe I read too many thrillers, but this wasn’t twisty or very shocking, it tried to be, but again, execution didn’t hit the mark.

Things that really annoyed me (AGAIN, SPOILERS):
-The “Fedora Man” and “Queen of Hearts” plot seemed like a throw-away story line in the end. We spend what feels like 75% of the book tapping into Meg’s traumatic past with these characters, and Fedora Man just waltzes in, talks to Meg and explains her confusing history in a 5 min conversation, then leaves. It was the quickest “resolution” and we just move right along like we didn’t spend the entire book fixated on this plot!
-A similar annoyance - The clinic was under some sort of lockdown. Fedora Man even says he couldn’t get in right away, waits in his car, then comes in when possible. He talks to Meg, barely questions her on why she’s there, barely questions what lockdown is all about (I think he may have ask if she wanted a ride, but doesn’t push the subject much), then just leaves like it’s no big deal…. MEANWHILE, someone has alerted the police of a murder and the cops state they can’t come until the morning because of the weather. Fedora Man = "Imma head home, no problemo," but cops investigating multiple murders with a killer on the loose = "nah, we’ll wait this one out a bit." Absurd.
-Unethical things probably happen all the time in these types of clinics, but there are also mandates/rules for clinic facilities and the security of medication and more staff seems like a big important thing. Meg just comes in with drugs and a phone and is barely searched? No staff/security with locked medication and drugs, even despite a recent patient break in and overdose? Where is the staff?? We have an owner, a doctor, an office manager, and some offhand mention of nurses that do absolutely nothing outside of being henchmen for the boss… we’re just letting detoxing patients who are quite volatile just roam around and interact with each other seemingly unsupervised?
-Plot seemed all over the place and we kept weaving new things in. First, Meg’s past was the main plot, discovering her sister’s killer by navigating her history. Then we add in blowfish treatments and the black market (okay weird, but fine). Next, right near the end, we add in a sociopath/mental health diagnoses component out of the blue. Plot points were so ridiculous it took away my interest.
-The characters weren’t well developed. Everyone including the main narrators Cara/Meg had similar voices. While they had different backstories and physical characteristics, their personalities and interactions were so similar it was hard to differentiate. Dex and Tom were just two interchangeable men with anger problems literally fooling around with everyone, and Jade and Sierra quite frankly were also a similar blur, just one had an English accent…  
-You have to suspend reality. An officer bringing baby with to investigate a murder? The cops being so persistent on upholding the law but then shrugging off ethics in the very end? Our main character who proves to follow every rule and question every shady situation, then throws all morals out the window in a months time?

Those are only a few issues, but it took some effort to get through the unbelievable aspects.

I hate to rate this book so low, especially as I appreciated the look into rehab, the minds of addicts, and how difficult recovery can be. I also commend the author for writing her first novel sober and pulling from her life and rehab experience. That being said, there is a lot of addiction themes and a later focus on mental health diagnoses. It felt very personal and maybe I would have responded differently if I had any connection to the topic.

This is my honest review based on an ARC provided by NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Landmark.

I have read and enjoyed previous books by Cate Quinn, but The Clinic is now my favourite. For a long book it was a fast read and I finished it in 2 sittings. Short chapters, alternating points of view and unreliable characters made it a binge worthy story for me.

When Meg hears that her famous, estranged sister has died by suicide in rehab she is highly sceptical. She knows her sister better than anyone and she would not take her own life. Struggling from addiction to prescription painkillers and alcohol herself, she checks into The Clinic to find out what really happened to her sister. It is a rehab facility for the rich and famous and one of them killed Haley. Who can she trust?

I loved this book. With all the patients being treated for some kind of addiction, it was hard to know what was true. The staff at the facility weren’t much better. So many secrets, so many lies. So much fun to read.

Thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book. Publishes on January 23rd.

There is something so all-consuming about a character being shoved into lies and secrets in a place where they are attempting to cultivate trust and honesty--both with yourself and others.

Chapters are short and tension-filled, with another mystery (or potential murder) waiting just inside the doors of each room at the rehab center our main character goes into. There's tension, lies, and almost everyone's got a secret. The question that Quinn perfect sets up and leaves you on the edge of your seat until you find out is: Who there has a secret worth killing to keep?