Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest feedback.

This was quite a sexually-charged novel. People led to do devious things by their raging desires. From young lust to sex in a lackluster marriage to hateful cheating, there's a charge in the air!

This story centers on two neighbors: one a family of a whole bunch of rambunctious boys and one with a calm teen daughter.. the mothers met while in the maternity ward and became best friends. One starves herself to the point of obsession to be the person she thinks she wants to be, while the other ends up dead.

This one was a rollercoaster. It had you guessing, thinking you knew what's going on, then maybe not, then maybe? A plot with multiple generations and many layers, it was thoroughly enjoyable with an audiobook narrator who kept things interesting!

Lindsay Hunter's "Hot Springs Drive" is a gritty and unvarnished examination of human despair and fortitude in the face of hardship. Hunter explores the lives of people struggling with addiction, trauma, and the unwavering quest of atonement in her riveting prose. A deteriorating Midwestern town serves as the backdrop for the novel, which transports readers to a world where hope and despair clash violently. "Hot Springs Drive" is a chilling and remarkable book that stays with you long after you turn the last page because of its transparent depiction of the intricacies of human nature and the relationships that bind us together.

I enjoyed this story. I felt for the main character and was shocked by the twist.
The author did a good job in telling the story so that you are drawn in on the side of the main character then to find out she was manipulating the situation.

Jesus these people were obsessed with sex and misery. This was an interesting read. This was my 1st book by Lindsay Hunter and I will definitely give her another read.

#HotSpringsDrive
#NetGalley

Well, I'm sad to say that this book was definitely not for me. I loved the setup where we learn that there was a murder right off the bat, but then it kind of went off the rails for me. It took half the book, with multiple POV, to get to the actual murder and even with all the build up, I felt like I knew nothing about the murder victim and didn't really care about her at all. When we finally get to the murder and its fallout, we get even. more peoples' POV and some are just completely random characters. There should be trigger warnings for the amount of graphic sex in this book, some of it bordering on abuse, and everyone seems to be depressed and miserable. The saving grace for me was the relationship between Cece and Jason and the narrator. Thank you to Dreamscape and NetGalley for the early listen to this title. I wish I'd liked it more.

I guess three starts are my thing now...Either the madness of the world is getting to me or I am simply choosing the wrong books, but I feel as though I have been on a three star, fine-but-not-great, likely forgettable reading spree. This book wasn't boring, though it had a slow start, given that it was hyped to be reminiscent of Gone Girl. The characters were all somehow unlikable and I just didn't really care. I think it might have been a "me" problem. I'm finding it so hard to get lost in a book at the moment, when the constant turmoil of the world is weighing so heavily on my mind. I look for escapism and find, more often than not, mere mild entertainment. I guess that is all to say, I may be in the dreaded slump.

I requested the audiobook of Hot Springs Drive from NetGalley after it appeared on a top 12 thriller list in the Washington Post. I'll begin by saying that the audiobook is well narrated. The writing is amazing, getting into the heads of two families whose mothers first met in the maternity ward when they had babies. They end up living next door to each other, the four boys in one family and only child daughter in the other playing together. If you like a very intense psychological thriller, it is true this belongs on a best list for the writing, the characters and the story. It is told from the points of view of all the different family members including the mother that is killed and it is put together in a fascinating and engaging way. For those who might be uncomfortable with some explicit sexual content, stay away for sure. I found it a bit icky but completely important to the story. Truth be told? I can handle violence, cosies police procedurals, and psychologically intense moments in mysteries and thrillers but this was too stressful a book for me. I read it all because I recognized the excellent writing. However, it never became a book I personally enjoyed. It just kept triggering stress and sadness for me. That could translate to someone else's fascination and enjoyment of the powerful writing.

I am only docking one star for my personal preference not to read such books, because many would give five stars in a heartbeat.

Thanks to Dreamscape & NetGalley for providing an audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was expecting a thriller, and while this book opens with a brutal murder, it's not a thriller; more a domestic tale/character study(ies) that just happens to include a murder.

Theresa meets Jackie in the maternity ward when Theresa is having her first, and Jackie her second, child. The two become best friends and Jackie and her husband even move in next door. Jackie embarks on a weight loss journey, eventually getting to the point where she hardly even eats, and this leads to Jackie flexing her newfound body and confidence, after years of being verbally abused by her husband about her body, by making a play for Theresa's husband, Adam.

Each chapter eventually deals with the these characters and their teen, then adult children, and how the aftermath of this affair and the resultant murder have affected their lives. The touchstone character here should be Theresa, but we don't get much of her after the beginning chapters. Instead, we are left with Jackie, who is tough to relate to and not very pleasant. I found myself feeling bad for most of these characters (Jackie aside), and that was the dominant emotion I carried through the book. I also was a little shocked at how graphic the sex scenes were, so if you're not into that, be forewarned. I'm no prude but it felt a bit overdone if the point was to show how wanton and depraved the adulterers were.

This was so different from what I thought it was going to be but I really enjoyed it! It is so interesting to see how the choices of one person can affect so many people in various ways and Hunter does an amazing job of writing many complex characters. Hunter focuses on more of the why than the how - you know early on who is going to die and and who is responsible. If you are looking for a unique literary suspense (is that a thing?) then definitely check this one out!

Thank you Dreamscape for the review copy of Hot Springs Drive (also available to me via the LibroFm ALC program).
This is one of those books that I think works well for fans of character study literary suspense... but only if they don't mind unlikable characters. I LOVE character studies and slow burn plots but I just could not connect with the characters, too unlikable and the highly sexualized households/relationships just didn't land for me, esp on audiobook. I have seen so many raves for this book and for the storytelling and plot twists so I think this might be a case of wrong book wrong time/wrong reader/listener.

It might also be a testament to the excellent narration style, I was very drawn into the story via the narration but the space I found myself drawn into didn't work for me.

ARC audiobook provided in exchange for an honest review.

The narration was fantastic on this book! For a single female narrator to cover so many characters and handle it flawlessly, impressed me very much! The story itself completely blew me away! All the characters and backstories were very well written and I loved getting so many different peoples perspectives. All the twists and turns kept me guessing until the very last minute and I would highly recommend to just about anyone!

Hot Springs Drive was incredible for the first two-thirds, and it then the plot lost it's appeal. I didn't like the way the current characters were portrayed. I think the effects of the tragedy could have been written better.

I seriously struggled to get into this book, as it is rather one-level and contains more graphic sex scenes than mystery/thriller substance. Great if that's what you're into, but I was expecting more storytelling, character development, and a mystery that leads the reader along like most mysteries. This book also contains a fair amount of fat-shaming and a lack of body positivity, which should be read as a trigger warning for ED and sensitive readers.

Holy drama! Two suburban families, seemingly normal, are anything but. After an affair, one of them is dead. Told in multiple points of view, Hunter shows an in-depth study on the murder. The pacing of the story telling was quick. Some of the characters felt flat and could have had more depth. The writing style was more of literary fiction than psychological thriller. This was a deep inside look of obsessive and detrimental behavior that ruins lives. There are some graphic sex scenes that almost felt unnecessary. The entire book felt like it was on one level of excitement. There was no climax to the story to keep me from putting it down.

This was a very fast paced, emotionally jerky, psychological, yet family based/type...novel!

Hot Springs Drive by Lindsay Hunter.

Theresa and Jackie meet on the maternity ward as they are giving birth. Theresa has one daughter, Cece, who she adores. Jackie goes on to have four sons. They couldn't be more opposite. But they become the best of friends.
When they decide to go on a weight loss journey, they go together...
Theresa loses some weight and is happy.
Jackie loses a ton of weight...and basically stops eating, but gets the body she has always wanted. And then begins on a whole new journey in life...getting what she wants, no matter what gets in her way. And, there are plenty of sex scenes portrayed.

Unfortunately, the book opens up with the death of Theresa. And then it goes on to paint the picture of these two women and their families, and how intertwined in each other’s lives they are.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #DreamscapeMedia.
#HotSpringsDrive by #LindsayHunter and narrated by #EmilyEllet.

It was a great read, but ultimately, I was totally unsatisfied with the ending.
Not sure if she is the type of author who leaves you hanging, or if maybe there is a sequel in the future?? Please let me know your thoughts once you have read it!

Thanks for reading!
4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ for me.

Follow me on Instagram for all my upcoming reviews @ #BookReviews_with_emsr

What a sloooooooooow burn - the actually murder had not even happened at about 40%
This was really just a boring suburban families who are incredibly horny, not just the parents but the kids also. I felt it was a little unnecessary. I really didn’t feel anything for any of the characters and didn’t feel like there was enough development.

It starts as a typical neighborhood story - Jackie and Theresa are friends that decide together to go to join a weight loss group. They both lose weight, but Jackie's desires, both for control and Theresa's husband result in a dark turn and Theresa's murder. Jackie's need to satiate her desires result in everyone's lives being changed forever...

Holy Smokes! This book was, in a word, addictive. Right from the start I was hooked and could not stop listening. It was a hold on to your seat wild ride. A truly entertaining and captivating story about how our lives are like dominos, demonstrating how the actions of one person affects so many others. I absolutely loved this audiobook! The story, the narration - everything. SO GOOD!

4.5 stars rounded up - the first half of 'Hot Springs Drive' was solidly a 5 (fascinating character studies), but once the whodunnit was revealed the narrative lost urgency and the book petered out. Still, the first half was so strong, such a definite reread, that the book definitely deserves to be rounded up!

Premise - a truly terrible mother (read: narcissist, uncaring of how her behavior affects those around her) loses a significant amount of weight due to a restrictive eating disorder, engages in an affair with her best friend's husband, and is then caught in said affair by said best friend. The next day, her best friend is murdered.

This isn't really a thriller as much as it is a literary work examining the dark side of suburban ennui. As long as they aren't coming in with mystery/thriller expectations, readers are sure to love this well-written, truly disturbing story. It's one of my favorite stories this year!

Thanks, NetGalley and Roxane Gay, for the gifted ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to listen to an early copy of the audiobook. Hot Springs Drive by Lindsay Hunter will be released on November 7th, 2023.

This book felt weird to me, but I can’t pinpoint it exactly. It kind of felt all over the place, I guess?

Full review to come Monday!

This is a brutal glance into the mind of a woman!
🌟🌟🌟🌟
Hot Springs Drive is an incredible book that delves into the lives of two women. Best friends who navigate new motherhood together.

It isn’t filled with mystery or thrillers. More of a steady flow of daily life struggles, wants, needs and addictive behavior. Even though they are besties, Theresa chooses her own desires over their dependable connection.

Their story explores obsessive and destructive behavior that results in devastating betrayal. This is a brutal glance into the mind of a woman! Intense characters are described in detail.

#HotSpringsDrive #LindsayHunter #dreamscapemedia #audiobookreview #honestreview #justfinished #comingsoon #thrillerbookloverspromotions #thrillerfriendsunite #thrillerobsessedbookishclub #mystery #lovetoread #bookworms #lovebooks #lovetoreadbooks #fortheloveofbooks #booknerd #bookreviewer #booksbooksandmorebooks #instabook #readaholic #igbookreels #RoxaneGayBooks