My thanks to Celadon books, Peter Nichols and Netgalley.
So, I initially had a difficult time with this story. Honestly? I think it was mostly due to the fact that I had a few surgeries, on top of some stupid heart monitor and the knowledge of how soon the next "medical adventure" will be. Dudes and dudettes..I'm just fucking exhausted. Scared. And also 😟 worried.
What's really messed up though? I just finished this book, and I can't remember a single damned thing. Nothing.
3 middle of the road, can't remember shit, stars.
I do know that I didn't hate it!😜

In small town America, a young teenager is brutally murdered and left hanging inside the Settlement for its employees to find. When Alex Brangwen, police officer, gets to the scene, he quickly learns that this young man was friends with his daughter. Being a single father himself, he can’t imagine what this teen’s mother is going to have to deal with her son being murdered. Who or what would want to do such a thing?

While the scene wasn’t quite wrapped up and the investigation was soon underway, the small town ends up having another teenager murdered in a similar fashion to their first victim. What exactly did this town have going on where these teenagers found themselves deceased? Needless to say, Alex was distraught and beside himself with worry for his daughter and all the teens living in their community. He and his police chief did all they could to bring down the person or persons responsible for the mayhem and grief brought before them.

As Alex continued to investigate and get closer to the truth, one particular character stood out among the rest. Once he set his sights on this person, he was like Columbo with teeth like a dog going for the jugular vein, but was the person Alex was pursuing the right victim to have within his grasp? In order to find that out, Nerds, you’ll have to read Granite Harbor.

Ook, we got ourselves a pretty decent whodunit going on and I found this story to be quite the attention grabber. My eyes soaked up the story like a sponge, but having said that I ran into a couple of things that bothered me because they fell within my pet peeves category. For instance, Nichols is a brilliant writer. He truly authored this story so well, but that was part of the problem. He wrote it so well it was too much detail to the point it grated on my nerves. I had to go back many times and re-read sections because the detail was so long, going on for quite a few pages, that I totally forgot what the character was doing that led up to a certain event.

And that brought me to my next pet peeve of the story being entirely too long. I think had the author edited himself in some sections of the detail, this story could have ended much sooner than it did. Even though he authored the story in the manner in which he did, I still loved it. Nichols loved to dangle that carrot in front of the reader and it began to grate on my nerves a bit. He truly made you work for this story, but I have to say, I was right alongside him and had three suspects that I liked for these murders. Being the super sleuth that I am, I most definitely had many things right.

Overall, this was a particularly enjoyable book. I truly did love it, but as I mentioned above, the story dragged on a little too long for my tastes and there was quite a bit of backstory and detail that could have been less, but that’s my personal preference. I think my book Nerds will absolutely love this story and will eat it up as I did. I read this book pretty quickly, even though it was longer than most stories I read. That’s a testament of how good this book is.

Thanks for the opportunity to review this book ahead of publication! I had both the audiobook and ebook, and reviewed them in a single review. This review will post to my blog and Instagram on April 25, 2024. I will also post my review to Goodreads, The Storygraph, Fable and retail sites at that time.

Review:
It's been a while since I last read a cat-and-mouse type thriller focused on a small-town detective searching for a serial killer, so it was nice to settle into one. While I found "Granite Harbor" to be a bit by the numbers, it was still a great read. I enjoyed my time spent with Detective Alex Brangwen as he attempted to uncover the identity of the person murdering teen boys in his small coastal town in Maine. This one was extra fun because I had both the print and the audio versions of this book, so I could listen while reading, which enhanced the overall experience.

The book begins with a group of teen boys - Shane, Ethan, and Jared - out riding their bikes and skateboards. Two of the boys decide to go home and watch a movie, but Shane decides he wants to stay out and enjoy the evening. The boys separate, and the next day, someone finds Shane's body hanging from a proscenium with a gruesome cut down his torso. Detective Alex Brangwen, the small town's lead detective, is called in. When he and his partner find something inside the victim's body and discover a similar murder from a few years ago in a nearby town, he feels it may be the work of a serial killer. When another boy is found murdered in a similar way a few days later, Alex knows the clock is ticking, and he needs to stop whoever is behind this before another victim is claimed.

While the plot felt familiar, the characters and the MO of the killer were very unique. Alex is a flawed yet relatable figure, thrust into the role of a detective in a town where everyone's business is public knowledge. Alex used to be an up-and-coming author, but when his books didn't take off the way he'd hoped, he ended up going to school to become a detective. As a single father grappling with financial issues, Alex not only has to solve a brutal murder but also navigate the challenges of parenting a grieving teenage daughter, Sophie, who was friends with both victims. Could the killer possibly target Sophie next?

Isabel, the other main character in the story, is equally compelling. She is a single mother with a troubled past and a connection to Alex. Isabel's husband disappeared a few years back, so she is the only provider. She recently lost her teaching job and struggles to stay afloat while parenting her headstrong son, Ethan. The way in which her path intertwines with Alex's, both personally and professionally, adds depth and complexity to the narrative, creating a rich and engaging story that explores the interconnected lives of the residents of Granite Harbor.

The other characters are equally compelling. Morgana - Alex's ex-wife - is a major pain and a force to be reckoned with - I loved to hate her. The teens were all believable, and I really began to care for them - especially Sophie and Ethan. As their friends began to die, the fear that they may be next was palpable.

The mystery of who is killing the teens and why forms the novel's core, and it is full of red herrings and nice twists that kept me engaged. I'd pegged a couple of suspects early on, and one panned out, but it was still fun to watch it all unfold as Alex and Isabel slowly put the pieces together. Nichols' adept handling of tension, coupled with the steady unveiling of new revelations and clues by Alex and Isabel, ensures that the plot never feels rushed or forced, maintaining a perfect pace that kept me hooked. I think the only plot point that felt unnecessary was the clairvoyant abilities of one of the characters. It felt out of place and unnecessary to the plot, but it wasn't enough to ruin anything.

As far as the audiobook narration goes, the narrator handled it very well. He hit all of the inflections and accents effortlessly. The only thing that I think would have enhanced the audio experience was having a female narrator for Isabel and the other female characters sections, but again, the narrator handled things just fine the way it was.

Even though it felt somewhat familiar, I found this book to be thrilling and thought-provoking, and I was fully invested from beginning to end. With its well-drawn characters, well-paced plot, and expertly crafted prose, Peter Nichols delivers a story that thriller and crime fiction lovers will devour.

In Granite Harbor, someone’s killing local teenage boys and putting them on display inserting a toad into their wounds. This book follows the belief that you are your experiences. Detective Alex is on the case with the help of Isabel. I good story with tension and mystery.

“Granite Harbor” was a decent story. The identity of the murderer is not particularly surprising. The method used to kill the victims is quite creative. What he hopes to accomplish by the manner of killing is irrational. The first victim’s death makes a lot of sense — revenge for abusive behavior and public humiliation. However, the motive for the present-day murders is weaker, especially considering the gap between the first killing and the subsequent murders. The residents of Granite Harbor are an eclectic group.

3.5 stars rounded up. Please check trigger warnings before picking up this book. It is dark, disturbing, and contains some make or break triggers regarding animals. This was my first book by the author and it was an engaging and fast paced story. It does get really dark at times and can definitely make your stomach churn. I was not prepared for just how twisted and disturbing this was going to get. I had no clue who the killer was but after finding out and remembered little clues that had been sprinkled through out and couldn't believe I didn't catch on. There are a lot of players in this book and you get a lot of POVs, but the chapters are short and it moves fast. This is a mix of police procedural, small town serial killer mystery, there are chapters that we experience from the killers POV and those are the ones that are exceptionally dark. The writing seemed choppy and overly descriptive at times but overall I didn't hate it. It's a really tough book to get through and I had to really push myself at times when I was just too disgusted to go on, but I'm not mad that I finished it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon Books for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.

Expected publication date: Apr. 30, 2024


My expectations for this ARC read was so high due to me reading the description before I opened the book!

Granite Harbor is an idyllic small town on the coast of Maine. Or at least, it was, until the body of a local teenage boy is found mutilated and strung up. Alex Brangwen has just returned to Granite Harbor, hoping to start over after a failed marriage and a failed writing career, and inadvertently lands the job as a police detective. The murdered boy is Alex’s first murder case, and the entire town is desperate for answers. The pressure mounts as days go by with no answers and a second body is found, turning the entire town against each other. Alex needs to find out who is doing this- because his teenaged daughter, Sophie, may be the next victim.

Honestly, this book fell really flat for me. It was really hard to follow because of the way the author structured some of characters that he tried to build. It began to get very jumbled for me to where I didn't really remember or understand who was who when it mattered.

The book started off very slow and I gave it a chance to build but with so much switching from the past to present and giving history so I can understand the Granite Harbor, it made me confused, bored and over reading it.

I would say, I see where the author was trying to go but he could have put the structure of the book in a way where the reader will be engaged fully and add the history so they can learn and really feel like their apart of the story once it gets to the part where the detective begins to investigate.

Overall, I know readers that will enjoy this, but it just wasn't for me unfortunately.

With a name like Granite Harbor, the coastal town in Maine is idyllic as it sounds. But when a teenage boy is found brutally murdered, all of that changes. Alex, a single father and the town’s only detective, is worried that he lacks the skills needed to solve this case. It doesn’t help that he has zero experience with murder cases. As failed novelist, he feels he has more skills with pages than with crimes. Meanwhile, Isabel finds herself at the center of the crime when she learns her daughter was friends with the victim. When another teen is found murdered in the same gruesome manner, both Isabel and Alex fear their child may be next.

I loved the premise of this story - a small town that never saw this level of crime before, and the idea of a failed novelist at its center. All the cards were stacked against Peter and as much as I love a good underdog story, I had a very hard time with this one. It was very much a slow burn story, and deeply atmospheric, and while atmospheric stories usually suck me in, this one I just couldn’t get into it. I ended up DNF-in about 30% in, and am only leaving this review per Netgalley’s requirement.

Thank you to Celadon for the ARC! “Granite Harbor” releases in April.

TW: animal cruelty

I can’t put my finger on what I didn’t like about this one but it was just meh for me. It might be because it was such a slow burn. It just didn’t hold my attention

Review Copy

What do you do when you like a book you've read but the ending disappoints? That's what happened with GRANITE HARBOR, I enjoyed the richness of the characters and the twists the novel took, but I felt the ending was hugely disappointing. Finally, I decided a one star deduction would do. Is that good enough? Maybe, maybe not. It will be interesting to see what others think of this book.

Granite Harbor is a small town along the coast of Maine that has nothing to offer except their history of English settlers arriving at the shore in the mid 1600’s. Ethan, Jared and Shane are teenage best friends. They love to skateboard and one evening, Jared stayed out later than his friends and he was found murdered in a bizarre fashion. Later, Shane also was found murdered. It’s apparent there is a serial killer in their midst. It is baffling because the locals have lived in Granite Harbor for a long time and are friends.

Thank you Celadon Books and NetGalley

It was a really great plot with a good twist at the end. The characters didn’t have much individuality so it was a little confusing separating them. I kept mixing up the relationships between multiple characters because they all just seem so bland.

This was a really really great novel! Well thought out characters, bizzaro killer, a freaky kill method. I hope there will be more of Alex in the future.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Expected publication date: Apr. 30, 2024
Granite Harbor is an idyllic small town on the coast of Maine. Or at least, it was, until the body of a local teenage boy is found mutilated and strung up. Alex Brangwen has just returned to Granite Harbor, hoping to start over after a failed marriage and a failed writing career, and inadvertently lands the job as a police detective. The murdered boy is Alex’s first murder case and the entire town is desperate for answers. The pressure mounts as days go by with no answers and a second body is found, turning the entire town against each other. Alex needs to find out who is doing this- because his teenaged daughter, Sophie, may be the next victim.
Peter Nichols is a new author for me, although he has quite a strong following after the release of his novel, “The Rocks”. Nichols uses his knowledge as a former yacht captain and boatsman in developing his stories, as both “Rocks” and his new one, “Granite Harbor” take place in and around water and heavily involve boats and boating. Of course, Nichols would use the state of Maine as the idyllic backdrop as, if you read any Stephen King, it also serves deliciously as the perfect setting for gruesome murder.
“Granite Harbor” is narrated primarily by Alex, but other main characters make occasional appearances such as Isabel, a mother of a teenaged son living in Granite Harbor and, of course, our murderer as well. All of the characters have a connection, as is common in small towns, and although Nichols does his best to introduce his players to the reader, I felt that they had backstories I was missing out on. “Harbor” felt, in parts, like a sequel where the personal histories of the characters had been told in a previous novel.
I loved the absolutely disgusting method the serial killer used to murder his victims (I won’t give anything away), and, although I didn’t know who he was right away, Nichols lets the murderer tell his story, which I ferociously devoured. The murderer seemed to have a very loose motive that set him about his killing spree but the twisted backstory of the unique method he used kept me pulled in. I never would’ve guessed the murderer because he played such a small role in the story, but I always enjoy an unexpected ending, however it is delivered.
Overall, Nichols’ “Granite Harbor” is a creepy read, with a very twisted serial killer stalking teenagers, and I enjoyed my first foray into Nichols’ world. I’m intrigued enough to keep an eye out for his next release.

While I did enjoy parts of this book, it just didn't flow smoothly overall. I felt, especially in the beginning half, that the chapters were choppy and introduced so many different characters it became a bit confusing. I did like the way the author ended the book.
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I tried so many times to get into this book, but I just couldn't. There were so many characters that I couldn't keep track of them all, and that made the plot super confusing. The beginning is super slow and the timeline jumps around. DNF at 30%.

I had high expectations for this novel as I loved the excerpt. Unfortunately, Granite Harbor just fell flat.

The plot follows a whodunit trope. But the pacing was slow and the exciting parts were pretty sparse. With choppy transitions between chapters, I got lost several times where I didn’t know the timeline — past or present.

There were numerous characters. Too many to keep track of. And the different timelines didn’t help. The character count was just one of the reasons that I didn’t enjoy the novel as much as I wanted to.

I just felt that the narrative didn’t have to be so long winded. So by 46%, I was just bored. I skimmed a few chapters, then skipped to the end which wasn’t satisfying or redeeming. Two stars.

I was invited to read a DRC from Celadon Books through NetGalley. And I also won an ARC from Celadon Books through the Bookish First Raffle. The review herein is completely my own and contains my honest thoughts and opinions.

This book gives all the gloomy, rainy, coastal Maine vibes that I love. Peter Nichols brings you into the town of Granite Harbor, Maine, where a local teen is murdered and his body is found in the town’s historic settlement. Throughout the novel you become connected to the people in this small town, and you start to fear for them and want to protect them from whoever is plaguing the town.

The two timelines narrative gives you insight into “the boy’s” past, helping you understand why he is the way he is and why he may have done what he did. We are witnesses to the trauma the boy endures throughout his childhood and see the events that are formative to his character in the present day. Part of me felt a sadness and understanding for why he turns out to be who he is, although I am disgusted by his actions.

This book was perfectly paced and completely original from anything I have read before. The small cast of characters made it feel very intimate. I truly got to know and understand each person and their reactions to the unfathomable events they are living through. After feeling connected to the people of Granite Harbor, it was even harder to see the direct and collateral damage of the murders on their lives. I found myself really rooting for Detective Alex to solve the case, and do it fast, and worrying for Isabel, Ethan and Sophie, hoping nothing happened to them before the murderer could be stopped.

I did enjoy the ending and loved how everything was wrapped up well, and there were no loose ties.

Of note, there is a good amount of history in this book, including history of settlers in Maine, which I think went a little over my head (history has never been my favorite subject). I also had a big inkling into who the murderer was super early in the book (not sure if this was meant to be intentional or I just have good intuition), so the ending was not a big shock to me. Also, please do read the trigger warnings before reading!

Edited to add: I also loved the short chapters!!! It made it feel like I was flying through the book.

Overall 4.25/5, rounded down for GoodReads.

Thank you to @CeladonBooks for this ARC of Granite Harbor by Peter Nichols. Publishing date: April 30th, 2024.

#CeladonReads #GraniteHarbor

[arc review]
Thank you to Celadon Books for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.
Granite Harbor releases April 30, 2024

Let’s just say I’m glad my life does not depend on explaining this book… because I have no idea what I just read/listened to.

The writing was rather choppy with rough transitions, and I think that largely contributed to why I was so confused with the plot. It felt like the characters kept going in circles with no clear sense of direction.

Granite Harbor reminded me a lot of Locust Lane (another title published by Celadon) where it focused on both a set of teenagers as well as their parents.

The bullying scene involving a group of students urinating and defecating on the face of another student really turned me off and I lost interest after that.
If I’m not mistaken, I think this included incest/SA between young minors and animal cruelty as well.

Thank you to the Publisher for the arc.


the premise of this started off interesting and the ending was kinda meh but i feel like this story could've been edited down by so much. you didn't need all the extra perspectives. some of them added literally nothing to the story.