I received the advanced digital copy from Netgalley without requesting it, but after reading the plot I was very intrigued. I hadn't heard of this author before, so I wasn't sure what kind of writing style it was going to have. I did appreciate the back and forth of "POVs". One of those focused on the whodunnit and I always love seeing their side throughout a thriller. I also really enjoyed the mystery in it. It had a little bit of gore, nothing too crazy, but enough to make it interesting and put you on the edge of your seat a bit. There were a lot of unique aspects to the story that I found refreshing and intriguing. Overall I'm giving it a 3.5 out of 5 because I would recommend this to someone who is wanting a unique thriller, but it didn't feel like there were enough layers to it to give it a higher rating than that.

This was a slow burn for me. The beginning was slow and there were a lot of characters and I was struggling to keep them all straight and I just didn't really care too much what was happening. But then about halfway through, it really picked up and I found myself wanting to know what happened and I started to care a little more about the people.

A murder takes place in a small town in Maine and the one detective in town has to figure out what is going on all while dealing with his own personal life. This was a pretty dark read. Some very disturbing things happen so I definitely recommend checking out trigger warnings before starting. I think this could be classified as a bit of a horror because of some of the scenes but I thought it was more just in the thriller/suspense genre. If horror/thrillers are your genre, I would recommend this book as it did pick up a lot by the second half but it is gritty and gruesome so go in being prepared.

Thank you to Celadon for an advanced copy. 3.5 Rounded up.

Unfortunately, this book just wasn't for me. I couldn't get more than halfway through.

My issue is that I need a book to grab ahold of me early on and keep me moving. But while this had a creepy beginning and a semi-gruesome murder, it just drug on from there.

If you enjoy police procedurals that thoroughly get into the story of every character's lives (in my opinion, taking away all suspense and creepiness) and are very slow burn, then this would probably be a great pick for you.

I did read that there is animal death and cruelty in this, which I thankfully didn't get to. I don't have many triggers, but hurting/killing animals is one. So, just a heads up if you're thinking of reading this(you may need to skip those parts).

On a side note, I listened to the audiobook to help me get through this, but I didn't find that the narrator added anything to the story.

As always, thank you to Netgalley and Celadon for giving me an advanced ebook copy of this book.
2⭐️

This was a very good, but dark and often disturbing mystery. It was well written and the characters were interesting and realistic. The only thing that bothered me were there are some pretty gruesome scenes in the book - I don't really know that it was necessary for them to be that descriptive and to be repeated multiple times throughout the book. If you like dark and gritty mysteries, then you will like Granite Harbor. Thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC.

This was a very interesting book. The beginning was written in a way that felt detached and I wasn’t sure the style was for me. As the book got more intense (there are trigger warnings for this one, not just death but animal abuse, sex abuse, torture. If you can’t do the animal abuse I think it’s chapter 34 you can skip although I do think that chapter is relevant to the story others seem to disagree and skipped it). This book is a bit more graphic that your typical mystery or thriller. There are also a couple of far fetched elements, but overall it was a fast paced and gripping story. Once the story really got going it was defintely one I didn’t wan to put down. Alex is a detective in a small Maine town after following his wife (now ex wife) to America. He didn’t ever expect to be in law enforcement but he needed a steady job with benefits. Alex is caught off guard when he comes across a dead body and unlike his prior experiences this dead body was murdered and a kid who went to school with his teenage daughter. Sprinkled in between the present day are past tense chapters from the unnamed killer explaining his upbringing and giving his perspective to the murders. I definitely will be interested in reading more from this author. It was a bit gruesome but that doesn’t bother me with a good thriller.

I was provided both an audio and print ARC of the book via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

I enjoyed this mystery thriller, it kept me on my toes and invested in the storyline until almost the end. There were a few elements that took this from a really great thriller to just an OK thriller for me. They all happened toward the end of the book, so I have mixed feelings about it. I thought it was a solid thriller for the most part, but there were a few character and plot things that occurred that really didn't work for me. There are some things that are far too convenient and I had to suspend a little too much belief for this to work.

Granite Harbor is a small Maine Town with a local historical settlement, where many of the townspeople work and demonstrate how life as an original settler would have looked. Life in the town is turned upside-down when a local teen is found brutally murdered and his body left at the settlement to be found. We follow the characters through the investigation as the town morns the loss of one of their own and as things begin to escalate.

There are quite a few characters to keep track of, some are relevant, while others don't really add much to the storyline. The premise was interesting but the execution was a bit off. The transitions between characters was at times jarring as you jumped from Alex the detective investigating the murder to Isabel the mother of one of the kids, to another random character who may be involved or may be a red herring, to the murder who's identity is kept secret and who's POV is told in the past tense. It was hard to keep track of everyone at times.

You will definitely want to check the trigger warnings for this one before picking it up. There are some fairly disturbing and graphic scenes.

Graine Harbor is a small idyllic town in Maine. It is a close-knit community where everyone knows everyone else. What can turn this town on a dime? A horrifically dark, spine-tingling murder of a young teenage boy. His body found on the archaeological site called the Settlement. Where many of the towns' people work to reenact the early settlers in the area. What brought this horror here? Why was this teenager chosen? When a cold case is discovered the death and details terrifyingly similar, it is up to Detective Alex Brangwen to uncover what is happening and to stop the serial killer before he strikes again.

I feel for this slow burn read. Maine, archaeology, what could be better? Not much in my book. The characters are fantastically detailed and rich. The plot is twisty and dark. Making you wonder who could be behind it all. Thank you to Peter Nichols and Celadon Books for my gifted copy of this riveting read.

The body of a local teenaged boy is found mutilated and displayed at a historic preservation site in the small town of Granite Harbor, Maine. I really enjoyed getting to the bottom of this murder most strange through the eyes of writer-turned-detective Alex and the many residents of this small town, all of whom are shocked by the murder—but one of whom must be the perpetrator. A heavy dose of the gory and gruesome so beware. I will definitely be keeping this author in my radar in the future.

Granite Harbor by Peter Nichols ranks up there beside The Quiet Tenant (by Clémence Michallon) for my favourites in the subgenre of literary thriller!

From the jump this book is dark and foreboding; it's quiet and ominous, like fog in the dead of night. Characters are paralyzed by indignation and fear as small-town Maine is rippled by a shocking death. It was altogether both disturbing and fascinating to occasionally get inside the mind of a serial killer as unsettling events transpire in the community.

Even with the shadowy subject manor, readers will connect with this plot as it portrays everyday societal norms. There's a strong vein of the guttural and primordial protectiveness that is motherhood along with the fabrication of Granite Harbor perfectly mirroring stereotypes present in any rural community. This book proves that life should not be two dimensional, but instead have a three-hundred-and-sixty-degree view.

Audiobook narrator Peter Ganim did a phenomenal job to further set the tone. His narration took a back seat, allowing the characters to become even more subdued, unsettled, pensive, or deficient with Ganim's subtle diction.

Immersive. Atmospheric. Haunting.

One I won’t soon forget.

Thank you NetGalley, Celadon Books and Macmillan Audio for the complimentary copies to read and review.

Granite Harbor by Peter Nichols is an immersive, dark and unnerving page-turner filled with complex characters. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this novel. A huge thank you to Celadon Books, the author and NetGalley for the advanced electronic copy of the book.

Granite Harbor is a quaint, idyllic town that is rock to its depths when a teenager is found savagely murdered on the town’s historical site. Detective Alex Brangwen has his hands full trying to navigate life as a single parent and now dealing with his first murder case. Tensions are running high as the town’s people are terrified and looking to him to quail their fear.

Isabel a single mother trying to take care of her family has just started working at the historical site, and now finds herself thrust in the middle of the murder investigation. When another murder occurs in the same vein as the first one. She starts to worry for her own son, Ethan. He and Detective Brangwen’s daughter, Sophie were both best friends of the victim. Will Ethan and Sophie be the killers next fatalities? Can Alex and Isabel figure out who this killer is, or will the many held secrets be the undoing of this clannish community?

A brilliantly written, vulnerable, highly absorbing, harrowing thriller that slowly builds up to the intense ending. If you are looking for a compelling mystery then you’ll definitely want to read Granite Harbor.

A gruesome murder of a teen in Granite Harbor, Maine, leads to the former novelist turned detective Alex Branwen to try and solve the case. This was an interesting read. We get the perspectives of the detective and a resident who’s son is the friend of the murder victim, as well as chapters that detail the murderer’s past. At times, it is quite gruesome in the graphic descriptions of murders and animal cruelty. I will also say that some aspects were a little too detailed and information heavy, making it drag. I found it slow to read and quite boring at times, however, I did enjoy some of the characters were and the small town dynamics. Overall, it’s a very creepy and twisted read, and I did enjoy it, but just felt it dragged too much, and there were some plot holes that made it feel unrealistic.

Fun quick thriller, I enjoyed this one and the setting in Maine. The animal abuse scenes were thought to get through for me. A

Granite Harbor by Peter Nichols is a through and through a crime novel. It is a slow burn crime thriller. If you like Law and Order: SVU, I think you will like this. But think a little more graphic. This book is out now.

Alex, a detective in Granite Harbor, a settlement, is investigating a brutal murder case. A teenager has been found dead. There are a whole bunch of characters in this book, but the main characters are Alex, Sophie, and Ethan. Can't reveal more, or else it would be a spoiler.

First and moremost, this novel has a lot of graphic detail that might not be for every reader, so please see the content warnings. It's slow, and I did figure out who the killer was midway. However, I did finish the book. I am still not sure what I feel because my head is still trying to grasp the graphic details. I am neutral at this point.

CW: body mutilation, sa, animal cruelty, blood, and a whole bunch of other things.

I loved this dark twisty police procedural. It took a few chapters to really get into this one, but then I couldn't put it down. Well developed characters and setting contribute to making this much better than your average serial killer book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of the book.

The premise for this story was intriguing but it took a little while for me to get into the storyline. I was expecting that there would be more interactions between Alex and Isabel. There is an interesting mix of characters in this story, a serial killer who appears to be one of the members of the small town, and a gruesomeness to the killings. The story does move back and forth between the killer's upbringing and the present circumstances with some twists at the end.

Unfortunately this book was not for me. The writing style was too detailed with what I felt was extra info. I read this book a week ago and already have forgotten it.

I enjoyed this book about teens being murdered in a very small town in Maine and a police detective that was an author. It was a pretty fast book to read and kept my interest through out. Police procedurals can sometimes be a turn off with the stereotypical characters and formula writing but I liked this one. Not over the top when it comes to the finale with the bad guy.

This was a police procedural about a serial killer in a small town.

I typically don't love police procedurals, but this one was well done. There was far more graphic violence than I was anticipating. Usually violence doesn't bother me, but at one point I had to close the book and take a few minutes before I could continue. Just be warned if you are sensitive to that kind of thing.

It was fairly slow at some parts and I found it a little hard to follow with all of the characters and timelines, but by the middle of it, I was engaged.

Overall, I enjoyed it, and I think people who really like police procedurals will like it more than I did.

I thought this had such an interesting premise, but unfortunately it did not work for me overall. There is animal cruelty in here which I usually stay away from, but on top of that there were intimate scenes with teenagers written as if they were adults that was too much. All of this on top of the slow burn until the very end where it finally picked up was a lot to get through, and I'm not sure the buildup was worth it. I was not the biggest fan of the narrator either for this audio, so unfortunately this one was a miss.

Thank you to Celadon Books and Macmillan Audio for the copies to review.

This was certainly a roller coaster of a story.
Some parts were gruesome. It started off slow but picked up towards the last part of the book.
Many thanks to the author, Celadon Books and Netgalley for the early copy