Where the Crawfish Swim is another fictional twist on the old Hatfield and McCoys rivalry, but yet partially based on a true story. I jumped in this book, and the next thing I knew, I was flying through the chapters. Easy to read, gripping tale that kept me locked in, and whoa to the unfolding of craziness that plays out. Haven't read any of Andrea Smith's stuff before, but this one is a winner!
*I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. This review is my own opinion*

I'll be honest - I chose this book because I was intrigued by its title. I thought it would be similar to Where the Crawdads Sing. That couldn't be further from the truth. Even though the other "Crawdads" book was high on my list a few years ago, I was very pleasantly surprised by this one. Its topics are ones that are high on my interest list.

This book is classified as a fictional true crime piece. It is based on an event in Ohio that rocked the national news in 2016 where 8 members of a family were massacred. Andrea Smith takes this actual event and sets it in a fictional county in Ohio (Briar). This fictional county, which
is somewhat poverty stricken (except for a few select families), is in the foothills of the Appalachians.

If you have ever watched shows such as Justified or Ozark, or if you have read books such as David Joy's, Where all Light Tends to Go (or watched the movie based on it - Devil's Peak), or if you have read last year's co-Pulitzer Prize winner, David Copperhead, then grab this book.

This book has everything - the Appalachian culture, a hidden poppy farm, Cessnas flying in and out in the middle of the night, the DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency) and the BCI (Bureau of Criminal Investigations), and mention of the Mexican cartel, of course.

Our protagonist, twenty eight year old DEA agent, Dalton Edwards, is sent to middle of nowhere Briar County as a demotion for jilting his boss's daughter. To investigate the supposed illicit activity, he infiltrates himself into both of the families' farms (that are being used as fronts) as a part-time employee. Along the way, he befriends the bartender of a dive bar in town, who he later finds out is working on the same case for the BCI. Smith cleverly names the two families in this fictional account the Hatfields and the McCoys.

4.5 Stars from me. Thank you, NetGalley for the ARC of this true crime novel.

I like reading true crime with novelization storytelling style. It is make the story easier to follow and compelling. Based on 2016 Murders of Eight Family Members in Pike County, Ohio the author doing very good on research and serve gripping details of the misery event.

Actually the characters got interesting depth and I can feel the emotions from some of the.. The pace is right as it progresses and important for build the mystery and tension. I still have alot question about this family tragedy and would make continuing research about it. But this book give me solid ground to start learn basic info about the cases.

Thank you to Netgalley and Book Go Social for providing copy of this ebook. I have voluntarily read and reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Publication : 24 March 2023

I thought the book was well written
I think the combination of true crime and fiction was intriguing
I really liked Dalton the main character
Hope we read more about him at some point in the future

Easy to read and a twist and turn plot what else can you ask for

Thank toy to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
I enjoyed this a lot. It is a fictionalized telling of a real life true crime. I liked the combination of fact and fiction into this novel.
It was a really great read and I love true crime.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Books Go Social for gifting me a digital ARC of this true-crime inspired fiction story by Andrea Smith - 4 stars!

Inspired by the real life 2016 Pike County, OH, massacres, this is a fictionalized story of the killings of one family by another. In this story, DEA Agent Dalton Edwards is tasked with fitting in with the locals in order to uncover possible drug operations. Dalton discovers the community is tight-knit and strangers aren't trusted. But he works hard and soon becomes privy to more than a few secrets.

The author uses the notorious names of the Hatfields and McCoys to show how these two neighboring clans fought for what they thought was rightfully theirs. And what they would do to make sure they got it. It's a sad reflection on what money and power can do to an evil heart. Well written, this book will keep your interest and you'll be hoping the bad guys get theirs in the end.

*This novel is fictional, but inspired by the 2016 Murders of Eight Family Members in Pike County, Ohio.

Briar County is in Southern Ohio - the gateway to Appalachia. People there move at their own pace. They hunt, they fish, they farm - but their secrets run deeper than the fishing holes that dot the countryside. And Dalton Edwards, DEA agent, is about to uncover a few of them after his boss sends him to Briar County on a low-priority assignment as punishment.

There's something going on in this rural, sleepy county of only 28,000 people, and his higher-ups want Dalton to uncover it. Easier said than done! Dalton immediately discovers the community is tight-knit, and not easily infiltrated. His boss says it's a pot-growing operation, but Dalton thinks it's much bigger than that. Before his assignment is over, eight family members will be murdered under circumstances that Dalton knows have nothing to do with a hydroponic weed operation.

As the mass murder makes international news, Dalton is determined to find the murder (or murderers) and expose the guilty to seek justice for the slain. It won't be easy, and in the end, one more local will perish. Dalton will not rest until those responsible are held accountable.

This is a True Crime Fiction, but inspired by what people refer to as "The Pike County Massacre," which took place in Pike County, Ohio in April 2016. All characters contained in this novel are purely fictional, and conclusions drawn are purely a product of the author's imagination.

Living in Ohio, I am well aware of the "The Pike County Massacre", I think the author did a wonderful job with this story. It really made you wonder about the real case. I think the attention to detail was superb.

Thank you to Netgalley for an early E-copy in exchange for my honest review!

This was a very enjoyable read. a fun sort of murder mystery!
The storyline was tragic, the characters were interesting, I was captivated.

I liked the premise of this book, but fictionalizing something of this magnitude teeters on a fine line. This book lacks the empathy that is necessary to accomplish basing a fiction book on a true crime massacre. There was no clear plot of this story nor was there much suspense.

I would have loved more depth to the characters. The character development was surface level, and I couldn’t connect with any of them. There was also misogynistic tones in the writing that wasn’t appeasing. I’m giving this one two stars since I did force my way through it. This was not for me.

Thank you NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

this was … weird. part of me wanted to love it & part of me couldn’t get past how it was written. not my favorite!

It was an okay read . I found the plot very slow and felt it didn’t hold my interest like other books of this type. I also felt it was a rip off of the other Crawdads book .

I'm fairly conversant with most true crime cases, and the one that this was based on, according to the blurb at least, and the Pike County murders were especially hard to watch happening.
I don't want to comment on how close the book was to those events, but had it not been declared, I'd have picked that up anyway - it's an intense, well written book, with obvious influences in the true crime that it references.
I really enjoyed it, and felt that it was interesting and compelling enough that most true crime buffs would enjoy it, and anyone that enjoys thrillers or crime books in general would too.

This was an interesting read overall. Anything Hatfield and McCoy is always an interesting story. But as an undercover officer, trying to figure out what is going on, it can be an interesting relationship within the community. When eight family members are murdered, the case becomes one of much more than just drugs.

Great for true crime fans!

Living in Ohio, and hearing the news of this tragedy made me excited to read this book. I loved learning about how this small town area makes its living and the things that go on. There were many surprises in the plot, which I was unaware of.

I thought this took a true event and made a great fictional novel about it was well written and I had never heard of true crime fiction before. Andrea Smith writes a great story and is able to weave the story with the facts of the case, but still be fictional. It had all the elements of a good true crime story and so was respectful for the real event.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

I enjoyed this book about working undercover but really struggled with the ‘real life’ naming - ie Hatfields and McCoys, Billy Jensen.

Where the Crawfish Swim is a very well written true crime story. A fast paced edge of your seat plot that kept me reading until I finished the book.

This novel is fictional, but based on true events that happened in Pike County, Ohio, in April of 2016.

I love the way the story was told and if you are a fan of murder mystery books, this is for you. The writing is great. The plot is great

Dea dalton is sent on a low priority assignment to try to uncover some secrets and eventually out to find out who murdered 8 people, but its harder than it looks as he tries infiltrate the tight knit town.

So, I dove into "Where the Crawfish Swim" by Andrea Smith, and let me tell you, it's a gripping ride through the heart of Briar County. Inspired by a true event, this novel weaves reality into fiction seamlessly, leaving me both captivated and slightly unnerved.

Meet Dalton Edwards, the DEA agent thrown into the enigmatic world of Briar County. From the get-go, the story unfolds like a puzzle, with Dalton piecing together a community bound by its own pace and burdened by buried secrets. The characters, especially Dalton, felt like acquaintances, their complexities adding layers to the narrative.

As Dalton digs deeper into this tight-knit community, the plot thickens. The Pike County Massacre, the haunting backdrop, adds a chilling touch of reality to the fiction. The author's ability to balance real-life complexity with storytelling finesse is nothing short of impressive.

And let's talk about Dalton – his journey from an outsider to the unraveller of town mysteries kept me hooked. The writing is sharp, painting vivid scenes of a place where everyone's business is communal knowledge. The tragedy that befalls eight family members becomes a canvas for Dalton's pursuit of justice.

The small-town dynamics felt authentic, and Dalton's relentless pursuit was both admirable and a tad unnerving. Andrea Smith did an excellent job translating the complexities of reality into a fictional narrative. The suspense is palpable, lingering even after the final page.

"Where the Crawfish Swim" isn't just a crime thriller; it's a journey into human nature, resilience, and the pursuit of justice. Andrea Smith's storytelling skill breathes life into the tale, leaving me with thoughts that lingered long after the book was shelved.

This was not it for me.
There was just a mix of information thrown in and then kind of forgotten.
The title doesn’t make sense to me either. There are no crawfish, no swimming and nothing along the lines of what the title suggest. It’s about drugs and farms?

I also don’t enjoy the way she wrote some of the females. “You could tell she enjoyed men looking at her by how she swayed her hips”… this what about a librarian that is not mentioned again after this…

It also left a bad taste in my mouth at the mentioning in the end about building a wall at the boarder of Mexico and the “facts” in the end about Mexican drug smuggling.
No thank you for me.