So many enjoyable thrillers this year, including this one! This was a tense, taut read that had a thrilling sense of unease throughout and some riveting, tense scenes. Throw in conspiracy theories (which at first seem over-the-top), a troubled young woman dealing with past trauma, a remote cabin setting, a broken family, and murders and this one kept me turning the pages. And then that unexpected ending really caught me by surprise, in a good way!

I’m so happy I got to read this one as part of Thriller Book Lovers The Pulse and agree with them that this one should be on your TBR! A great way to pass a lazy summer afternoon.

Thanks to Lake Union Publishing for this complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.

Thank you Brilliance Audio/Netgalley, #partner for the ALC of Follow Her Down in exchange for my honest review.

I became an instant fan of Victoria Helen Stone when she wrote Jane Doe. That was such a crazy psychological thriller – so unique and twisted, and so fun to read that I knew I would be reading everything this author writes and I pretty much have! Plus, I’m constantly recommending her books to thriller readers…you really can’t go wrong with her books!

This is such an emotionally charged thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time! It is completely atmospheric and full of suspense. It is also a story about emotional trauma over a loved one’s murder and I loved seeing how that played out within a family – from the mother suffering from crippling anxiety to the brother and his paranoid conspiracy theories to Elise who is just so emotionally broken she can’t seem to find herself. All these characteristics were so vividly portrayed with each character, especially Elise.

This book had so many twists and turns and it went in directions I did not see coming. I think I suspected nearly every character at one point. It’s such a complex, layered plot and the setting – that small-town feeling, with the little cabins isolated in the woods – only adds to the overall tension of the story. Be sure to clear your schedule when you pick this one up because once you start reading it, you are not going to want to put it down!

This is my first book by this author but I will be adding her others to my TBR. This book was definitely a slow burn to begin with but it picked up and I didn’t want to put it down. I almost made my family listen to the audiobook while on our trip yesterday because I wanted to know what happened! But I decided against that. When I did finish, I was so surprised. That was not what I had expected at all! This is a great, suspenseful whodunnit. I did want a little bit more on the murder and disappearance of the sister. Maybe we could get a prequel?!

🚨𝗙𝗢𝗟𝗟𝗢𝗪 𝗛𝗘𝗥 𝗗𝗢𝗪𝗡🚨
𝘸𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘣𝘺: 𝘝𝘪𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘢 𝘏𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘯 𝘚𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘦
𝘱𝘶𝘣𝘣𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺: 𝘓𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘜𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯
𝘈𝘙𝘊 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘷𝘪𝘢: 𝘛𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳 𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘶𝘭𝘴𝘦
𝗣𝗨𝗕 𝗗𝗔𝗬: 𝗝𝗨𝗡𝗘 𝟰, 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟰

🍷🍷🍷🍷 / 𝟱⭐️
𝗪𝗜𝗡𝗘 𝗣𝗔𝗜𝗥𝗜𝗡𝗚: 𝘢 𝘴𝘮𝘰𝘰𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘗𝘪𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘎𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘪𝘰 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘶 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘪𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺

📚🍷💃🏻

𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘵𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘯 𝘶𝘯𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘯𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘳, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘛𝘏𝘐𝘚 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘯𝘫𝘰𝘺!

𝘚𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘢 "𝘴𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘣𝘶𝘳𝘯" 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘵 𝘏𝘖𝘓𝘠 𝘏𝘌𝘓𝘓 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘬 𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥, 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥𝘯'𝘵 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘱 𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘴! 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘌𝘝𝘌𝘙𝘠𝘖𝘕𝘌'𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘭𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘌𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥... 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘪𝘻𝘻𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘳𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳!

𝘋𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘴𝘢𝘺 𝘪 𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘯𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶...𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘮𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳.
𝘠𝘰𝘶'𝘳𝘦 𝘞𝘦𝘭𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 😉

#BookWineClubToronto #WINEnot ?!
#CanadaReads #ThrillerBookLover #ThrillerReader #CanadianReviewer #🇨🇦bookenablers #og🇨🇦bookenablers #ThrillerBookLoversThePulse

Follow Her Down was my first book by Victoria Helen Stone, and she completely blew me away. This story was nothing short of amazing. Gripping, twisty and utterly unputdownable. It will definitely be one of the top thrillers of the year! It's definitely on my all time favorites list.

Title- Follow her down by @victoriahelenstone
Rating -⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This title has been making waves over here at Pulse, and for good reason! It’s been a hit with everyone who’s laid hands on it. As a newcomer to this author’s work, I was blown away by their masterful storytelling and I’m confident that I’ll be coming back for more. The story had a fantastic pace that kept me hooked from start to finish, and I can’t help but hope that there’s more to come from this incredible author. Fingers crossed for another installment!

The murder of Elise Rockwood’s sister shattered her family. Their mother’s anxiety kept her housebound. Elise’s paranoid brother, Kyle, saw conspiracies everywhere. Elise numbed her grief in an aimless lifestyle that left her emotionally broken. All of them victims. A local boy eventually confessed, but the damage was already done.

Years later, Elise is reinventing herself. She’s bought a mountain lodge to be close to home again and to find stability. Not even an email from her ex tempts her into revisiting the past. But Kyle won’t let it go. He still believes there’s more to their sister’s murder—and the confession—than meets the eye. When Elise’s ex is found dead in the same forest where her sister went missing decades before, Elise is finally willing to listen.

The traumas of the past are reemerging. So is the truth. Elise’s greatest fear now is who will survive it.

QOTD- have you ever gone swimming in the ocean?

Thank you to @netgalley and @amazonpublishing @victoriahelenstone for this advance copy in exchange for a review.

Atmospheric, adrenaline pumping and small towns vibes! It started slow and built up to reveal after reveal!

2.5/5

I’ve really enjoyed several of the authors books but this one just didn’t work for me. I was disappointed because I had high hopes but I had too many issues with it. The premise had potential but the execution was lacking, the pacing was very slow and the payoff wasn’t there for me in the end. I failed to connect with any of the characters, I didn’t feel like they were well developed and in turn I just didn’t care what was happening. Then there were still some unanswered questions at the end and I hate when things are unresolved. Overall a flop for me.

What an immensely atmospheric and tense ride this one was!! #FollowHerDown starts off as a slow burn, the plot mainly driven by the expertly fleshed out yet wonderfully flawed characters - the suspense oozing. While Elise is starting over as a groundskeeper of some lodges, her brother is still rambling away, spouting conspiracy theories about their murdered sister.

Then bam 💥 the second part of the book shoots off like a bat outta hell and the pages can’t turn fast enough. Red herrings in abundance! Twists galore. And an eye popper of an ending 👀 I mean… what in the shittake mushrooms…?!!

@victoriahelenstone please tell me there’s a second book… 🙏🏻

So immensely thankful to be part of the fabulous team at @thrillerbookloversthepulse and get the opportunity to read these astounding books!

4.5 stars rounded up.

Follow Her Down is a whodunnit wrapped up with a psychological thriller and you definitely won’t see what will happen next! With a bit of a warning, I’ll say if you’ve been touched by violent traumatic events, there’s a great message in this book about healing and claiming the life you want/need following that trauma. You can heal and stop the collateral damage. Great for fans of Amy Hagstrom, Minka Kent, or Joe Hart.

Palpable fear. A conspiracy trail. Compelling characters. Those are just a handful of the attributes describing Follow Her Down. A breathtaking ride that explored residual trauma alongside a gripping slow burn tale of suspense, the character-driven plot ducked and weaved throughout. Believe the paranoid brother? Second guess his lunatic ramblings? The further into the book that I got, the more I gave a serious side-eye to each and every character—including Elise herself.

Speaking of Elise, Stone crafted quite the unreliable narrator. Pulled into her brother’s irrational rants, her own descent into potential madness also made me start to believe as her frenzied panic oozed from the pages. That was just one of the huge strengths of this novel. Both possibilities were equally valid. And, of course, Elise was such a strong persona. Fully fleshed out and with realistic flaws, I yearned to reach out my hand to help as everything imploded around her. More than anything, though, I easily connected with her and that alone made this a truly stunning, binge-worthy read.

But that wasn’t all that sucked me into the story. Despite a slow start, the runaway storyline took off like a rocket around the halfway point. From there it was one explosive reveal after another. Don’t get me wrong, I did suss some of them out. Well, except for that truly shocking conclusion. Now I’m just crossing my fingers and toes that there will be a book two exploring that damning cliffhanger of sorts. All in all, thanks to a deftly woven narrative, heartbreaking emotion, and perfectly placed red herrings, I fell for this one hook, line, and sinker. Rating of 4.5 stars.

Thank you to Victoria Helen Stone, Lake Union Publishing, and Thriller Book Lovers: The Pulse hit my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.

Trigger warning: death of a sibling, infidelity, alcoholism, mention of: agoraphobia

This book is getting a lot of buzz around @thrillerbookloversthepulse, it’s definitely one that you’re definitely not going to want to miss out on this summer!

This may have been a slow burn yet it still kept me on the edge of my seat. Let me tell ya, it was hard to put down and had me guessing until the very end! I just love thrillers like that! 🤌🏼

The past and present timelines worked very well together and the characters were well-written with the perfect amount of complexity to add to the suspense of the storyline.

I also enjoyed how the story is set in a cabin in a small mountain town.

Overall, a very enjoyable thriller that will make for a binge worthy read for thriller lovers this summer!

When Elise Rockwood’s sister was murdered, it understandably shattered her entire family. Her mother’s anxiety kept them all in the house, while her brother Kyle saw conspiracies everywhere. Elise, however, numbed her grief in a lifestyle with no real path or direction. Now years later, she attempts to reinvent herself and purchases a lodge in the mountains close to home. But her brother refuses to let things go. He is convinced that there is more to their sister’s murder and that the confession from the alleged murder doesn’t quite add up. When her ex-boyfriend ends up dead, Elise finally begins to wonder herself.

I loved Victoria Helen Stone’s previous book, The Hook, so I was eager to read this one too and it did NOT disappoint! Deeply atmospheric, “Follow Her Down” is so much more than a mystery. It is also the story of flawed, relatable humans and how grief essentially follows them down (see what I did there?!) I really respected how Elise was trying to start over and rebuild her life after it had fallen apart so many years ago. Her stories as a groundskeeper of the lodge were entertaining (spoiler alert: the story pretty much starts with her cleaning up animal carcasses outside of the cabins - LOL!) The tension in this book kept me glued to its pages and as the mystery unraveled, there was one twist that I had predicted but that did not keep me from enjoying this book in the slightest!

”Follow Her Down” is another book we are loving over at The Pulse! Thank you to Lake Union Publishing and Victoria Helen Stone for the beautiful autographed ARC! This story releases June 4, 2024 and this review will be shared to my instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) shortly :)

Thank you to @thrillerbookloversthepulse for the #gifted copy of the book.

Family drama. Murdered sibling. Whodunit. Slow burn revenge thriller with an ending that I didn't see coming! WOW! Overall, I enjoyed this book.

This was a suspenseful, slow-burn thriller with a well-executed whodunnit plot. Told from the brilliantly limited perspective of Elise Rockwood, we get delicious breadcrumbs as the situation unravels. We also get her perspective of her brother and mother as they all struggle to come to terms with the murder of Elise's sister Robin. Things get even more complicated for Elise when her former lover is murdered and the police focus on her. I don't want to say more and spoil the book, but I highly recommend this book for fans of mystery and revenge thrillers.

I take great pride in my ability to figure out a mystery. I thought I had this ending figured out, but I was dead wrong. For that fact alone, I recommend this book. additionally, it had a gripping plot, the pace was perfect, and I was highly entertained the entire time. This was a great thriller, and I can't wait to read more from this author.

★ 5 Stars ★
I’ve been busy reading incredible thrillers since joining @thrillerbookloversthepulse. I feel guilty giving out so many 5-star ratings, but the books are totally worth it.

“Follow Her Down” is another twisted novel deserving of five stars. The ending alone is worth five stars. I was dumbstruck for a minute. There has to be a sequel. Tell me there’s more!!

I discovered the author when her "Jane Doe" series was recommended to me, and I keep meaning to read more of her books but haven't found the time. When I was offered an ARC of "Follow Her Down." it was an absolute YES without reading the blurb! I mean, who could turn down this stunning cover?

The story revolves around siblings Elise and Kyle, who were young when their older sister Robin was murdered. While Elise turned to alcohol and reckless behavior to deal with the trauma, Kyle started exploring conspiracy theories. Years later, Elise is settled down, but Kyle is still chasing his crazy ideas about Robin's death.

When a murder occurs in the area, it turns out the victim was an old flame of Elise's and at the center of one of Kyle's conspiracy theories. Just as Elise starts to believe he might be onto something, everything blows up. You've got to read this one to find out what wild twists Ms. Stone came up with!

I want to thank Lake Union Publishing, Brilliance Audio, and Thriller Book Lovers The Pulse for providing me with these ARCs through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

#FollowHerDown #VictoriaHelenStone #ARC #NetGalley #BrillianceAudio #LakeUnionPublishing #pageturner #bookbuzz #bookalert #honestreview #thriller #bookreviewer #thrillerbooklovers #thepulse #pulsepoint #hottestthrillers #thrillerfriendsunite #thrillerobsessedbookishclub #ReadersOfTheLateArc #TalkWordyToMeTeam #lovetoread #lovebooks #booknerd #bookstagrammer #booktoker #CapCut

Elise Rockwood has spent decades dealing with the aftermath and trauma the murder of her sister has caused her and her family. She's finally found herself a stable life when she bought and began managing a small mountain lodge. She's determined to get her life on track. Even when her ex-boyfriend reaches out to her, she doesn't let it derail her. But Elise’s brother won't let the past go. He's convinced that something isn't right with their sister's murder even though the murderer confessed years ago. When Elise’s ex-boyfriend is found dead in the very same woods her sister went missing from all those years ago, Elise isn't sure what to believe anymore. Will the truth about what happened to Elise’s sister finally come out?

If you are looking for a wild, twisty thriller that will have you frantically turning pages and coming up with a multitude of theories of wth is happening, do not pass up this one up! This book has Elise’s past shockingly collide with her present and completely turning her world upside-down. She starts to question everything she thought she knew about her sister's murder all those years ago. Then her brother, Kyle, starts in with his conspiracy theories that seem farfetched, but she's left wondering how crazy they really are. This slow-burn book quickly amps up and leaves you with a mind-blowing twist that you will not see coming. My only complaint is that I'm left with more questions than answers at the end. Will we get a follow-up to this book? I sure hope so.

4/5! A sister gone missing years ago, a brother who is obsessed with the case and Elise is trying to get her life on track. She went down a bad path for a while, but has sobered up and bought a camp ground. It keeps her busy, keeps her mind off the drink and gives her something to get up for every day. But when a male's body is found in the same river her sister went missing in, and she has a direct tie to this person, Elsie's life starts to spiral once again. As word spreads of who the deceased is, her brother comes up with even more conspiracy theories about their sisters death and what really happened. He is always dragging Elsie back down and she can't take it anymore. But when there is another murder and some photos surface from that summer, Elsie wonders if maybe her brother is onto something after all. Will the truth of what really happened to their sister finally surface? The was such a fast paced thriller of a read, and you really didn't know who was telling the truth about that summer decades ago and if the correct person was accused even though no body was ever found. I really enjoyed this one and look forward to more from this author. Excited to be collaborating with Thriller Book Lovers the Pulse to make awareness of this amazing book. Thank you to NetGalley and the author for the complementary ebook. This review is of my own opinion and accord.

𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗛𝗲𝗿 𝗗𝗼𝘄𝗻 was my first read by this author and I found it to definitely be a slow burn, but towards the end it picked up the pace. There were multiple possibilities on who the suspect could have been, and I really didn’t the ending twist. 🤯 I do wish there would have been more on the murder of her sister, but it wasn’t a big issue. I listened to this one on audio and thought the narrator did a fantastic job. I’ll certainly read more from this author.

Thanks to Lake Union Publishing and Thriller Book Lovers The Pulse for my advanced ebook and audiobook. 𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗛𝗲𝗿 𝗗𝗼𝘄𝗻 will be published 6/4.