Thank you to Sourcebook Landmark for the free ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This one is out 3/25/25!

Thriller/Mystery/Crime. Told from Janeway Sharp’s POV a year after the incidents discussed in her book took place, Jane tells us how her foray into true crime sleuthing completely changed her life. In the wake of her dad’s sudden passing, Jane finds her way into a true crime forum where other internet sleuths try to solve crimes. In desperate need of distract, Jane is immediately drawn to a group of sleuths who are well known in the group for having a hand in solving past crimes. After a trio of sorority girls in Idaho are slaughtered, Jane and her fellow group of sleuths decide to meet in Idaho to solve the murders themselves. After the group members are made FBI consultants they are given special access to the details of the crime, but the more they find out, the less everything makes sense and the more it seems like they might be putting themselves in grave danger.

YES. This was the Ashley Winstead I missed! I loved her first two thrillers and after her last book (Midnight is the Darkest Hour) didn’t do it for me, I was happy that she was back on her a game with this one. It really demonstrated how obsessed people can get with true crime and both the good and the bad that comes when internet sleuths get involved with crimes. The pacing was great and I loved the aspects of solving a crime. Winstead clearly drew inspiration from the murders that happened a couple years back at the University of Idaho, but how they play out were completely different. The only thing I didn’t love was Jane trying to link her story with honoring her father - it seemed kind of mashed in there to me. An excellent thriller though and I think it would make a great mini series!

4.5/5 stars. I had so much fun reading this. This book is quite long but allows for many interesting plot twists. I will definitely be reading more from this author!

WOW.. so intense.. twisted.. mind blowing.. and completely unexpected. This is Ashley Winstead at her best, and by far, has the most creative ending ever in a thriller. And then to learn AW actually based most of this story off a true crime case. Murder, abduction, amateur sleuthing, theories, media frenzy, podcasting, the “Network” forum, collegiate snooping, and not one, but possibly two SERIAL KILLERS?!? Superb. 5 stars — Pub. 3/25/25

Thank you to the publisher via NetGalley for this advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

Ashley Winstead NEVER disappoints! This book kept me at the edge of my seat the entire time. Even though I figured out a giant piece of the plot about halfway through, this book still had a bunch of surprises that I didn’t see coming and I loved reading how it all came together.

A real slow burn in the best way. This reads as a tell all and I really enjoyed the footnotes in each chapter as a unique way to feed the reader more details and information. The grief journey and the murder mystery play out side by side beautifully. I loved learning about the world of online world sleuthing. It was well written and easy to follow. The found family aspect had a ragtag underdog feel, it was heartfelt and believable. Even though I did guess some of the ending, it was far too enjoyable for me to mind.

This one took a while to get through. Not because I wasn't captivated by the premise, but because the writing felt juvenile and dragged out. I think my biggest issue was the fact that our protagonist was...incredibly dry, and while the plot points with her father were relevant and connected to the rest of the story, it wasn't a strong enough connection for it to be a primary plot point. I also was frustrated by this one because I guessed the killer very early on and I almost felt like it was just frustratingly obvious.

The redemption to this story is the fact that the ending really did pick up and grab my attention. But I also believe the story would've been fine if it were told in a different narrative versus in a book format written by the main character just explaining the story because it really dumbed down the writing versus letting Winstead's genius prose shine through. To add to this, she kept hinting at the conclusion with little not-so-subtle nods that just irked me as a reader because it ruined the twists for me. For example, she'd drop lines like, "If only I'd noticed then what I would find out later," and it would just... spoil it with the foreshadowing??

Overall, I'll still always recommend Winstead's writing to my audience. But this one just didn't resonate with me and left me feeling unfulfilled. Hoping for something refreshing with her next release!

I don't even know where to begin to review this book. It feels inappropriate to review at all due to the fact that the crime that drives the plot is almost identical to the real life Idaho college murders that occurred just two years ago... a case that hasn't even gone to trial yet. I feel like I just read real life tragedy made fiction to be pushed out for entertainment. It hurts me to say this too because I am usually a HUGE fan of this author but this is so exploitative.

Jane’s dad suddenly passes away and she is reeling from the grief. Besides her mother she doesn’t have friends or much of a support system. She turns to an online community of amateur sleuths. She impresses the leaders of the group with her skill set and gets invited into a prestigious inner circle of the sleuths. (Warning bells are ringing) Jane becomes obsessed with researching and trying to solve real life murder investigations.

I thought this book seemed really interesting. I liked the first 30% and the build up of what was going on. I do wish I had the audio book version because I feel like that would have been good. I have mixed feelings about this book. At times it was really interesting. The middle dragged and I felt like the facts of the murder investigation were repeated without forward movement of the plot. The book finally gets going around 70%. Once things finally start to happen I had a good idea of what was going on so the book ending was not a good pay off for me. I have little patience with slow burns so this one wasn’t a good pick for me.


Thank you to netgalley for a copy of this book.

If you're an internet sleuth or armchair detective who finds yourself drawn to true crime cases, you might think that the premise of <i>This Book Will Bury Me</i> sounds right up your alley...I know that I did! I quickly realized, however, since I AM one of those people who have gotten sucked into the internet world of current cases, that there are SO many details in this book that are ripped directly from the Bryan Kohberger murder case in Moscow, Idaho. A fresh and fairly recent case that hasn't even gone to trial yet, and a case in which the real-life victims' families do not even have a semblance of closure yet.

The disclaimer at the beginning of this book that states that "the characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious...any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author" is laughable once you start listing the similarities. Of course, the story does add plenty of other fictional elements, but WAY too many of the small details are the same as the actual case. I started taking notes of all the similarities, and I figured that I might as well list them here in case anyone is wondering just how close they actually are.

[See Goodreads Review for lengthy list of spoilers]

Honestly, I stopped keeping track of the similarities about halfway through the book because it was just TOO much to keep up with, so I'm certain there are other "coincidences" that I missed in my notes as well.

If you don't know anything about this case, I suspect that you may be able to enjoy this book, which is why I gave it a 2-star rating instead of one (even though it requires a LOT of suspension of disbelief to think that the FBI is going to make a bunch of random internet sleuths consultants on a major murder case and give them access to police records and insider information.). Knowing the case, however, I had the whodunnit figured out by the 25% mark, and there was nothing particularly shocking or twisty. It just doesn't sit right with me, and it feels really gross that the author is "coincidentally" profiting off of the victim's circumstances, especially in a case that hasn't even gone to trial and been resolved yet.

This Book Will Bury Me by Ashley Winstead is a dark, compelling journey into obsession, secrets, and self-destruction. As a reader, I was captivated by Winstead's complex characters and the haunting, suspenseful plot twists that kept me guessing. The intense emotional depth and gripping narrative made it hard to put down, leaving me thinking about it long after the final page.

I'm not sure if it's her gorgeous writing of her endearing characters but Ashley Winstead has a knack for drawing me in. I could not put this one down and devoured it in a few days. I'm not a true-crime fan so this was an interesting world to explore. I LOVED this and will definitely be shouting it from the rooftops. Thanks to Sourcebooks for the ARC!

After the unexpected death of her beloved father, Jane Sharp deals with her grief by immersing herself in the world of internet sleuthing, discussing true crimes in a dedicated forum. Jane seems to have a real talent for examining clues and evidence. After helping to solve a local Florida murder, Jane is invited to join an elite subset of fellow sleuths, and delves deeper into her obsession. These five people , all of whom go by nicknames, like Citizen, Mistress and Lightly, become Jane’s online family. When a series of murders rocks the town of Delphine, Idaho, the group investigates relentlessly and eventually decides they need to have boots on the ground in Idaho. When the dust settles, the murders are solved, the perpetrator is someone nobody suspected.

This book checked a lot of personal boxes— the strange allure of true crime, the concept of an online “family “, and the crushing weight of grief, so I thoroughly enjoyed it. Perhaps others will see the twist coming, but I did not. I also really like Winstead’s previous book, and will anxiously await the next.

I’m solely rating this book on the quality of Ashley Winstead’s writing, which is superb as always. Her descriptions and dialogue between characters always brings the story to life and This Book Will Bury Me is no different. I appreciate good writing, and Winstead always knows just how to get to me and keep wanting more in a story.

That being said, I was disturbed by the topic of this book. It very, very closely imitates the University of Idaho murders. The book even takes place in Idaho. In my opinion, I think this was just written too soon to the actual events that took place. The trial has not even happened yet, so that turned me off from the story. I did keep reading because I wanted to see how Winstead’s story played out. I did figure out who the killer was about halfway through the book, but I did second guess myself a few times due to excellent writing.

I might be in the minority but this was very meh to me. My main issue was one I’ve had with Ashley Winstead’s previous novels, her prose was very purple, especially in the beginning. While it was a quick read, I found that it took a very long time to get to a point where I wanted to continue, as I kept finding myself getting bored. Non of the characters felt particularly offensive to me, but I didn’t think any of them were anything special or noteworthy.

ARC provided by NetGalley

Im giving this a 3.5. I needed to know how it ended. I liked the main character. I really felt for her as she grappled with her Dad’s death. I liked that she found a purpose to distract her. This book was just too long. I was reading often and it just went on and on. I was a little surprised to find out who done it and I like that we don’t have a definitive that Lizzie did the first 3. Oh and the 3 Idaho killings are too close to the true story of the Idaho 4. I think it’s too soon to go there.

Thrilling if not for the exploitative real-life inspiration.

3.5 stars rounded up.

Reading and rating this book purely as a work of fiction, I probably would have given it 4.5 stars rounded up to 5. It has an intriguing (if predictable - the twist was obvious not even halfway in), perfectly disturbing and dark murder mystery, a great cast of diverse characters, Janeway/Jane's grief over losing her dad added depth and heart, and along the way, the book posed interesting questions about our culture's obsession with true crime and the devastating consequences of invading personal tragedies in the name of sleuthing.

Ironic and somewhat infuriating, then, that the murder case at the heart of the book - the brutal stabbing of three sorority girls on a rural campus in fictional Delphine, Idaho - is very obviously based on (or "inspired by") the 2022 University of Idaho murders, a case which isn't even legally resolved yet. This felt both wrong and unoriginal at the same time. This isn't a fictional retelling of a closed case (looking at you, "Bright Young Women", which did so brilliantly). Instead, the book doesn't advertise its obvious inspiration, and the "plucked from the headlines" backstory with all its identical details feels like lazy copy pasting (it even takes place in the same state!). Surely, if the intention was not to provide a comment on true crime / armchair detectives / internet sleuthing against the backdrop of *that* particular case, the details could have been changed?

While I really enjoyed "This Book Will Bury Me" as a work of fiction, its obvious, exploitative parallels to very recent real-life events left a bad taste in my mouth.

Since the book's expected publication isn't until March 2025, I am still hoping this might be resolved in the final edit by changing at least some of the details of the case. Otherwise, I am afraid this issue might completely overshadow an otherwise well-written, disturbing, intriguing thriller.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

"This Book Will Bury Me" is slated to be released on March 25, 2025.

After the death of her father, Jane Sharp is searching for a distraction. She comes across a network of true crime junkies who have become internet sleuths and attempt to solve crimes when the local police can’t. When a triple murder happens on a college campus, Jane and 4 others from the network travel to the campus to figure out who the killer is. The book is written in a style of Jane’s memoir after the fact.

I liked the story but I don’t think it was the author’s strongest work. I can’t say that there were any shocking twists or surprises in the story although it did play out well. I felt like the character development was a little on the weak side and for some characters not present at all. I didn’t find myself feeling the need to rush back to the book to continue reading but it was a decent book.

Thank you to the author, Sourcebooks, and NetGalley for the advance reader copy. This is my honest review. Publication date March 25, 2025. 3⭐️

This book was a WILD ride. I could not put it down, well, I did briefly to read some early reviews of what everybody else was thinking and I sorta regret reading some reviews because it made me see the story through a tainted lens. Alas, I went back to the story and I'm so glad I stuck with it because WOW. the ending?!?!?! I started to get suspicious as to who the killer was.... but the twist within the twist!!!

I personally did not care for the annotations at the bottom of the book. I have listened to audiobooks that have the annotations and it totally ruins the flow of the book. While I get that the perspective is from a year post the murders, it still felt a little...... irrelevant to me. Other than that, the book was amazing!!!!

Did she yap for 90 chapters? YES. Did I still eat it up? absolutely!!

This was such an interesting read. I loved the POV and the premise of the book, as a self proclaimed true crime girlie.
I kinda guessed one of the plot twists around 50%ish, but I couldn’t predict how batshit it was gonna get lol

This did remind me of the Idaho college murders from 2022, so that made this really intriguing and it kinda felt like a play on that.

I highly recommend this and can’t wait for it to come out so y’all can read it!!

I got sucked into this book so deeply that I was thinking about this book even when I went physically reading it.

There were so many layers to this story and each one of them was done justice. From Jane’s relationship to her father, to the exploration of found family dynamics, to the darkness of what motivates a person, to the who-done-it murder mysteries.

I will definitely be picking up more Ashley Winstead books after this.

Thank you to the publishers for my advanced copy in exchange for my review.