This one started as such a slow burn, but once it picked up I flew through it! It was so twisty, mysterious, and full of secrets. I was so curious to know what happened to Poppy and Danny back in 1975! I had a lot of guesses, but none were right!

Thank you, @Netgalley, @bookmarked for the #giftedarc!

This was an incredibly interesting book. The characters, timelines, diagnosis, the 70s setting... all of it was fascinating to me as a middle-aged reader.

As a child who grew up in the 70s there were so many references I remembered like hitch hiking - people actually did this routinely and now we would never think of doing that. The easiness of life, in general, as opposed to now - lives filled with stress and exhaustion.

I thought all of the characters were unreliable and that kept me reading. There were a few things I guessed ahead of time, but I still enjoyed the plot.

I did think the patriarchy topics were a bit heavy-handed at times and that may turn some people off.

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for an e-copy of THE GHOSTWRITER to review.

I rate THE GHOSTWRITER four out of five stars.

Julie Clark has written a very suspenseful tale that will have you seeking to solve a cold case murder of siblings from the 1970s.

Olivia is struggling with her ghostwriting career and is given the chance to have a comeback; except the offer comes from her estranged father who supposedly murdered his brother and sister so many years ago. She has spent most of her life hiding from her true identity, and now she is faced with confronting fact versus fiction and the fragile state of her father's health as she assists him in writing his memoir.

Readers will jump between two timelines and several POVs and will be immersed in mystery, nostalgia, and revelations that will take you on an emotional rollercoaster ride. The story delves into the health topic of Lewy Body Dementia, and it is heartbreaking to learn about this horrible disease. Clark has nailed mystery thrilling writing which will leave you wanting more!

Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for the ARC. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The Ghostwriter by Julie Clark was a fantastic read! There was suspense, emotion, and heart-break. As the big reveal comes, your hear just breaks for the Taylor family, and all the futures that were ruined.
I would highly recommend this for anyone who loves a good suspense, domestic thriller.

If you need a summer thriller that will keep you guessing The Ghostwriter is it! This book sucked me in from the start. When Oliva is hired to ghostwrite a tell all book by her estranged father, she takes the job and hopes to learn the truth about what happened to her aunt and uncle when they were murdered in the 70s.

I loved the dual timeline between now and in the 70's. There were so many twists and turns and for once I did not guess the ending!

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for an ARC of The Ghostwriter by Julie Clark for an honest review.

This is a GREAT novel. Twisty, creepy, atmospheric and nostalgic. The twists are some of the best I've ever read! I can fully see this that being optioned into a movie. I couldn't put it down and I absolutely loved the pace of this one. You have to read it!

I really enjoyed The Lies I Tell and The Last Flight, so I was eager to read this new novel from Julie Clark. It definitely did not disappoint. The story focuses on Olivia, a ghostwriter, who is hired to write the last work — a memoir — of a famous horror novelist, Vincent Taylor, who is seriously ill with dementia. Unknown to Olivia’s agent and others, Vincent is actually Olivia’s estranged father, one whose two siblings were murdered decades ago and who for years has been the suspected murderer, even though no motive or murder weapon was ever established. The novel is told through different timelines and POVs and is replete with twists, turns and red herrings. Just when the reader thinks he/she may have everything figured out, something occurs to change that thinking. All in all, this was an enjoyable read and a great page turner, but I would have to rank it #3 behind the other two books by Julie Clark that I have read.

The Ghostwriter is a well-written, compelling mystery with lots of surprises along the way! Olivia Dumont is a ghostwriter paying the price (literally) for speaking her mind about a colleague, finding herself on the brink of bankruptcy and basically blacklisted. So when her agent calls with a job, Olivia feels obliged to accept it even though it means facing her estranged father, Vince Taylor, a successful horror novelist that she cut all ties with decades ago. Vince has been diagnosed with Lewy Body Disease and can no longer write, his memory is failing, and he has decided it is time to write a memoir telling what he knows about the brutal 1975 murders of his brother and sister, a crime of which many of the locals have always thought Vince was guilty. Olivia must navigate her relationship with her father, his decline, and the restrictions in her contract that keep her from doing her own investigation into what happened, but as the truth starts to emerge, even Vince is shocked by what really happened. The story alternates between Olivia's perspective in the present and that of Vince and his sister, Poppy, in 1975. Clark's pacing of the story and development of the characters were spot-on, and she does a great job of setting the mood of Ojai, California, in 1975. As the suspense builds, clues are interspersed with red herrings, making me constantly revise my ideas about who killed Vince's siblings, and why.

The Ghostwriter is a solid thriller with an interesting premise, characters, and a setting that feels uniquely alive. 70s Oija is captivating, especially as it contradicts with Olivia's father's account of what actually happened. Further, her relationship with her father and the puzzles that permeate that relationship from an early age are a creative detail that helps sustain the tone of the story. My only critique is that Olivia feels like a see-through or glass protagonist. Despite her complex background, I feel like I see right through her when she's actually on the page. Regardless, this is an enjoyable read for anyone--even if this isn't your genre! (Bonus: Poppy is my girl, love her.)

A masterfully woven tale that will have you second-guessing yourself until the very last page.

While the story had some slow spots, the dark twists, the multilayered and dysfunctional family drama, and the dual timelines kept my attention.

This book had me hooked from the very beginning. The setting was so atmospheric and jumped between the present day and the 1970s, and those flashback scenes were incredibly immersive. I felt like I was walking through that time period right alongside the characters, complete with all the vintage vibes and eerie undertones.

The main storyline followed a woman working as a ghostwriter for her father’s memoir, only the memoir was about his two siblings who were murdered when he was young. That concept alone intrigued me, but the way the story unfolded really kept me on my toes. I spent most of the book wondering if her dad might’ve actually committed the murders. The author did such a great job weaving in twists and subtle clues that I kept changing my mind about what really happened. I love a mystery that keeps you guessing until the very end, and this one definitely delivered.

One of my favorite aspects was the smaller mysteries layered throughout the story. There were treasure-hunt moments, hidden journals, secret compartments, items tucked away from the past and it made me feel like a kid again, discovering secret hiding places. It added such a fun, adventurous layer to an otherwise dark and emotional story.

The complicated relationship between the main character and her father, who’s a famous horror author, added a lot of emotional depth. They didn’t have a close bond, and her struggle to trust him, especially while helping him write a story that might expose dark truths, really pulled me in. On top of that, her father was diagnosed with Lewy body dementia, which added a whole new level of complexity. Was he remembering the truth? Or was he rewriting history? That question lingered throughout the book, and I appreciated how it blurred the lines between memory, guilt, and reality.

“The Ghostwriter” was a beautifully layered mystery with strong emotional undercurrents and just the right amount of intrigue. It had everything I love in a suspense novel: family secrets, unreliable narrators, buried clues, and a haunting past that refuses to stay hidden. Highly recommend!

Julie Clark is the master of slow-burn suspense! She feeds the reader breadcrumbs of information, a bit at a time, until everything comes together, and I love that.
While the pacing felt a bit slow at times, this was a solid read that I enjoyed! I didn't love one aspect of the ending, but I will be recommending this to my followers.

This suspenseful and twisty book captured my attention from the first line. Olivia Dumont, a “cancelled” professional ghostwriter, agrees to write a famous horror author’s final book. This author happens to be her estranged father’ who was once suspected of murdering his siblings. As Olivia delves into the project, she uncovers unsettling truths about her father's past and the night of the murders. This book was impossible to put down. Go read it now!

“The truth lives in people’s actions, their unguarded moments, not in the lies they tell.”

A daughter gets called home to ghostwrite a memoir for her dying yet long estranged author father. No biggie right? Wrong. Her father, whose teenaged sister and brother were murdered in the 1970’s, was suspected, but never charged, with the crime. Is he ready to tell the full truth now?

Holy shit! The cover of this book should be placed next to the definition of a “stay up past your bedtime” thriller read. Wow. I could not stop reading…and I didn’t. Until I finished.

This book was suspenseful, unpredictable, interesting, emotional, sad, and so very tragic. Ugh. So so so good.

I will for sure be buying a physical copy of this book for my shelves. 📖

Thank you to Netgalley, Sourcebooks Landmark, and the author for the complimentary ebook.

This book was a slowburn in the best way possible—thoughtful, intimate, and rich with emotional depth. I was immediately drawn into the unique premise: a daughter agrees to become the ghostwriter for her ailing father—a famous, well-respected author the world knows, but no one knows she's his daughter. Her mother left long ago, and she’s spent most of her life away, disconnected from both her father and his world.

Now, with time running out, he asks her to help him finally tell the truth about a tragedy that happened when he was a teenager—one that shaped the rest of his life and career. What begins as a simple writing project turns into a profound reckoning with the past, legacy, and the silence between them.

The dual timeline structure was masterfully handled. Narratives from the past were woven in through letters, recordings, and memories, each revealing different facets of the characters and their choices. These shifting forms of storytelling added depth and nuance, and I especially appreciated how the past narrators were so distinct—even when they proved to be unreliable. That ambiguity kept me reading, constantly re-evaluating what I thought I knew.

Despite the subtle pacing, the story held my attention from start to finish. I adored the emotional layers, the subtle revelations, and the way trust and forgiveness were portrayed—not in grand gestures, but in quiet moments of understanding.

Highly recommend if you enjoy character-driven stories, intricate family dynamics, and narratives that make you reflect long after you’ve turned the last page.

This is a fantastic mystery and perfect for summer reading!

I was not a huge fan of the authors book The Last Flight and haven’t read her second book yet but after seeing positive reviews for this one I’m so glad I got it.

I liked Olivia, she was such a real living and breathing character for me as were Vincent, Danny, and Poppy. I liked the POVs of the 3 characters and flipping back and forth in time from 2025 to 1975. I didn’t fully guess the ending (but I did part of it) but it still ended up surprising me a little.

If you’re a mystery and thriller fan who enjoys great characters and a page turning mystery then I highly recommend The Ghostwriter.

**Thanks to the author and publisher for the e-arc I received via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.**

Thank you to the publisher for giving me the chance to read an early digital copy of this book. I have been meaning to read Julie Clark for awhile now, and when I saw the premise of this one, I knew this was the perfect opportunity to give her writing a try. Wow, this one was so good! I was hooked from the beginning. The synopsis immediately made me want to read it, and it did not disappoint. The fast pace kept me entertained and wanting to find out what was going to happen next. This is the perfect summer thriller.

I loved Julie Clark’s other books and this one was another hit for me! The story is immersive and does an excellent job of drawing you in. I would recommend this book to others who love thrillers as it’ll hook you in. Thank you to Julie Clark and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A rare 5 stars from me! I can’t get over how well written this was. It truly kept me interested and guessing the whole time. Highly recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It is hard to discover what another chooses to conceal

Olivia Taylor left her troubled home life behind her when she was 14, heading to Europe for school and later a starter marriage. When she returned to the US years later she did so as Olivia Dumont, furthering her studies as a writer and concealing from the world the fact that her father was Vincent Taylor, a celebrated and prolific writer of horror stories. Vincent's notoriety did not begin with his successful writing career, however....when he was a teenager in 1975 his older brother Danny and younger sister Poppy were murdered in the family's home. Vincent was away from the house with his girlfriend Lydia...it was a festival night in town...and a teacher was with him, but despite an apparently solid alibi the whispers around town that it was Vincent who killed his siblings began and never went away. Yet Vincent would continue to live there, and when he and Lydia married and had Olivia they stayed there. Lydia would ultimately leave them....Vincent was not an easy may with whom to live...leaving Vincent and Olivia to live in a community that kept them at a distance. That is the past which Olivia chose to leave behind when her father sent her away to school, and it explains why Olivia ultimately cut him out of her life. Now years later Olivia has an until-recently-successful career as a ghostwriter, which she derailed when she publicly went off on a male colleague for being willing to work with anyone, no matter how repulsive, for the right price (and make more as a man doing so than she and other women who were equally as talented could command). She now owes hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees as well as a court judgement against her for her diatribe, is considered completely toxic in the publishing world, and is on the verge of having to sell her house just to stay afloat a little longer. When her agent comes to her with a job offer to help an author finish his novel on deadline, something outside of her normal work parameters, she isn't sure she is in a position to refuse. Then she finds out that the author in question is Vincent, and he is asking for her specifically. She knows she should refuse....he must be playing with her for some reason...but practicality kicks in and she signs the contract. Soon she is back in the home where she grew up, with the man she has tried to keep out of her life. His health is failing both physically and mentally, and the novel she thinks she will be working on is actually his memoir of the period when his siblings were killed. She never truly believed that he was responsible for their deaths, but as she sifts through first his rough copy (which is a hot mess) and later talks to the people who knew Danny and Poppy best as well as views films recorded back in the day, she will uncover secrets about herself, her parents, and the family she never knew...secrets that some people want to stay hidden.
The Ghostwriter is a riveting thriller that also incorporates a family saga of trauma and tragedy, one that is passed from parent to sibling. The story is narrated alternately by Olivia, Vincent and Poppy, moving back and forth smoothly between the events of 1975 and the present. The characters, particularly Olivia and Poppy, are nicely developed, and the plot is fast-paced and layered, with plenty of twists and turns particularly towards the end of the book. The vibe of the 1975 setting is well executed, portraying a time when doors were left unlocked, kids wandered about and society was undergoing changes. I did pick up on some hints early on that foreshadowed some of the plot twists at the end, which consequently weren't as shocking to me as they might have been, but I still found it an enjoyable and engrossing read, ideal for fans of Megan Miranda, Riley Sager and Lisa Jewell. My thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for allowing me access to this intriguing thriller in exchange for my honest review.