Thank you to Net Galley and Sourcebooks Publishing for an early copy of The Ghostwriter by Julie Clark

The Ghostwriter by Julie Clark begins with a tantalizing premise that had all the ingredients for a first-rate thriller. A female ghostwriter is hired by her author father to write a memoir that includes facts about the murder of his brother Danny and sister Poppy as teenagers in the 1970s. The daughter is in need of funds due to a debacle with a former client, and she hesitatingly takes the job.

From the start, problems are rampant: her father, Vincent Taylor, is suffering from a syndrome leaving him little time to complete his story; the ghostwriter is told she must keep her work secret and is forbidden from interviewing prospective persons of interest; the family is dysfunctional at best with a mother/wife who deserted them.

As her work progresses, Olivia learns more about a local teacher who seems to be too involved in the lives of the teenagers he instructs. Here is where the story takes such an unlikely turn. The Ghostwriter seems to hint that life in the 1970s was rampant with teachers who would host drinking parties without parents catching on, hints that no one locked their doors in the 1970s (totally untrue as there were two local murders in my suburban town in the 1970s involving teenage perpetrators and everyone was on edge). and Olivia is able to get inside Vincent's childhood home by simply finding an unlocked window and she discovers video tapes created by Vincent's younger sister found under the floorboards of Poppy's bedroom, overlooked by the professionals who originally investigated the murders.

Julie Clark's many fans will likely find The Ghostwriter to their liking, especially if, like me, they enjoyed The Last Flight.

Another fabulous book by Julie Clark! I can always count on this author to write fast-paced and immersive stories, and this one nailed it yet again. I loved the exploration of the story through different narrators, and especially enjoyed the chapters told from Poppy's POV. I think weaving Poppy's truth into the storyline gave her character the justice she deserved amidst unreliable narrators and the general chaos of discerning what really happened back in 1975. I also enjoyed seeing some parallels in personality and social beliefs between Poppy and Olivia, which gave more emotional depth to the story too.

4.5 stars!

I’m new to this author, but what an emotional rollercoaster ride it has been! The writing is superb, the narrative is gripping, and I found it nearly impossible to put this book down!

The story unfolds in June 1975 when two teenage siblings are found dead in their home, leaving their surviving brother, Vincent, burdened by accusations of murder. As Vincent's career as a horror writer flourishes, so does the dark legend surrounding that night. Fast forward decades later, his daughter, Olivia Dumont, a ghostwriter who has kept her family ties a secret, faces financial struggles and is offered a chance to ghostwrite her father's final book. Unbeknownst to her, this project isn't just another horror story; Vincent plans to reveal the truth about the tragic events of 1975.

Wow, we get to bounce between timelines and explore multiple points of view, all executed with finesse. The main character, Olivia, is a struggling yet talented writer, and I love the air of mystery that surrounds her. As you peel back the layers of her character page by page, you find her both relatable and endearing.

The settings Olivia visits are vividly described and chilling, making it hard to turn the pages fast enough! I was on the edge of my seat, eager to uncover whodunit and why. The family tragedy at the heart of the story remains tantalizingly unanswered until the very end. It’s difficult to fathom the challenges her father faced in his youth, and the family dynamics are laid out in a way that invites you to make assumptions. But we all know what happens when we assume, right? Sometimes, things are not what they seem, so it’s essential to dig deeper to grasp the bigger picture. The tragedy is handled with sensitivity, and I guarantee you’ll be on your toes until the final reveal. The characters are distinct and easy to connect with, each adding their own flavor to the story.

If you enjoy tales of small-town family tragedies, playing detective, and uncovering long-buried secrets, this book will captivate you. Just make sure to clear your afternoon—trust me, you won’t be able to focus on anything else! Bravo to the author for this thrilling read!

Thank you, Sourcebooks Landmark, for the digital ARC copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

A unique thriller!

I really enjoyed this one. I feel like so many thrillers are similar these days so it was great to read something different. The tension-building was spot on and it kept me turning the pages. The characters were so well developed and their family history was gripping. The unreliable narration had me questioning everything. I gasped at the ending … I truly did not see it coming.

Read if you like:
🧑‍🧑‍🧒‍🧒 thrillers with family drama & secrets
2️⃣ dual timelines
🐌🔥 slow-burn thrillers
🗣️ multiple POVs

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. Will post my review on the publication date.

This book wasn’t bad, but also not anything special. I thought it was just a bit too slow and ultimately kind of unforgettable. The twists didn’t blow me out of the water and I wasn’t desperate to keep picking this up to get to the end. I feel like the ending wasn’t fully clear.

A twisted mystery with a dysfunctional family. A family drama and a unique mystery that spans back to when her father was a child. The secrets that we keep and how the affect us. Would recommend.

Julie Clark’s thrillers really don’t miss. She always comes up with great characters and an inventive yet believable story to tell.
The Ghostwriter tells the story of Olivia, a career ghostwriter, who is hired by her sick estranged father to write his memoir. Vincent, her father, is the only survivor after his two siblings were brutally murdered half a century earlier. Olivia has to sift through her father’s unreliable memories and obfuscations to write a book that reveals the truth of that horrible event.
The truth is revealed slowly through Olivia’s research and flashbacks to her father and her Aunt Poppy in 1975. You will be racing to the finish of this book to find out what actually happened on that terrible day. If you enjoy a really interesting and propulsive thriller The Ghostwriter is definitely a book you should be reading this summer.
Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for an advanced copy of this book.

I love Julie Clark's books. She always writes interesting characters with great plot twists. The Ghostwriter was no exception.

The story opens with learning that Olivia has been contracted to write her dad's memoir. They have an estranged relationship, but a variety of circumstances compel her to take the job and reenter his life. From there, we get flashbacks to the 1970s and the unsolved murder of Olivia's teenage aunt and uncle. Olivia struggles to reckon with generational trauma, her dad's ailing health and memory, and her compulsion to get to the bottom of a mystery that changed her family forever.

This is a great summer read for fans of family dramas and well-written mysteries!

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for an ARC of this book.

Olivia Dumont is a ghostwriter whose recent public confrontation of James Calder lands her in hot water both career wise and financially. When she gets a call from her agent that bestselling horror author Vincent Taylor has asked for her specifically to write his memoir detailing the murder of his siblings in 1975, it should be the excitement of a lifetime, except there’s a catch. Olivia’s last name is actually Taylor and Vincent Taylor is her estranged father.

With no other choice but to take the job or lose her home, Olivia agrees to face her father after years of no contact. Upon arrival, she learns her father is battling lewy body dementia and this memoir is looking more and more difficult than she’d originally thought. Olivia must face her grievances with her father and work on one of the most challenging projects yet, all while trying to find out what actually happened the night her aunt and uncle were brutally murdered.

This is the second Julie Clark book I’ve read and I really enjoy her writing style. The Ghostwriter was a bit of a slow start for me, but Clark makes sure she leaves no unanswered questions with rich plot lines. It comes from multiple point of views between Olivia present day, and Holly and Vincent’s in 1975. The story was excellent and gives a satisfying ending.

✍️ I loved this! ✍️

I feel like it’s been a bit since I’ve really loved a thriller, but then bam last month I read and loved The Thrashers, and now this month, The Ghostwriter. This book had such fun takes on different elements and tropes. There’s an unreliable narrator, but he’s not quite the narrator. There are family secrets, but how much is a secret, and not something just misremembered? There are dual timelines and multiple POVs, but everything is done just right without confusing or over complicating things. Add in the element of the MC being a disgraced ghostwriter, and being hired to work with a Stephen King-esque writer, who happens to be her estranged father? You’ve got a wildly entertaining and thrilling book on your hands!

If you’re going to only pick up one thriller this year, let it be this one!!

𝑾𝒉𝒐 𝑰'𝒅 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒐:
Any fan of mystery/thrillers!

🔥✍️📖BOOK REVIEW📖✍️🔥

🥰A huge thank you to @bookmarked for the gifted copiy of THE GHOSTWRITER!

📖The Ghostwriter
✍️Author: Julie Clark
📅Pub Date: June 3, 2024

🔥Julie Clark is back with possibly her most intense book yet!!

👀The premise of this one was absolutely wild! The whole concept of Olivia ghostwriting her own father's memoir was interesting enough, but then throw in the fact that he was the main suspect in unsolved murders 50 years ago and I was 👀👀👀

🔥I loved the format of this book as it was told through multiple timelines and perspectives, and I especially loved the parts told through diary entries!

📖I read the whole book in a 24-hour period! I thought I knew how she would wrap things up, but now I'm still left second guessing everything even days after I've finished 👀👀👀

🔥I definitely can't wait to see what Julie will write next!

Received as an ARC and I enjoyed it. It was a good dysfunctional family dynamic with a mystery wrapped in. Overall good read

There were always rumors surrounding the tragedy that resulted in the murder of Vincent Taylor's siblings - including that he was the one who was responsible for those death. Growing up, Olivia Dumont was always impacted by those rumors and has worked as an adult to intentionally distance herself from her father. But when her career as a Ghostwriter is in a downward spiral, her agent contact her about an opportunity to support a final book for horror writer Vincent Taylor. Olivia returns home to work on this project and tries to learn what really happened that night - even if her father is unable, or unwilling, to be honest with her.

Thank you to #netgalley for giving me access to an ebook copy of the book! Really enjoyed this Julie Clark novel.

Where do I even begin...
Wow what a book. What an interesting concept. To have the father reach out to his estranged daughter to ghostwrite for him.
I love a book with complicated pasts, deceit, drama, twists and turns.
It was definitely a slow burn, but in the best possible way. I couldn't put the book down. I wanted to know what Olivia was going to find out next, who she was going to talk to next, what truths would finally unfold.
The ending was very satisfying. I am going to recommend this book to all my thriller/mystery lovers.
I am definitely going to buy a hard copy when it is released o add to my bookshelf!

I love Julie Clark and will read whatever she writes. Once again, she gave us a twisty thriller with some feminist rage sprinkled in and I loved it. The pace was perfect and built up to an explosive ending.

Olivia Dumont makes her living ghostwriting other people's memoirs, but her career has hit a rough patch after she publicly called out a famous man. Estranged from her father, Vincent Taylor—a renowned horror novelist haunted by a dark past—Olivia is at a crossroads. When she was a child, two of Vincent's siblings were murdered in 1975. Though he was never charged, suspicion has long shadowed him in their hometown.

Out of the blue, Olivia's publicist receives a request for her to ghostwrite a book for Vincent, unaware of their familial connection. Desperate for work, Olivia agrees—without revealing the truth—and returns home, only to discover that her father is seriously ill.

What unfolds is a gripping, multi-layered story told from several perspectives—including those of the murdered siblings. Olivia expects to write a horror novel but is shocked when her father asks her to tell the real story of the murders. As she begins to research his version of events, she uncovers troubling inconsistencies that cast doubt on everything she thought she knew.

I simply couldn’t put this book down. Just when I thought I had everything figured out, another twist would throw me off course. The narrative is exquisitely crafted, full of suspense and emotional depth. A must-read for fans of literary thrillers and complex family dramas.

Okay… wow. This book had me HOOKED. It had me turning the pages and fully immersed in the story and finding out the truth.
Olivia Dumont is a ghostwriter who accepts the job of ghostwriting for a once famous horror writer. This author happens to be her father who she hasn’t spoken to in many years. And she’s not writing a novel it will be a memoir of the truth behind a decades old cold case of the murders of his two siblings. As she interviews her father she begins to uncover horrifying truths and is forced to confront the past.
I loved the flashbacks to the 70s leading up to the murders…it really builds up that tension and suspense. And that ending?? I did not see that coming.
A twisty thriller you will definitely want to pick up this summer.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this before publication!
Julie Clark has another hit on her hands with The Ghostwriter. I felt like I actually was in Ojai in the 1970s. The characters were just as compelling as the setting. Clark has a brilliant talent at giving enough crumbs of information along the way to keep the reader engaged without guessing the payoff too soon.

4.5/5 stars

Thank you Sourcebooks Landmark for the advanced reading copy for our book club!!

Whether I tore through this one because I had to (started it two days before Book Club lol) or because I wanted to, I’m not sure. Either way, this one had me hooked. I was intrigued from the start, and I think the premise was really well done. I think Julie Clark’s writing is overall simple, but the plot is very complex, and it keeps things interesting. This book was extremely well plotted, and you can tell that a lot of thought went into the when, why and how of information being presented, which I always love in a book.

I will say, I predicted almost all of the twists with the biggest twist predicted at like 30%. While it is equal parts vindicating and disappointing to be right about the twists, I liked the way that these were delivered. I didn’t understand the WHY behind these actions, which had me questioning myself, even when I thought that I was right.

This book used time jumps and POV switches really effectively, in ways that added a lot to the story overall. I loved Poppy’s POV, and looked forward to every time it jumped to her 🥹🥹 IYKYK.

This was fun to discuss in book club, and overall super highly rated! I really enjoyed THE LIES I TELL by Julie Clark, too, and I hope to read more by her moving forward!

Olivia Dumont is a ghostwriter that has fallen into a little trouble with a fellow ghostwriter. She is struggling to pay her bills and is on the verge of losing her house. When the perfect job lands in her lap. Her estranged father, Vincent Taylor, wants to write a tell all about what happened to his brother and sister in the 70s. However, Vincent has Lewy Body Dementia and needs his daughter's help. Olivia goes back home for the first time since she left to study abroad in high school to help her dad write his book and figure out what really happened to her aunt and uncle.

I loved this book, the flashbacks to the 1970s and the real time of Olivia trying to solve the murders. This book had me guessing from the beginning. There were a few parts that felt long, but overall I really enjoyed The Ghostwriter.

Thank you Julie Clark and Sourcebooks for an eARC and Advanced Copy for Thrillers By The Book Club Milwaukee to read and enjoy this book!