4.5 ⭐️
Olivia Dumont has spent years trying to stay far away from her family name. Even after her divorce, she kept her married name just to avoid being linked to her father, Vincent Taylor—a famous horror writer with a dark past.
Now low on cash, Olivia agrees to ghostwrite for her estranged, dying father. But it’s not another scary story—he wants to tell the real story behind the murders of his teenage siblings from 50 years ago, a case that’s always had a cloud of suspicion over him.
Olivia goes back to Ojai, reluctantly, and starts digging through her dad’s version of events—but is he being truthful?
Determined to find out what really happened to Poppy and Danny, she begins her own investigation into the past.
What follows is a gripping, twisty search for answers in a family mystery that refuses to stay buried.

I felt like the beginning of the book was kind of slow for me, but it really picked up around 40% and then I couldn’t put it down. I ended up really enjoying the story.
I would recommend this to friends.
Add it to your TBR list!
Release date 6/2/25

Thank you NetGalley and publisher SOURCEBOOKS Landmark for this free arc ebook in exchange for my honest review.

Julie Clark delivers again with The Ghostwriter. This is a multi pov that alternates between the 70's and present day.
Olivia is caught up in a legal battle that is preventing her from doing her job. Her father wants her to continue his book which details the truth of what happened so many years ago.Since, Olivia's father is ill, and since everyone believes he is guilty of murdering his siblings when he was young, he wants the truth to finally be revealed of what happened that fateful day.
Olivia can't really turn the offer down considering her current circumstances, so she accepts.

The Ghostwriter had me audibly gasped couple of times. I was engrossed in this book from start to finish. I don't have anything negative to say about it. What a pageturner!!

A big thanks to Sourcebooks and Netgalley for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

Expected publication June 3, 2025

I liked the twisty that kept coming until the very end. However, the first part dragged a bit, I am glad I kept reading. I have a clear picture of the characters as reading.

The Ghostwriter is a gripping, haunting, heartbreaking suspense novel. It is also a novel about a family and its deepest, darkest secrets—the accusations, the guilt, the truth behind the murder of two teenagers. Olivia Dumont is a successful ghostwriter whose career is at an impasse, when she is asked to ghostwrite the memoir of a highly successful author—a man that is Olivia’s estranged father. As Olivia delves into her father’s story, will she finally understand why her mother left her, why her father sent her away, and will she discover who killed her father’s siblings? I was on the edge of my seat as mysteries are unraveled, sometimes leading to even more mysteries, as Olivia follows the trail of her father’s diminishing memory. Behind the murder mystery there are complicated and twisted emotions, so many lies, so many pieces to a very intricate puzzle. This is the perfect book for readers who love a mystery and who also love stories about families and relationships that are complicated and difficult. I received an advance reader copy of this book.

A perfect whodunit story wrapped up in a daughter's struggle to understand her family & reconnect with her absentee father. This was a well-paced, well-constructed story with multiple POVs from the past events. I especially enjoyed the journey of Olivia trying to understand her family while writing a compelling book on behalf of her father.

Another great thriller from Julie Clark! The chapters alternate between three narrators: Olivia, Vincent and Poppy from 1975 to the present. Olivia was ghostwriting a tell all with her estranged father. Olivia had quite the challenge writing this because her father's memory was spotty as he had a disease called Lewy Body Dementia. Olivia's father Vincent had a huge secret that he wanted to get out before he died. It was a secret in their family for many decades yet changed the trajectory of the whole family's future. Olivia was racing against time and her fathers deteriorating memory to find out what the secret was. As more details emerge from Vincent's memory his unpredictable behavior becomes even more disturbing. Will Olivia uncover the secret before her father's memory is gone or will the family's secret stay a secret for eternity? I enjoyed the suspense and how the details of the secret are slowly divulged.

Julie Clark has become one of my favorite authors over the past few years. Therefore, I was thrilled to get approved for an early copy of her latest, “The Ghostwriter.”

Set primarily in Ojai, California this book follows Olivia Dumont. She’s a ghostwriter and the only child of Vincent Taylor, a famous author of horror novels. He also happens to be the only surviving sibling of a tragedy that occurred back in June 1975. His older brother, Danny, and younger sister, Poppy, were found dead in the family home. Since then, he’s been considered the prime suspect by many in his hometown.

Olivia is asked to be the ghostwriter of her father’s latest novel. She accepts the work because she’s on the brink of financial ruin due to her public criticism the prior year of a fellow, male author. One other issue she has to overcome is that she’s been estranged from Vincent for several years. Upon arriving back in Ojai, she quickly finds out the book he wants to write is a memoir. He also wants to cover what happened to his brother and sister fifty years before, back in June 1975.

This book has three narrators – Olivia, Vincent, and Poppy. It flips back-and-forth between present day and 1975. It involves the process of Olivia writing the book, but also provides context to the events leading up to Danny and Poppy’s deaths.

Overall, I recommend this book. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my ARC.

The Ghostwriter by Julie Clark
Holy buckets. This was done so well! I loved how it was written—so clever. The mix of past and present and the twist of facts and fiction was brilliant.

I was sucked into this book and could not find a place to stop reading. I loved the storyline, the character development, and the pacing. Everything about this was done so well.

It was easy to put myself in Olivia’s shoes, with how she chose to handle her upbringing and past- she did what she felt was necessary for her survival. However, the truth rarely stays secret, and the spotlight shines on her history.

My heart aches for Tom as he discovers that the woman he loved had been lying. He is not immediately interested in the why, and that is understandable but devastating.

My heart also hurt for Vince. He loved his life as an outcast in a sense. Succumbing to addiction and avoidance. Losing himself in a fictional realm that paved his way to building the walls he thought would keep his secrets.

Secrets are heavy. And they only get heavier over time. This was a tale so beautifully written that everything matters. There were no superfluous details, no fluff, and no filler. Everything mattered. The shadows. The secrets. The things in the background. And the truth was not the most obvious.

Brilliantly written, beautifully delivered, and emotionally powerful, this story is about truth, family, and redemption. Katy approved.

Publication date: June 3, 2025
Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark

3+

This is a book with ups and downs, but it was in general a refreshing read.

Olivia fell in disgrace in her career as a ghostwriter so when the offer from famous mystery writer Vincent Taylor comes to write his next book for him, she must accept. Even though he's actually the substance-abuser, neglectful parent who shipped her to a boarding school in Europe and never looked back. However, when she gets there, she finds out the book is a memoir to tell the public what he never told the police about how his two siblings died decades before. Only, his memory isn't the same, so it is Olivia's just to piece it all together.

The book is basically from Olivia's perspective, with a couple of chapters written from other character's, which are actually chapters from the book she is writing. So we have a narrator that is far from being trusted because she's also trying to find out the truth. I think this setup was the gem in this book. I love how we can't trust her father one bit but we're still willing to. The whole time I had no reason to trust him but I wanted to believe in him.

However, I think this book was very wordy. There were parts my mind flew away because of the superfluous narration. I may be a bad judge though. Still, I think there was a lot of cleaning that could be done to make the read more dynamic.

The other thing that got to me was the ending. The story in the ending itself was fine; it was even a good closing to all the questions raised. My problem was with the way it's shown. I'm sure the writer was going for that: show don't tell. But this made me confused about what was on the book the main character is writing and what was something for us real readers. and the answer, I could just conclude after reading what made more sense. It wasn't my favorite experience.

The backstory, however, is enticing. This is a tasty read for the summer, for sure.

Honest review based on an ARC provided by Netgalley. Many thanks to the publisher for this opportunity.

3.5 stars rounded up

Although I enjoyed this book, I found it to be repetitive, in turn became kind of boring. In addition, it was pretty easy to figure out what was going on in the background.
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and honestly rate this book.

Olivia is a ghostwriter who has fallen into financial trouble and is offered to ghostwrite a book for a horror author, who just happens to be her estranged father. He is also suspected of killing his two siblings 50 years ago. While Olivia tries to get the book write, she’s also dealing with the relationship with her father and trying to figure out who killed Danny and Poppy. It’s a compelling page-turner.

Julie Clark had me guessing until the very end. With a massively unreliable narrator in Vincent, we have to assume, like Olivia does about her father, that everything he’s telling her about what he remembers is wrong. All the little clues and evidence she put throughout the book had me speculating the whole way through.

Thank you to NetGalley, the Publishers, and Julie Clark for an ARC of The Ghostwriter. I’ve been so excited to read this book - I absolutely loved The Lies I Tell and knew this one would be great also. I honestly felt so immersed in this book that it felt like it actually happened and couldn’t wait to be able to read more. I loved the character development and the way it captured you from the first page. I can say I truly had no idea how this was going to turn out. I loved the multiple perspectives and how the story was told was phenomenal. Julie has a way of telling a story that consumes you!

Olivia Dumont is a ghostwriter has spent her whole life trying to disassociate from being the only child of a famous horror author, Vincent Taylor. He is also famous for being the prime suspect in a murders of his siblings. Olivia got into some hot water is needing work asap before her life completely falls apart and one shows up at the right time. Except it’s for her father. Olivia agrees to help him and ghostwrite his last book, but doesn’t realize what’s all behind the doors of his past and must finally figure out what happened that night in 1975.

Julie Clark delivers another tense and well-paced thriller with The Ghostwriter. It is a story about family and writing and the traps of memory. The characters are complex and the mystery delivers enough red herrings and turns that it teases out what really happened until the whole picture snaps into place. Clark has a knack for keeping the plot moving while creating characters and dynamics that stay with you. There is something incredibly cinematic about this novel, from the use of old videos that help uncover the mystery to the settings and descriptions of place. The story digs into trauma as a theme while keeping a streamlined narrative that builds through multiple POVs. Julie Clark is an impressive writer and seems to just keep getting better.

The story of a young woman with a troubled past with parents re-writes her life as if she is alone. Then due to unfortunate events with work she receives a call from her agent that someone wants her to ghost write for them. Then due client ends up being her father. The story from past to present kept me changing my mind on who did what and worked well. Thoroughly enjoyed reading this book! What an ending!

Thank you to netgalley and author for giving me the opportunity to read an early release of this book.

What if you were an infamous ghostwriter and your father, a famous, renowned horror writer, asked you to ghostwrite his memoir? Say you are estranged from your father, for very good reasons, and no one, not even your agent or your boyfriend knows you are his daughter. Oh, and not to mention, your father may or may not have killed his two siblings 40 years ago. Sounds like an excellent plot? Absolutely!
Did I mention said ghostwriter, Olivia, is canceled due to verbally annihilating another famous ghostwriter and was sued and owes a bunch of money to the famous ghostwriter? Olivia needs this job to pay off this debt. She doesn't want to do it for many reasons, but needs it for so many more.
Such an excellent mystery. Highly recommended.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC of this soon to be published novel.

I would like to thank NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Landmark for allowing me to read an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I became a Julie Clark fan after reading The Last Flight and was so stoked to find out she has a new book coming out this year and just had to read it. And it is A ZINGER!! The Ghostwriter is highly thrilling, and I was so engulfed by the story, I literally binged it in a 24-hr period. The characters and plot got under my skin and I just had to know how it ended!!

The Ghostwriter follows Olivia Dumont (a ghostwriter), who has had some recent bad publicity and is looking for a new project. Her agent tells her she has been specifically requested for a new book being to be written for horror novelist Vince Taylor. Who just happens to be Olivia's estranged father, and also happens to have been a suspect in the murder of his siblings -- Poppy & Danny -- 50 years ago in 1975. The new book is supposed to be a memoir, but Vince's failing health make his memory of the past unreliable at best. Olivia must get to the bottom of what really happened back then with almost nothing to go on, but so much riding on her success.

The story is told in alternating past and present format; with POVs from Vince & Poppy in the past, and Olivia's struggles with Vince in the present. The hardest part of reading was keeping track of who knew what and when. Additionally, the book had me guessing and jumping between who I thought "dunnit" (based on the ever-changing info revealed). Vince? Danny? The creepy neighbor? The hitchhike driver? The twists and turns kept me on the edge of my seat and wanting more. The "big reveal" at the end was SO GOOD! And there was even a bonus twist!

This book was one of my favorite reads of the year so far, and I HIGHLY recommend it!

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC.

Olivia is a ghostwriter who has found herself on the edge of being "cancelled" when an opportunity presents itself. Unfortunately she's not in a position to say no, when she's offered a job ghostwriting for her father. Olivia has spent her adult life avoiding her father and her past.

As she digs into the past, she is determined to find out what happened so many years ago to her father's brother and sister, who were violently murdered.

It feels like there have been quite a few novels with this sort of plot - someone is pulled back to the hometown they fled years ago to try to resolve a mystery that dominated their childhood and subsequent adulthood. I honestly wasn’t expecting too much. But this novel was really well written and dealt with the central mystery from a bunch of unexpected angles, and I was captivated. This was both a multiple-timelines thriller and a contemplative look at secrets and how they can change the lives of those involved, even tangentially. Excellent!

🖤𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗚𝗛𝗢𝗦𝗧𝗪𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗘𝗥🖤
𝓂𝓎𝓈𝓉ℯ𝓇𝓎 𝓉𝒽𝓇𝒾𝓁𝓁ℯ𝓇
🗓️𝙿𝚞𝚋: 𝙹𝚞𝚗𝚎 𝟹, 𝟸𝟶𝟸𝟻
🤩𝕄𝕪 𝕣𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘: 𝟝 𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕣𝕤! ★★★★★

🤏𝚃𝚎𝚎𝚗𝚢 𝚝𝚒𝚍𝚋𝚒𝚝...June 1975..two teenage siblings are killed & the one sibling who was spared everyone believes is guilty.
2025..Olivia, the daughter of that surviving sibling is going to write a memoir for her estranged father & deep dives into so much more…

🌻𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚜𝚊𝚢...That was not such a teeny tidbit but this one is hard to summarize because truly it is SO.MUCH.MORE. than just a mystery thriller!! 🙌👌I devoured it! The writing is captivating! It tackles family dynamics, guilt, grief, past traumas with so many twists you will be spinning!😵‍💫

😳A thriller that I was still thinking about for days & days?!? YES, INDEED! Read this, y’all!