Can ghostwriting bring you closure?

That’s the question facing Olivia Dumont, a professional ghostwriter.

Olivia is the daughter of Vincent Taylor, a renowned horror novelist who is equally infamous for his dark past. When Vincent was eighteen, he became the prime suspect in the deaths of his two siblings, Danny and Poppy—a mystery that has haunted their family for decades.

Olivia once enjoyed a successful career, but a costly mistake has left her reputation in tatters. With no new projects on the horizon, her finances are spiraling. If she doesn’t find work soon, she may be forced to sell her home to pay her legal fees and the damages owed to the man who sued her.

Then, a surprising job offer lands in her lap. At first, Olivia is thrilled—until she learns who her client is. Her father, Vincent, wants her help writing his memoir, and he’s asking for her specifically.

As they work together, the question looms: Is Vincent finally ready to reveal the truth about what really happened that night fifty years ago?

From the very beginning, this story had me hooked. The flashbacks to the 1970s were richly atmospheric, immersing me in the lives of Lydia, Danny, Poppy, and Vincent. The more I learned about them, the more desperate I became to uncover the truth of that fateful night.

I can’t wait for Julie Clark’s next book—I’m officially a fan!

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by Sourcebooks Landmark via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book is absolutely fantastic. I will be recommending it to everyone when it comes out this summer. The story is sensational, yet believable. Julie Clark has such a talent and it really shine through this story.

The Ghostwriter by Julie Clark is a slow-burn thriller packed with secrets and suspense, making it a perfect read for fans of the genre.

The story centers around Olivia Dumont, a ghostwriter, and her famous horror author father, Vincent Taylor. Years ago, Vincent was a prime suspect in the murder of his siblings, and now he's ready to reveal the truth. Olivia agrees to be his ghostwriter, and through alternating points of view from the past and present, along with entries from Vincent's sister's diary, the story gradually unfolds.

I was completely drawn into the well-developed plot and rich, immersive setting. Olivia's character is compelling, and her journey to uncover her family's dark secrets is fascinating. The suspense builds slowly, but it kept me guessing the entire time. I did not see the twist coming The action is well-paced, and the rich setting kept me turning the pages.


Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the advanced reader copy. This is my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this upcoming thriller book. I've read some other thrillers by this author and they all have been great reads as well! I really liked the different perspectives and timelines used in this story to reveal clues and part of the past. The story was very intriguing and by then end I certainly didn't want to stop. I can't wait to read more by this author in the future

I loved Julie Clark's other books so was excited to read The Ghostwriter. It is atmospheric and suspenseful, filled with secrets and plenty of dysfunctional family drama. I liked the plot line of a father and daughter, and that it the story revolves around writing and ghost writing. Great reveals and the story keeps you on your toes! Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the ARC. Pub Date: June 3, 2025.

#TheGhostwriter

I would categorize this as a slow burn mystery so don’t go into this expecting a fast paced thriller. I prefer my “thrillers”
to have a bit more substance and so this really worked for me. Besides the mystery aspect, there is also an emotional family drama unravelling throughout the book. Unlike some popcorn thrillers, the author writes these character with much more depth, which I always appreciate. That being said, I did feel the length in the middle and this did read very slowly for me. The final third picked up and it did come to a very satisfying conclusion (I was afraid we would never find out the true story but that was not the case). Overall this was an interesting, emotional, slow burn mystery with great characterization and enough of a plot to make the slow start worth it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for an advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

Julie Clark’s The Ghostwriter is a gripping psychological thriller that kept me hooked from start to finish. The story follows Olivia Dumont, a ghostwriter in deep financial trouble, who’s tasked with writing the memoir of Vincent Taylor—a famous author and the only surviving child of the Taylor family, whose siblings were brutally murdered in 1975. As Olivia digs into Vincent’s past, she uncovers more than she bargained for, especially when she discovers that she’s not just writing his story, but facing her own dark family secrets. Olivia’s own past is a tangled web—she was born Olivia Taylor, Vincent’s estranged daughter, and has spent years hiding her identity. Her financial desperation leads her to accept the memoir job, though she’s wary of the emotional minefield it could open up.

What I loved most about The Ghostwriter was the dynamic between the characters. Olivia is a fascinating, morally complex character, but I couldn’t help but feel frustrated by her coldness and the questionable decisions she made in her quest for success. Vincent, on the other hand, quickly became my favorite—he’s enigmatic, vulnerable, and entirely believable as a narrator. I was constantly torn between trusting him and wondering if he was hiding something darker. The alternating points of view in the story helped build suspense and kept me questioning what was real, what was manipulation, and what was true regret. While the book doesn’t answer all the questions it raises, it leaves enough ambiguity to keep you thinking long after the last page. I also loved the cover design—it perfectly captures the essence of the novel. This is definitely a book that will stay with me, and I can’t wait to dive into more of Julie Clark’s work.

I am a fan of Jule Clark's previous novels THE LAST FLIGHT and THE LIES I TELL and this book did not disappoint. I like the author's style of weaving in backstory into the front plot action. It was an interesting premise, and I was hooked immediately. This book also had an atmospheric setting that matched the tone of the mystery/thriller. I look forward to more books by this author.

* The Ghostwriter* by Julie Clark was a solid read, but it didn’t fully grab me the way I hoped. The premise was intriguing, and the suspense kept me turning pages, but I struggled to connect with the characters emotionally. Some twists were predictable, and while the writing was strong, it lacked that extra spark to make it truly unforgettable. It was good, just not great—worth a read, but not a standout for me.

Quick fun read for fans of Julie Clark. I was interested in the insights of the life of a ghostwriter and the inherent challenges of that profession. I did not guess a few of the twists in the book . The story has dual timelines but in this case the past POV tied directly to the events in present which made it engaging.

The Ghostwriter had me on the edge of my seat towards the end and truly invested in the characters and the plot the entire time I read. As soon as I thought I had figured out what had happened, I was hit with another twist. It is a truly captivating thriller by Julie Clark and I can not wait to pick up more of her books in the future!

I men the last year, I read a ghostwriter book I liked, one I loathed, and I decided to be give this one a try.

The story is told from multiple points of view. Some people enjoy that, some don’t. It’s not one of my favorite styles. It also is a darker mystery than I typically read. I need a good dose of comedy or romance to lighten the weight unless I’m in the mood for the deep seriousness of a darker story.

I’ve never read this author so I have no idea if this is a typical book for her. It wasn’t quite my type of book, but I know people who would love it.

The Ghostwriter was a great thriller! When Ghostwriter Olivia Dumont is offered the chance of a lifetime to be the ghostwriter for famous thriller author Vincent Taylor, Olivia majorly debates what would seem a no brainer. The reason why is the Vincent Taylor was the suspect in the murder of his brother and sister 50 years earlier...and Olivia's father. Being the ghostwriter would allow Olivia to finally put the mystery of her aunt and uncle's murder to bed, and either indict her father or clear his name.

This book was such a fast paced read and the twists were insane!

The Ghostwriter by Julie Clark is, oddly enough, the second book about a ghostwriter I've read lately. This one's definitely better than the last, though that's not saying much. It follows Olivia, a ghostwriter who's carefully kept her connection to Vincent Taylor under wraps - after all, who wants to advertise that their father is a renowned horror novelist who might have killed his siblings fifty years ago? But when she finds herself broke and desperate for work, she ends up ghostwriting the memoir where he's finally promising to tell the truth about that night. The bones of a good story are there, but I kept getting hung up on things that didn't quite work - like how Olivia's mother is just... completely absent from her life with barely any explanation (except at the end, and that explanation doesn't really work for me) or how we're supposed to believe in these deep relationships between characters who've been lying to each other from day one.

The book tells the story of a ghostwriter, named Oliva Dumont who is in enormous debt, and is tasked with writing a memoir of the famous author, Vincent Taylor who is the only surviving child of the Taylor Family; the Taylor's family's other two kids were brutally murdered in 1975, and many in the town believe that Vincent Taylor was the one to have murdered his siblings.

Olivia Dumont has been keeping a secret for her entire professional career. Born Olivia Taylor, she has changed her identify to distance herself away from her past and the fact that she is the only daughter of Vincent Taylor. Although she Is hesitant to take this assignment. her growing debt leaves her no choice, especially since this job opportunity is a windfall and she would be able to pay off all her debt.

I rate books on many criteria such as writing style, characters, narration, cover, title, atmosphere, ending and whether or not the story moved or wowed me. I loved reading this story and found it very engaging. The characters were well written and like the way the story flowed between past and present. I loved seeing and hearing the different POVs from the characters. I also love the title and cover. with the burning pages and text. I found it to be directly correlated to the material inside the book. I really dislike a misleading title or cover, and I was very happy to find that the content inside matched its cover.

This story had me questioning many things and had me feeling different emotions. My favorite character of the book was Vincent Taylor. From the time the story first introduces him, I took a liking to him, and I believed him. I found him to be a reliable narrator, and I was rooting for him. Now Olivia on the other hand, I despised. I found her to be a bit cold and selfish and not a very reliable narrator. The things she did to get her story were unscrupulous!!! I want mentioned them all here, but one was hacking into her father's computer and data without his knowledge or consent. I found this to be incorrigible behavior being that she did it whenever she felt. The disrespect!!! Also, I felt that Olivia did not care for her father or his well-being. She only cared about making money! Despite Alma's warnings, she continued to do as she pleased, which annoyed me so. Thank goodness for Alma and Jack as well. He was my second favorite character, and I loved how he put Olivia in check, and gave her an accurate perspective of the facts. I found Olivia also to a walking contradiction and Hypocrite. On one hand she wants to nothing to do with her father, but on the other she was his money and fame. She says she wants to distance herself from that life, and yet she uses her father to gain riches, wealth, success and fame. She was a very unstable and unreliable journalist because instead of trying to investigate the story, I felt she was investigating her father. As I said Vincent Taylor was my favorite character. I absolutely ADORED him! Thus, I did not like the way Olivia treated him, especially when she acted against his will. That being said. I love the fact that this story had me so emotionally invested. I could actually picture the scenes of the story as they were happening and of course I had a clear visual of Vincent. I really cared about this character, his well-being and emotions. Tom, I liked as well. He is a sweet caring guy who values honesty and trust. I think he was well written, and I think many readers may know or have come across a Tom in their lives. The supportive guy who will only put up will BS for so long. Really loved his character and hope to see more like him in future reads.

This book left me thinking and questioning things. I would have loved to hear from the mother's POV. There seemed to be a lot of love between her and Vincent, and I ponder why at some point, these two did not reconcile. I also would have liked to know more about the relationship between Mr. Stewart and Lydia (the mom) POV, although I do find the mom to be an unreliable narrator, and I am not sure I believe her account of things. I think hearing the young Lydia's POV would have help to us better understand her motives and actions. In the end, I do like that some things were not totally fleshed out which allows me free space to think of the "why" and question what is accurate or what is not.

I really enjoyed reading the conversation with the author and hearing her process in writing this book as well how she got the idea and her thought process in creating such great characters. I really appreciated such an honest conversation. I never really thought about what an author goes through trying to keep account of all the characters and what they know and when they knew it. As a reader, I found it very relatable that she too had to go back and explore chapters. Many times, I have had to go back in a book to make sure I am getting the accurate picture, see if I missed something or to recheck things after I have learned something new. I even went back in this book to reread the chapter with Olivia and her mom to make sure I didn't miss anything. I love this book! I loved reading it from the cover to the end! It checked every box I had, and it moved me. I look forward to reading my fourth novel by this author; The Lies I Tell. After reading the included excerpt, I was definitely interested in reading the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for Publishing for giving me this ARC for my honest review.

I was given this book by NetGalley for an honest review-
Will the world finally read what really happened that night?
Vincent, is dying and asks his daughter Olivia to ghostwrite his story of the murders and what really happened that night,
The Taylor family- Poppy and Daniel murdered, then the accusations begin that the only child left Vincent killed then - nothing is proven. Will the truth finally be revealed?

I absolutely devoured this book!! 👏🏼 This is such a dark, delicious read. It’s told from multiple point of views (which is my fav 😍) and bounces back & forth from 1975 to present day. I could go on and on about how incredible this book is. Truly an absolute masterpiece! 🤯

Huge thanks to @netgalley for the ARC! Be sure to grab this amazing thriller when it’s released on June 3rd, 2025

I expected more from this book. I read it was really good but it ended up being not my thing. . thank you netgalley

Ghostwriter, Olivia Dumont, is fresh off a fall from grace at the hands of an arrogant author who ruined her career. Given a second chance to redeem her ghostwriting career. Olivia is hired by her estranged father to write his memoir. A famous author himself, Olivia's father is suffering from Lewy Body Dementia and wants an unsolved mystery from his past solved before he dies.

Julie Clark's newest mystery is plot driven with well-developed characters. It is a page turner which I truly enjoyed.

Thank you NetGalley for an arc of this suspenseful read.

I was so excited to get an early review copy of one of my favorite thriller authors. Julie Clark delivers again! This is every thing I look for in a thriller. It's unputdownable. There is an excellent plot with the requisite twists and turns but there is also a family drama and a complex relationship between a father and a daughter. I enjoyed the dual timelines and Olivia felt like a real person to me. I enjoyed the little lessons on writing someone else's story. As an author, a partner and a daughter she wasn't perfect and I winced sometimes when she dealt with her dad. The slow reveal worked for me and I found this book quite atmospheric. The ending left something unexplained which I also appreciated. Thanks Net Galley and Source Books. And thank you, Julie Clark. Keep writing!