
Member Reviews

Thank you to Hayley Scrivenor and MacMillan Audio (#MacAudio2025) for the ALC!
Finn and her best friend, Daphne, share a special bond, both having lost sisters to suicide. They are so close that when Finn begins to see a girl named Magdu, Daphne has a hard time sharing her friend. What a dark tale of mean girls, lost love and how well can you really trust those closest to you. I also really enjoyed the concept of rock climbing, which was deeply woven into the story. I loved Finn’s personality, her quirkiness made her very endearing. Told in dual timelines, we see how Finn met Daphne and Magdu, and then he aftermath of a terrible accident - or was it?
“Girl Falling” releases March 11, 2025. This review will be shared to my instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) shortly :)

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced copy of Girl Falling by Hayley Scrivenor. I really enjoyed this book but was a little disappointed with the ending. I appreciated the twist and was not expecting it, but it felt a little rushed. The toxic friendship was well written and an accurate portrayal of narcissistic abuse.

Unfortunately I did not enjoy this book at all. I didn’t connect with any of the characters, and I went in thinking it would be a thriller but it was more of a friend drama with romantic suspense.
And the overexaggerated details about getting her period, and then also about having dental work, literally each and every step was just so strange and unnecessary to me.
I didn’t care for the narration either, as you could hear the narrator swallow between most sentences.
If I had read the physical book and not been expecting a thriller, my review might have been different. Unfortunately, this was a DNF at 56%
It wasn’t for me, but maybe it will be for you!
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for my ALC.

I loved Dirt Creek so I was beyond excited to read this one. Scrivenor doesn't disappoint. Beautiful narrative. Beautiful writing. Dark and twisted story. She isn't afraid to dive into the dark areas of human psyche. Highly recommend.

Finn and her best friend, Daphne, grew up together in a small town in the Blue Mountains, NSW, bonded by the shared trauma of losing younger sisters to suicide. Now in their twenties, their lives are diverging: Daphne is at university, while Finn works in the Mountains and is falling in love with Magdu, a beautiful newcomer. Struggling to share Finn’s attention, Daphne’s behavior becomes increasingly controlling, culminating in a mountain climbing trip where Magdu falls to her death. Is it suicide, a tragic accident, or something far more sinister?
I was very intrigued by this book for most of the journey, but maybe as a literary ficton / queer fiction title rather than a mystery or thriller. The tension was balanced and the characters developed thoroughly (it's a very character-driven title), and the story deeply engaging, however, the ending left me wanting more.

I tried really hard to get into this one, and while I'm really thankful to Macmillan Audio, Netgalley, and Hayley Scrivenor for granting me advanced access to this title, I think I'd much rather hand it off to a friend for them to take a stab at it.

Interesting story, the twist definitely got me. This is great if you enjoy easy to follow mystery novels.
The narrator is great, she did a great job of making the reader understand which character is speaking when.
Very quick read that keeps you hooked once you get into it.

the audiobook was super high quality. excellent first chapter and portrayal of anticipation and anxiety
OMG the dynamic between daphne and fin was so delicately written. it was such a real representation of narcissistic abuse. the author really spared no detail.

I really enjoyed this book. It was hard to put down. I nearly finished it in a day and would've had I not been pull away with work. I liked the audiobook narrator a lot as well. I think she really helped bring each character to life. The switch between the past and present left a breadcrumb trail with just enough information that made me feel like I knew what each twist would but left enough obscured that at the end I was still surprised. I wish we had a little more of a conclusion at the end of the book but honestly that was my only disappointment.

Unfortunately I dont think this book is for me. That doesn't make it a bad book, but its not what I thought it was by the description. I would struggle to call it a thriller. I listened to the audiobook version. I enjoyed the narration as it was narrated by my favorite audio company however the storyline fell flat for me. I'm a fan of a good twisty thriller. This book seemed to focus more on female friendships/relationships and if anything I think it was just categorized wrong. I think it was written well, and I think a lot of women could find value out of it, it just wasn't for me.

Unfortunately, this book was not for me. The characters were all thoroughly unlikeable, though the novel was well written.

I enjoyed the narrators in this book very much!
The stroryline and the plot were awesome… kept me engaged and wanting to keep reading till the very end!
Awesome book would definitely recommend it!

This book was pretty good, I liked the characters and wanted to see how things were going to turn out. The end was a surprise and I'm not mad at it! LOL

This novel was a bit lackluster for me. The premise is good, and the characters are well built. It starts well and does become obvious that this won't be a typical fast-paced thriller. I really liked how the author described the toxic female friendships and how deep they went. The queer romance and friend jealousy felt realistic... but the extent that the toxic blackmail went into the adult relationships didn't. I would have been much more on board with the slow build if the twist had felt believable. Building the characters so well actually did a disservice to the ending twist because it just didn't feel true to the character.
The audio narration was great, love the accent!

⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review
I enjoyed the writing style of Girl Falling. The story kept a steady pace, and I thought I had the ending figured out… until that last twist completely caught me off guard. It was a satisfying way to wrap up the story and saved the book for me.
That said, I struggled with the way narcissism was so central to the narrative. One character’s constant manipulation and control over another grew frustrating and, at times, felt repetitive without much growth or resolution until the very end. Additionally, the spicy scenes sprinkled throughout felt unnecessary—they didn’t add much to the plot and came across more as filler than meaningful moments.
Overall, the ending elevated what was otherwise a decent read. It’s worth a shot if you enjoy complex friendships and suspenseful twists, but be prepared for some frustrating dynamics along the way.
Thank you, NetGalley and Macmillan Audio, for the advanced audio copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

The reason I requested this novel was because of the cover, and I'm happy to say I enjoyed the novel as much as I enjoy the cover. The concept of the novel was interesting, a girl falling to her death during a climb with her girlfriend and girlfriends best friend. Hayley Scrivenor did a wonderful job at flushing out the story. I enjoyed how the novel went between flashbacks and the present, keeping me engaged with the content and wanting to learn more about the relationships between the girls. I was not the biggest fan on how the story ended which is why I gave this book only four stars.
Publish Date: March 11th, 2025

Set in two timeframes, “before” and “after”, the narrator Finn reflects on her complicated relationship with best friend Daphne while mourning the sudden loss of her girlfriend, Magdu, who is killed in a climbing incident at the beginning of the novel. The novel takes place in the Blue Mountains in Australia, and is a slow burn of whodunnit—was Magdu’s death a terrible accident, suicide, or murder?
I would hesitate to call this book a thriller or crime novel , but I appreciated how it focuses on the complexity of female relationships and friendships. I liked the small details and descriptions Scrivener uses to immerse the reader in Finn’s thoughts and emotions. I will say it took me a good third of the book before I was fully invested in the characters, and felt like the ending was rushed and not in line with what we learned of the characters, and without a satisfying explanation. Despite this, I would still recommend if you are looking for a female-centered POV with tangled relationships. I’m interested in reading Scrivener’s other book, Dirt Creek, which I’ve heard is more engaging!
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

this was incredible. I consider myself pretty smart, and I love it when authors are very clearly smarter than me. This book was clever, twisty, and I don't doubt I'll be thinking about it for a long time to come.
rep: Desi lesbian, white lesbian
spice: clinical depictions of sexual assault
tw: sexual assault, gaslighting, abusive relationship, death of a major character

You know how you enjoy a book so much then the ending spoils everything? That’s how this book felt. The ending was so off. Missed opportunity that ended up leaving a bad taste instead.. Narration was good.

A super twisty thriller that moved at an almost languid, unreal pace. I kept turning the pages waiting for a jump scare or some big moment, but it didn’t come until the final 20 pages. By then I wasn’t expecting it at all and I think that made it WAY more powerful. Overall the book gave me a similar vibe as Blue Hunger - two twisted girls circling around each other until inevitably they collide.