I struggled with this book. Nothing much happened in the first 10% and I grew bored. I couldn't bring myself to care about any of the characters, three sisters dealing with their individual issues. There was nothing interesting happening for me to want to pick up my Kindle and continue reading. While I live in the Metro Detroit area and can appreciated the familiar landmarks and locations mentioned, if I'm not hooked at the beginning, my patience is lost.

It began with The Wheel. And greed and desperation. In Grosse Point the effects of the auto industry collapse were far reaching, and included the Bishop sisters—Pam, Debra, and Harper. Their lives of luxury evaporated and what remained was marginal at best. Money became a prized need, an obsession. Enter the ever grinding Wheel and it’s promise of riches. Forget that it was an unsustainable scam. It drew the Bishop sisters in deep and uncovered long held personal and family secrets. When Pam is brutally murder, all is slowly and relentlessly exposed. The suspect list is long, and varied, as are the potential motives and payoffs. No one writes family, and young adult, angst better than Megan Abbott. No one. El Dorado Drive is another stellar example. Once you enter this relentless, slow-burning story it is impossible to set aside. Highly recommended.


DP Lyle, award-winning author of the Jake Longly and Cain/Harper thriller series and co-creator of The Outliers Writing University

I have mixed feelings about this book. I had been excited to read the story of a woman-run pyramid scheme taking place in Oakland County, Michigan, a place I am quite familiar with. I figured it would be similar in tone to the Lula Roe documentary, maybe by someone with experience in modern MLMs. It turns out that the pyramid scheme is about 30% of the book and the rest of it is a murder mystery.

"The Wheel" is a poorly explained concept... the newest members make a $5000 initial investment but somehow they're immediately able to acquire luxury vehicles and expensive jewelry while they wait for their turn "at the top". How? Does the hostess get a cut? Is there a Finder's Fee when people bring in new "investors"? It doesn't make any sense.

The first few chapters were weird... lots of dialogue that doesn't reflect how people actually talk to each other. There are also odd word choices throughout the book- sometimes it's the use of an ALMOST accurate synonym, sometimes it's an old-fashioned term that hasn't been used in 50 years, sometimes it's just the wrong word altogether. I believe some editing for grammar and word choice would not be out of place.

The author also uses a couple of my literary pet peeves as plot devices:
A. Characters treating a low-stakes problem as if it's actually a high-stakes problem, leading to:
B. Characters taking "desperate measures" to avoid having a simple conversation about their low-stakes problem.

Here, the issue is that Harper borrowed money from her brother-in-law. She asked her sister for help, her sister said no, and her brother-in-law gave her the money. Then her sister and brother-in-law split up. That's the big secret she's so desperate to hide. And she frets that he'll "expose her" to her sister, especially when he starts hinting that he needs to be paid back. Honestly, who TF cares. This is not a high-stakes problem. People borrow money ALL THE TIME. Just tell your sister the truth and get on with your life.

So what did I like? I liked the references to local Michigan businesses and locations. I did not sign up to read a murder mystery book but when El Dorado Drive morphed into one, the author did a great job of presenting several potential suspects with believable motive and opportunity. I raced through this part of the book, looking for clues and building my theory. Unfortunately, Abbott did SUCH a great job of setting up her red herrings that when the killer's identity was revealed (and the circumstances behind the crime), it felt unearned. Very little groundwork had been laid for the plot to turn the way it did, and I found the reveal to be both disappointing and not believable. However, I see plenty of other readers enjoyed this book so YMMV.

I appreciate NetGalley and the publisher for access to a digital ARC. My honest review is my own opinion

I honestly did not know what to expect with this book. I thought it was going to be a true mystery. Instead, it was so much more. It was a family drama with multigenerational stories as well as a mystery and also a contemporary story of women of a certain age. It all tied in together very nicely. I really enjoyed this book. I’m the characters were all well developed and the setting in 2008 wi th the financial crisis was the perfect backdrop for the story. I highly recommend this book

This is a quick read. Told only from Harper's POV it delves into family, friendship, and what happens when people get desperate. Harper, Pam and Debra are sisters. They grew up well to do until the automotive businesses in Michigan went under.
Debra and Pam went on to marry OK considering. Pam is now divorced. Her husband Doug a weasel taking money from their kids trusts. Pam never used her college degree. She stayed home and raised the kids. Then comes an opportunity to get money. A pyramid scheme.
Pam ropes Harper in. Harper who struggles the most in every way. She moves in with Pam and becomes enmeshed in this secret world. Then the worst happens and the sisters question if the pyramid scheme (disguised as a women's empowerment group) was a huge mistake.
El Dorado Drive is well written and descriptive. The secrets keep coming towards the end. The fights and feelings between Pam and her daughter Vivian were real and raw. The real villain is desperation. You'll read it all in one sitting. 3.5-4 stars.

I'm a longtime Megan Abbott fan, and EL DORADO DRIVE is a must for any reader's collection! Nobody is better at exposing the cracks in relationships and building suspense than Abbott, especially when it comes to complicated women. I just loved this one!

I love Megan Abbott and was once again so impressed by her skill in writing about women’s relationships. While I think the set up for the plot was good, I felt like everything stayed a bit surface the whole time. I also think there could have been a bit more development on some of the side characters.

This is the first of Megan Abbott’s books I’ve read and I loved it! Her sense of character is excellent and she has an amazing sneaky way of amping up tension before you realize what’s happening. I’ll dig up her backlist next.

Thank you for the opportunity to read el dorado drive! I loved this fast paced, unputdownable book!! It leaves you needing more, therefore I had to stay up reading and binging this! Great read!

Sisters who have fallen on financial hardships are privy to a secret group that gives them the chance to enhance their finances. When something appears to be too good to be true, it probably is and such is the case in this story. Someone is murdered and chaos ensues. I am a huge Megan Abbott fan but this wasn't my favorite. The story kept mentioning a wheel that the women would use to make money but there wasn't really a wheel, so it was kind of confusing. It was more of a pyramid scheme and it just seemed silly. Unfortunately, neither the whole premise nor the characters hooked me and I grew bored. I did finish the book but it probably isn't one that I will remember much going forward. Hopefully Abbott's next book will resonate more with me!

If you enjoy strong family environments in your thrillers, I think you’ll enjoy this one!

I try to navigate away from children, teens, and young adults in thrillers personally, so it is totally on me for not fully understanding and seeing that in the synopsis. Please also know I am picky with thrillers.

I liked the writing style of this book quite a bit and the cover is cool. I think thriller readers who enjoy family dynamics in their books will heavily enjoy this one. It was not personally my favorite, so I am leaving a 3.6 star review rounding up to 4 stars.

Thank you for the opportunity to leave honest feedback voluntarily! I received a free eARC.

El Dorado Drive felt more like a family saga than a traditional thriller. The characters are well fleshed out, and Abbott captures the family's messy, complicated relationships with a lot of nuance. The plot is definitely a slow burn, with storytelling and tone that reminded me of God of the Woods, even though the narrative structure was different. While the first half was slower paced, the second half picked up the pace and kept me guessing until the end.

No one builds a sense of dread and suspense like Megan Abbott! This book, like her last, Beware the Woman, continues to feel like a new venture away from the fever dream world of teen girls she was first known for and moving forward into the chaos of women who just want to live their damn lives without a man’s interference. This book hit many emotional chords—the intensity of motherhood, the loneliness of being an outcast, sexual identity, and the raw bond between sisters. Oh, and that ending! What a gut punch.

I wanted so much to like this book. I’ve read previous books by the author and enjoyed them for the most part. Unfortunately, the book just did not capture my attention. The rapid introduction of a myriad of characters so early on was so confusing. There just wasn’t enough of the characters or plot to keep going.

The description of El Dorado Drive sounded enticing - a women-led pyramid scheme sounded juicy and fun. I am fascinated by the reality surrounding MLMs. However, this book wasn’t really about that and I failed to connect with the writing.

There are three sisters and we learn about them and their families and their money issues. Lots of talk about money, and why they don’t have money/need money, which makes sense as the sisters get involved in this pyramid scheme.

The chapters consisted of short scenes, separated by three dots. These scenes were so short and so abrupt that it kept pulling me out of the story and I never was able to get into a flow. It also prevented me from caring about what was happening because I was being pulled in so many directions. Ultimately, this just was not for me.

Thank you NetGalley and Putnam Books for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

This was not well written or thought out. Thank goodness this is an ARC because it needs heavily edited.

I give El Dorado Drive by Megan Abbott 4/5 stars. There were so many elements of the story that were right up my alley - sisters, fraught by debt and secrets, turn to a Ponzi scheme to regain their footing - that I couldn't pass this one up! I liked the exploration of the sisters' relationships, the culture of their hometown of Grosse Pointe, Michigan, parent/child bonds, and sexuality; however, there were so many competing elements that I wish some had been dialed back or eliminated altogether in favor of giving more detail to others. For example, Harper's alcohol addiction. It was referenced repeatedly throughout the novel, often when Harper broke her sobriety under stressful circumstances, but there were no details on her life in active addiction nor a conclusion. Was alcohol just part of her life from then on out? Also, did she ever pay back Doug?

Megan Abbott has this strange talent for pulling me into worlds I never expected to care about - first with "The Turnout" where I found myself invested in ballet despite my complete disinterest in dance, and now with three formerly privileged sisters in post-recession Detroit getting sucked into a pyramid scheme. Harper, Pam, and Debra carry decades of shared history and complicated loyalty as they chase financial salvation through "The Wheel," an exclusive investment club where women pay thousands to join, recruit others, and supposedly watch their money multiply without selling a single product. The slow-burn story shifts when death enters the picture, casting suspicion across sisterly bonds that were already fragile. Abbott captures the acute anxiety of downward mobility - these women clinging to middle-class respectability while pretending everything's fine. The ending makes perfect sense in hindsight, though I was too caught up in the sisters' desperation to see it coming.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this eARC.

Megan Abbott has created a nail-biting thriller of an enjoyable read in El Dorado Drive. This book is as addictive as your favorite snack.

If you are looking for a must-read mystery and psychological thriller that you will leave you considering your next money making scheme, this book has everything - it is well written, with characters you can relate to, (as well as ones you will come to despise).

In El Dorado Drive, a simple but clever pyramid scheme careens completely off its rails, as everything that can go wrong does - and it ends in murder.

5 Stars (and a pledge from this reviewer to follow this best-selling author faithfully to see what she thinks up next).

A captivating novel that is one of my favorites (so far) for 2025 .

From one who knows, the physical setting, societal and cultural norms, and clothing details are spot on. The writing could have been a bit tighter in the first half, but in general, it was indeed a mystery, with enough suspicious behavior from others to make the trajectory of this who done it difficult to determine!