Thank you Penguin Group Putnam and Net Galley for this ARC! When something is too good to be true you should just turn away! In the suburbs in Detroit the once good life when car manufacturers where flying high has gone in a downward spiral leaving many far from where they started from. When Harpers sisters talk about her joining them in the "Wheel" where women empower each other and "gift" money to take back their independence she figures this is a pyramid scheme, but no they call it a triangle. How can you lose? When things start going south there's no way back. A great slow burn book

Really slow burn but ok mystery.

I was originally thinking this was around a 3-star read, but the longer it has been since I read it, it's not quite that high.

The main premise is that three sisters, Harper, Pam, and Debra all have money issues. They get involved with a pyramid scheme called The Wheel, which provides a much needed reprieve from the depths of their debt. Then someone dies--who is responsible and will their scheme be uncovered?

I honestly didn't really care about any of these characters, save for Debra's daughter Vivian. All of the rest of them were very one-dimensional to me. I thought the premise of this book sounded great, but in the execution there's just not enough "meat" here to propel the storyline forward at a decent pace. It's such a very, very slow setup. And I could never fully understand how the Wheel worked and how any of them got the money, how much it was, etc. Even though the author tried to explain it and how there were offshoot wheels, it seemed overly complex and I couldn't wrap my mind around it.

The mystery itself is decent, but you have to be super patient to get there and you have to care about what goes on in order to stick with it.

This skirted the edge of its potential - loved the three sisters and the parts that read like a chorus narrator, but wish some aspects of the story were fleshed out more

Thanks to Netgalley for the free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

I read this book quickly; it just took on a life of its own and I rolled with it. Honestly, from the first chapter when Pam and Harper are digging in the dirt, hiding a large jar of money, I was hooked. Pam, Harper and Deb are sisters and central figures in the plot. There parents were well off at one time so they grew up always wanting the best of things. They did not have "loving" parents and they vied for parental attention. Sibling rivalry was a big theme of the book. The sisters played off each other and against each other, creating lots of drama. Each sister had their own story to tell but once "the Wheel" came into the frame--the book really took off. The Wheel, not to be confused with a pyramid scheme but rather, giving women the gift of empowerment.
Thank you to NetGalley and GP Putnam's Sons for the digital ARC. I feel privileged to have been able to read this book as an advance reader. This review is my own and in no way coerced.

This is my first time reading Megan Abbott, even though I have long wanted to read her. I've heard so many good things about her books, and now I know why.
El Dorado Drive was an atmospheric, twisty, dark story of a family falling apart while trying to stay together. It explores some of the darker sides of MLM's which was like catnip for me.
The character development is excellent and we honestly don't know everything that is going on until almost the very end! Great mystery, so readable and well written.

Thank you to Net Galley and Penguin Group Putnam for the advanced copy!

This book sounded really unique and interesting. A group of women form a secret club and run "The Wheel". When one of the members ends up dead, questions arise as to who the killer was. Was it the ex? A member of the club? A robbery? The story takes readers on a journey to find out what exactly happened.

This wasn't a bad story at all. The story was interesting, the writing was ok, and the characters were so-so. I really liked the premise of the story because it sounded original to anything I have read before. The writing was ok but didn't seem like that of a seasoned author. It read more like a debut novel. It didn't really hold me back from reading the book though as I was able to read it in a day. The characters were so-so. I didn't really like any of them but that is ok. I really don't think there were any readers are supposed to really like. I mean, they all seem a bit shady at some point in the story.

All in all, this book was good. Not great, but good. I would recommend it to readers who enjoy suspense and characters who, like I said, are shady. I give this book 3.5 stars.

El Dorado Drive is a twisty murder mystery that stems from “women empowering women” via a pyramid scheme. I loved the examination of different relationships (sisters, acquaintances, husbands, children) and learning just how far people are willing to go as they chase success.

Meg Abbott's books always keep me turning the pages feverishly until the end, but they also are concerned with deeper themes. El Dorado Drive is concerned with sisters, financial hardship, husbands letting down their families, acceptance, female empowerment, families. It's a murder mystery, and so much more. I loved the protagonist and was guessing until the end.

This book is about 3 sisters: Debra, the responsible one; Pam, the one everyone likes; and Harper, the outcast. It's also about money, as all three are in need of it. Debra's husband is fighting cancer and the medical bills are piling up, Pam is newly divorced with her older child heading off to college, and Harper owe's Pam's ex-husband a lot of money. But what happens when you get what you need on the backs of others?

El Dorado Drive, and its resident, Pam, are at the center of this story despite our point of view being Harper's. After Harper returns from running away from Pam's ex to work a summer in another state, Pam's life has changed. She's driving a newly leased car, and the desperation is gone from her eyes. She offers Harper not only a place to stay, but an opportunity to make the same changes to her own life. All she has to do is come up with $5000 for the Wheel. Just dues to join a club of like-minded women who are doing things for themselves for a change.

I really enjoyed the style Abbott used with this book. Though the chapters tended to be long, they contained many short sections, short enough that it was like you blinked and your view changed. I felt it put me more in Harper's point of view. There are twists and turns as the story goes on, and I had no idea how it was going to end. I thought it was fantastic.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and publisher for the digital ARC of ”El Dorado Drive” in exchange for my honest opinion. The plot to this book was intriguing, but I never really felt like I could connect to any of the sisters. That being said, I did grow up in Michigan and had a father who was also impacted by the troubles with the auto industry and am also quite familiar with the pyramid scheme that is well known here. I think that other readers may find the plot more intense than I was able to. It was a solid three stars for me.

Read this if: you love slow-burn suspense, complicated sister dynamics, and mysteries where the real tension comes from the secrets between women

I could not put this book down. At this point, Megan Abbott has written enough novels that you probably know if you vibe with her style—and this one is classic Abbott. It’s a slow burn, with tension simmering beneath the surface until it finally erupts in a devastating reveal near the end.

While there’s definitely a crime and a mystery driving the plot, the real heart of El Dorado Drive is the tangled, often uneasy relationships between sisters—and between women more broadly. Abbott writes female characters who are both fiercely bonded and subtly at odds, and she captures those shifting dynamics in such a sharp, unsettling way.

The book also has some fascinating things to say about wealth—not just as flashy luxury items, but as security, status, and a shield against vulnerability. It’s an undercurrent that makes everything feel even more charged and dangerous.

This one gave me goosebumps. Truly, no one writes twisty, complicated female relationships quite like Megan Abbott. Highly recommend if you’re looking for something atmospheric, psychological, and impossible to look away from.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group for giving me access to this story in exchange for an honest review.

The writing style fell short for me, which I think was the main reason I didn't like this as much as I wanted. It also felt pretty slow. After reading the plotline, I was just impatient. Thank you, NetGalley.

Sisters Pam, Harper, and Debra find themselves thrown together at the worst period of each of their lives. Pam’s going through a messy divorce, Harper is between low paying jobs, and Debra’s husband is going through cancer treatment. All three are struggling financially and it’s wearing them down. Pam and Debra introduce Harper to The Wheel, a group of other women helping each other out and lifting each other up, with a cash donation to a pool.

Is it an MLM or something darker? I really liked this story and the sisters. Each one is individual, with well drawn back stories and valid issues. It gets a little wild near the end, but I found the story really supported it. There’s a lot of build up for this one, but it’s worth it and adds to the suspense and necessary details to make it all come together.

Thank you to NetGalley and Putnam for providing me with an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Available June 24, 2025.

Formerly rich WASPs living beyond their means start a pyramid scheme and someone ends up dead.

The backstory of this thriller is well-conceived. Suburban Michigan, post-2008 economic collapse, a group of sisters and the other women in their community, all accustomed to a certain lifestyle, each with big financial problems preventing them from continuing to embody that lifestyle. The solution: The Wheel. It’s not a pyramid scheme; it’s a club for women to support each other by forking over $5k and convincing all the other women they know to do the same, with the goal of eventually being the recipient of a larger pot of money. But of course, things turn dark, jealousies and anxieties invade the group, and when one of the sisters ends up dead, could it all lead back to The Wheel?

I would have appreciated this thriller a lot more if it had been more focused on the pyramid scheme, but there were other plot elements that distracted from it too much for the scheme to be effectively sinister and consequential. There were a number of side characters involved in the “club” who all came across as one unit rather than each having their own unique motivations and backstories. Overall, I did enjoy the experience of reading this and was definitely shocked by the big reveals at the end, but I thought the whole thing was sort of unrealistic, messy, and a bit too long.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the opportunity to be an early reader of this title, available now!

Thank you to Penguin Group- Putnam, G.P. Putnam's Sons and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this eARC in return for my honest opinion!

I had absolutely no expectations going into this and I ended up devouring it! El Dorado Drive touched on the themes of greed, status, wealth and the expectations placed on women in society in the most mesmerizing of ways. Abbott's writing made the stakes feel higher and higher as the book progressed. I could not put this down and found myself thinking about it when I wasn't reading. The family dynamics and desire for survival set against the economic recession in 2008 Michigan made for a gripping story. Highly recommend if you're looking for a gripping, fast paced story.

Unfortunately I have lost access to this book. I try and prioritize reading in order of Archive date and this was archived for me in early June and it would not let me read it. I still plan on reading it when it's available! Thank you NetGalley.

El Dorado Drive is the newest thriller just released by Megan Abbott. This story revolves around the three Bishop sisters who have a unique dynamic with each other. They came from money, but that has now dried up, leaving them desperate to recapture the seeming ease of their childhood when money was no object. The lengths that each sister will go to in order to achieve a form of the wealth they knew in childhood make for a propelling narrative. Plenty of secrets and action will keep you turning the page. Read and enjoy!

Money makes the world go around, the Bishop sisters learn, when they don’t have as much as they used to.

The three women grew up in a good Grosse Pointe neighborhood, not having to worry about money. Debra was the oldest, then Pam, then Harper. They looked after each other, and they made each other their target, in that way that sisters do. They grew up with money, so they thought life would always be easy. But the auto industry changed and Detroit lost a lot of wealth. Now, as adults, the sisters are struggling.

Debra is married to Perry, and they have a son Stevie. But Perry has cancer, and the treatment is exorbitantly expensive. Pam had a happy marriage, until she found out that her husband Doug had spent all their money, put them into debt, and even drained the trust funds they had set up for their kids Patrick and Vivian. Harper is just struggling to make ends meet each month. After a particularly difficult and drunken night with her sisters, as they all complained about their problems and debts, Harper needed to get away, so she took a job across the state for the summer, which turned into late October.

When Harper finally comes back to town, she is met by Pam, who is singing a very different song. She has leased a Lexus and talks about how much better things are for her. It turns out that shortly after Harper had left, Pam had bumped into a friend, Sue Fox, who helped rescue Pam from an embarrassing situation. And she had invited Pam to be a part of the Wheel.

A group of women meet twice a month for parties. They get together for support and friendship, and they bring the hostess of the party a gift. That gift is cash.

Each new member has to provide a buy-in of $5,000. That gets you on the board. Then you wait until it’s your turn, and every new member who shows up to your party gives you their gift, and that puts them on the board. And the Wheel turns, with women helping each other. Debts get paid. Lives are saved. Women are empowered, and they pass their good luck to the next woman who comes in the door. It’s a beautiful thing.

But anyone who has been in debt, on the verge of financial collapse, knows how desperate it can make you. Bad decisions get made. Desperate people do desperate things. Sometimes they even kill. And the Bishop sisters will find themselves in the middle of that as the Wheel rolls right over them.

Megan Abbott is back with a masterful tale of debt and desperation in a world where women still struggle for personal power. I am a big fan of Abbott. I love the depth and nuance of her writing as she parses out the tiny cracks in the relationships between these sisters. The secrets that bind them, and the ones that wedge between them, the details of the era, everything comes together to create this tense domestic thriller with unexpected twists and a stunner of an ending.

Abbott is one of those writers who takes everything I have to give through the course of her novel. It’s emotional and powerful and lingers in my memory for months. I can’t read too many books like that in one year, but I am always happy to reserve one of those spots for a new Megan Abbott book. I loved El Dorado Drive, and now I have time to recover from it before her next book hits bookstores.

Egalleys for El Dorado Drive were provided by G.P. Putnam’s Sons through NetGalley, with many thanks, but the opinions are mine.

This is my first Megan Abbott book (I know, I know) and I really enjoyed it. More of a slow burn suspense than thriller, the writing is absolutely gorgeous. And I always love when I don’t see a twist coming. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

Meg Cabot’s El Dorado Drive is about three sisters who have all fallen from the wealth they grew up with and have joined a pyramid scheme in search of financial independence.

It’s an interesting read. Each sister finds her way to the women’s group for her own reasons: divorce, medical bills, or a secret loan. Cabot does a good job framing it as anti-patriarchal, and she creates such a frenetic environment when Harper is finally let in on the secret that you understand why she joins. At the same time, Cabot creates a dark, foreboding atmosphere, as she often does in these late-stage books of her career, making it clear the story is headed nowhere positive.

It’s a compelling argument that men play around with money like it’s nothing, so why can’t women? But it was clear from the beginning that the group was a pyramid scheme, and once that was revealed, I turned pretty hard against the book. The final third becomes a mystery, which is executed very well and fits with the general unease of the story. Ultimately, that’s how I felt about the book overall. I didn’t have a good time reading it, and I don’t think Cabot wanted you to. The town and the family are in a total state of decay.