Wow I really loved this latest Megan Miranda novel, “You Belong Here”. I have read a bunch of the author’s books, but I was kind of regretting requesting this eARC after being disappointed by the last 2 books I read by her. However, this book was a great return for me. It was a slow burn that unraveled at a good pace. The part of the ending was predictable and part of it wasn’t which I always enjoy. I felt Beckett’s fear and urgency throughout the story and couldn’t wait to see how the mystery both of her past and her daughter’s present unfolded.

Thank you, NetGalley for this eARC! 4.5 stars rounded to 5!

Beckett Bowery returns to her hometown when her daughter enrolls at her alma mater. Years ago, Beckett fled under a cloud of suspicion, leaving behind secrets, and a scandal the town never forgot.

Now, the shadows of her past begin to resurface. Someone remembers what happened and they want revenge.

Told in dual timelines that peel back layers of mystery, You Belong Here is a fast-paced thriller filled with tension, secrets, and the haunting question: Can you ever truly escape the past?

If you love twisty fast paced thrillers with an atmospheric setting and a strong mother-daughter dynamic, add this to your TBR immediately & pick up your copy on July 29th!

Thank you NetGalley & Simon & Schuster for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

You Belong Here is a slow burn thriller, a genre that Megan Miranda has become known for, that didn’t work for me. I couldn’t connect with either of the main characters, Beckett and her daughter Delilah. I usually love a dark academia book but this one just fell flat and I wasn’t invested in the mystery. I don’t think Megan Miranda is the author for me so fans of her work should pick this one up and try it for themselves.

Oooo I really liked this one! Slow (but in a really good way) creepy thriller that had me guessing until the end. A good handful of twists and surprises and it certainly kept my attention and had me reading every chance I got. The gist: a mom returns to her hometown to help her daughter and a whole bunch of history ends up coming back to light.

Twisty thriller and wonderfully executed to build to the astonishing ending! Megan Miranda’s latest story is full of action, suspense and intrigue. A great summer beach read too!

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon Element for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Get ready to clear your schedule because Megan Miranda's upcoming You Belong Here is a twisted, delicious ride you won't want to put down. This story of a decades-old secret, a college town with a long memory, and a mother's deepest fears is absolutely captivating. I've always adored Miranda's work, but this one truly stands out—it completely broke the mold for me.

Seriously, if you're looking for your next obsession, add this to your wishlist NOW. I loved every single page!

When Beckett is forced to return to the hometown she vowed to never return to because her daughter has decided to attend the same college she was once asked to leave, she has no choice but to face her secrets. And when her daughter goes missing, her decades old secrets start to unravel and come to light. Will she be able to escape her past, or will she have to confront the secrets she tried so hard to bury?

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this arc. I loved the plot on this one and was stressed the whole time for the main character and what was going on. Didn’t expect the twist!

Megan Miranda is a must-read author of mine and You Belong Here is no different. The slow burn mystery was a quick read with a great ending I didn’t see coming!

Thank you to Simon Element and NetGalley for an ARC copy of You Belong Here.

4 stars! I did enjoy this book-couldn't put it down. It moves fast, hour by hour, after Beckett realizes her daughter is missing at her new college, the same one that had a fire tragedy twenty years earlier. Beckett has stayed away from her hometown, her college because she had a part in the fire. She's terrified when her daughter chooses to attend college there. Only a few months in, Delilah disappears, and Beckett is back, trying to find her and finding herself back into the secrets surrounding the fire.
I could not stop reading, but I took one star off because it felt like something was missing in the story. There was something the author wasn't telling us, and sometimes that works for me, but here it didn't quite work. But if you need a book to fly through, check this one out!

This was an interesting read, I liked this more than her other books that she has written so far but there was still something about this that I didn’t really love enough for me to want to rate this higher. I did like that it was set in a college campus town but I wasn’t a huge fan of Beckett nor did I really like her daughter. The jumping between the past and the present threw me off while I was reading and I found that I liked the present more than the past points of view. The ending wasn’t that great either and I thought that it was predictable.

Thank you to Netgalley and St.Martin’s press for an ARC copy.

You Belong Here was such a slow burn, but in the best way. Megan Miranda really knows how to create a creepy, small-town vibe that keeps you second-guessing everything. The story jumps around a bit with timelines and different perspectives, but it all adds to the mystery and kept me totally hooked.

The writing is super atmospheric—it honestly felt like the town had its own personality. The characters are complicated in a realistic way, and I loved how you’re never quite sure who to trust. It’s not super fast-paced, so if you’re into constant twists, this might feel a little slow. But the payoff is worth it, and the ending wrapped things up in a really satisfying way.

Overall, it’s a solid, moody thriller with just the right amount of tension and emotion. Would totally recommend if you’re into mysteries that make you think and give you a little chill while reading.

Beckett goes to drop her daughter ever daughter Delilah off at college, she is flooded with memories from her time at the same school. Good memories flood her mind but especially bad memories about The Howling where she lost her friend Adalyn.

As the night of The Howling approaches while her daughter is at school, Beckett gets a sudden phone call from her daughter that immediately drops. Going into full Momma mode, Beckett head to school and can’t find her daughter anywhere.

Does history truly repeat itself or this deja vu to good to be true?

Thank you NetGalley for the Arc!

I wanted to love this more than I did. I am an avid fan of Megan Miranda but it just didn't have its complete same gravitation to this as her books in the last. I found the resolution slightly silly.

Thank you so much @marysueruccibooks for the gifted advance reader copy!

Sydney’s daughter Delilah decides to attend the same college she did, where she left painful memories behind. Now she must return to face the secrets of her past to protect her daughter.

In typical Megan Miranda fashion, this intriguing mystery slowly built tension and suspense. The idyllic setting in the mountains and the dark academia vibes added to the atmosphere. I was glued to the pages as all the puzzle pieces came together. While the ending was somewhat predictable for me, it was definitely an entertaining read I would recommend!

Rating 4⭐️

Beckett has done her best to stay away from Wyatt Valley – a quaint college town where her parents were both professors and where her own college roommate committed a horrible act before disappearing 20 years ago. Unfortunately, Beckett’s daughter, Delilah, has decided to accept the full-ride scholarship offered to her from her mother’s almost-alma mater. Beckett is incredibly uncomfortable about it, but doesn’t stand in Delilah’s way. Late on Howling Night – a college tradition during which her former roommate started a fire – Beckett receives a dropped call from Delilah, then nothing else. Frantic and paranoid, Beckett returns to campus driving all night. She attempts to find Delilah, but she has moved out of her dorm room. There is evidence that Delilah has been staying at her grandparents’ house, but hadn't returned. Beckett promptly freaks out, searching around campus before contacting Delilah's father, her parents, the Dean of Students, and the police. Beckett knows in her heart something is wrong. Where is Delilah?

I always enjoy Megan Miranda's books, but this was not my favorite. I get that Beckett had something horrible happen to her at the campus that effectively changed the trajectory of her life, but the rush to campus simply because of a dropped call and the inability to reach her daughter sound flimsy. Yes, it needed to happen for the story to progress, but it was too big of a suspense of belief for me and tainted what came later. It also took me out of the story and it took a long while for me to get back in. The rest of the story was fast-paced and interesting, but I never really got over that. Overall, another enjoyable thriller from a favorite author.

I am rounding up to 3.5 stars and the only reason this book dropped from a great 4 star review was the ending. This book is fast paced and grabs our attention right from the start. Beckett has a tragic experience at Wyatt College that haunts her to this day and once she moved away she said she would never go back.....then her daughter (Delilah) gets a full scholarship to the exact school she has been avoiding. When Delilah calls her mom and the call is dropped, Beckett races to the university to find her daughter and praying this has nothing to do with her past.

I loved the main characters and fell in love with Beckett's ex husband as soon as he was introduced. The plot twists and the engagement between the past and present were spot on. The build up of what happened to her daughter and how her parents were even involved keep your interest going. Then the end happens and it's just like boom, the author got tired of writing. So many things were left undone and while I don't mind there being loose ends but this was just so abrupt and too many things were left open. Otherwise it was a great book.

You Belong Here is the newest book by Megan Miranda, releasing on 07/29/25. I’ve read a couple of her previous books and liked them all so was really excited when I got approved for this one. This story features Beckett with a troubled past who was forced to leave her small hometown nearly two decades ago when tragedy struck at her college. Now, her daughter Delilah, has applied to said college and Beckett is forced to confront her past when her daughter goes missing. Beckett isn’t alone though because someone has not forgotten what really happened those twenty years ago. This was a fast paced mystery that started and didn’t stop until the end. This college campus sounds creepy af and the setting really helped build the suspense where. I was entertained and suspicious of many people throughout the story. Some characters make questionable choices that had me want to shake them lol but there were also some creepy moments. Overall this kept me invested and I had a good time reading this. Check this out when it releases later this month and see if you can figure it out before the end!

This one was interesting for sure. It was my first Megan Miranda read and I enjoyed it. It follows a mom (Beckett) and her daughter (Delilah) through dual timelines. One being the present where Beckett finds out that her daughter applied to and was accepted to the college Beckett swore she would never return to. The college she attended and fled because 2 men were murdered and her roommate was the prime suspect. Beckett is now forced to return to the small picturesque Virginia town that still holds many secrets. There were a lot of twists and I enjoyed the way both timelines were presented. The o it thing I wish there was more explanation on was what role the townspeople had in the college howling ritual.

Beckett Bowery never thought she’d return to Wyatt Valley, a picturesque college town in the Virginia mountains steeped in tradition. Her roots there were strong: Beckett’s parents taught at the college, and she never even imagined studying anywhere else—until a tragedy her senior year ended with two local men dead, and her roommate on the run, never to be seen again…

For the last two decades, Beckett has done her best to keep her distance. Then her daughter Delilah secretly applies and earns a full scholarship, and Beckett can only hope that her lingering fears are unfounded. But deep down she knows that Wyatt Valley has a long memory, and that the past isn’t the only dangerous thing in town…