You Belong Here by Megan Miranda is another outstanding thriller!
This book was full of twists! The setting for this book was absolutely incredible and drew me in from the very beginning.
When I pick up a book by Megan Miranda, I know I'm in for an entertaining read with a great plot, fun twists and interesting characters.
Suspenseful, tense and a great story.
If you’re looking for a twisty, atmospheric thriller pick this up.
Overall, this was a very suspenseful and tense read that will keep you guessing until the end.

Megan Miranda is one of my top authors that never gets it wrong. Her dynamic writing takes you down several "What-ifs" and whodunit, changing the puzzle several times. I love a college trope of sorority and fraternity issues and the main character's POV takes you through her college years and now to her daughter's present time at the same college she attended and where her parents were professors. The setting is high in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia at the Wyatt College, the small town of Wyatt Valley still remembers the scandal involving one of Beckett's roommates 20 years ago. During a night of hazing called "the Howling", which involves running through the dark woods and making it back to school before the seniors wearing masks catch them, a tragedy occurs. After her roommate, Adalyn, sets a building on fire that kills two victims, it is believed Beckett was an accomplice. Adalyn was never found and Beckett was never charged or proved. She moved far away from the town vowing never to return and even her job is hidden behind her ghostwriting job.
Strange things happen after she receives a phone call from her daughter Delilah's phone, and discovers she has disappeared. It has been said it is a re-enactment of the Howling. Entering an old flame is, Clint, now Dean of the school. This mother is out for answers and will stop at nothing to get them.
The setting is intriguing, as the school portrays tunnels under the campus where it is mysterious and creepy in itself. I stayed an enthusiast throughout after the slow go at first. Keep up the good work, Megan Miranda. I can't wait for your next thriller.
Thank you NetGalley and Simon Element | S&S/ Marysue Rucci Books for this incredible ARC.

This novel is the definition of a slow burn. For the first two parts, the pacing crawls as we meet the characters, learn about their routines, and wait for something—anything—to spark. The much-hyped senior tradition that’s hinted at in the jacket copy doesn’t really take shape until Part 3, and by then, only the most patient readers will stick around to see it unfold.

You Belong Here by Megan Miranda is a twisty, atmospheric thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat from start to finish. I was hooked by the small-town secrets, layered characters, and the slow unraveling of the past colliding with the present. Miranda delivers a steady stream of suspense and red herrings that kept me guessing until the very end. Just when I thought I had it figured out, another twist came along!

If you love stories that make you question every character’s motives and enjoy peeling back layers of mystery, this one’s for you. It’s smart, unsettling, and a compelling reminder that the truth is rarely as simple as it seems.

Thank you to Marysue Rucci Books (@marysueruccibooks), Simon & Schuster, @meganlmiranda! and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review!

A small town with dark happenings, a long memory with grudges galore and a woman who fled twenty years ago is now returning because her daughter has chosen to go to the college there. And a creepy yet awesome tradition banned after she left but still going on called the Howling and so many secrets plus a few bodies. That setting was awesome and so I did end up finding it hard to put the book down as the story unravels between past and present from Beckett's roommate, Adalyn vanishing after supposedly killing two guys during their last Howling and what happens when Beckett finally returns, bringing her daughter Delilah who is also targeted. All have a part to play and it was nicely twisty and while the dread slowly creeps in for the first part, after Delilah goes missing, it is nonstop action, thrills, and truths revealed and you won't know who is guilty, who will die, and who will pay the price for actions both in the present and past.

While this was not my favorite book by Megan Miranda, it did a great job of being a thrilling tale. Props to the cover with the background Don't, which definitely applies to Beckett. Small towns sure are not forgiving but I did really like, despite that, she goes back willingly to save her daughter. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the chance to read this book!

I was excited to get a copy of the new Megan Miranda book. Beckett is a single mom who is forced to face her suspicious past when she returns to the college town where she grew up.
So many secrets….secrets that will not stay buried.
The first half was pretty good but the ending wasn’t too great.
This pacing of the story is little slow. It is a ok psychological thriller/suspense.
Thank you for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

You Belong Here is a mystery/thriller that had chilling, creepy vibes right from the start. It's been a while since I have read such an atmospheric story, where the setting itself almost seems like a main character. This book takes place in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia, in a small town that surrounds the Wyatt College campus. While reading, I could feel the tension between the locals and the college students from their shared history, and the slow burn suspense kept my interest the whole time. It seemed a bit all over the place until it started to come together, and all the loose ends were (mostly) tied up. This is the first book I've read by Megan Miranda, but it definitely won't be the last.

A twisty, dark academia mystery with old secrets, accidents and scary chases. Reminds me of Parents Weekend by Alex Finley and School of Lies by Laura Ling Brown.

Beckett left Wyatt college years ago after a terrible nightmare and never saw her roommate and best friend again. Now, her daughter has accepted a scholarship to attend the college. After a cryptic text, her daughter goes missing.

This is a typical Megan Miranda, fun and easily digestible if you want to fly through a fun mystery book. Nice and repetitive if you enjoy audiobooks or just need that for plot purposes. The twists and reveals might be a tad predictable, but they are well paced.

Thank you to Simon Element and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Book to be published July 28, 2025.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ (4.75 stars)
Spoiler Alert Below

Megan Miranda does it again with You Belong Here — a chilling, atmospheric mystery that kept me hooked from the first page to the last. A huge thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the opportunity to read this Advanced Copy in exchange for an honest review.

The story had me completely immersed. I truly felt like I was walking the old, eerie college campus myself — full of secrets, shadows, and a creeping sense that something wasn’t quite right. Miranda’s setting is pitch-perfect: haunting, claustrophobic, and just isolated enough to make you second-guess everyone.

What I loved most was the intense, unbreakable bond between Delilah and her family. Their commitment to protect one another at all costs felt powerful and emotional, adding depth to the tension. You could feel the weight of shared history and unspoken truths pulling at each character.

That said, I’m giving this 4.75 instead of a full 5 stars because a few lingering questions were never quite answered. Spoilers ahead: We never really learn why Adalyn was on campus in the first place — what did she really want from Delilah and Beckett? Her motivations felt murky. Also, why was Bryce never held accountable? His role in what happened was deeply unsettling, and it seemed like he got to disappear without consequences. I found myself wishing for just a bit more clarity on those plot threads.

Still, Miranda’s talent for psychological suspense and character-driven storytelling shines through. If you love layered mysteries with morally complex characters and a setting that creeps under your skin, You Belong Here is a must-read.

You Belong Here
This was a thriller that started as a slow burn but Its pace really picked up in the second half of the book! It is twisty with big secrets and kept me guessing and on edge up until the end!
I liked the dual timeline and the setting of the book! I also enjoyed the characters!
Thanks Net Galley, Simon element & Marysue Rucci Books for this Arc!

Wow! Brilliant! Dark!! I was hooked by the end of the first page! It kept my interest until the last page! A dark and twisty thriller that will be your next beach read!

I picked up You Belong Here by Megan Miranda with high expectations—and for the most part, it delivered.

Right from the start, the atmosphere wraps around you like fog: dense, slightly disorienting, and impossible to ignore. Set in a vividly drawn college town, the story leans into its setting with eerie tunnels, secret passages, and a deep undercurrent of unease that builds beautifully. This isn’t just a twisty thriller—it’s emotionally resonant, too. Miranda weaves in themes of broken friendships, complicated family bonds, and guilt that refuses to fade, adding real depth to the suspense.

That said, the beginning dragged a bit for me. The pacing is uneven early on, and it took a while to find its rhythm. Once it did, though, I was hooked.

Beckett, our unreliable narrator, is compelling but frustrating. Her shifting suspicions—sometimes within the same scene—made it tough to fully invest in her perspective. One minute she trusts someone; the next, she’s convinced they’re hiding something sinister. While this kept the mystery alive, it also bordered on dizzying. I found myself wishing for a bit more consistency in her internal logic. And I won’t lie—some elements of the ending had me scratching my head. A few key moments felt, frankly, implausible.

But despite the bumps along the way, there’s something undeniably gripping about this book. The slow-burn tension worked its way under my skin, and once it took hold, I devoured the final chapters in one sitting. The suspense may be subtle rather than pulse-pounding, but that made it all the more haunting.

In the end, You Belong Here is a story that trades on atmosphere and emotional stakes more than shock value—and that’s exactly what I enjoyed most. If you can push through the slow start and embrace a narrator who keeps you guessing (and occasionally eye-rolling), the payoff is there. For readers who like their thrillers with a side of introspection and eerie stillness, this one’s worth a spot on your TBR pile.

Solid read

I enjoyed this book, but didn't find it as compelling as some of the author's previous work. The story revolves around Beckett, the daughter of two university professors, and her daughter, Delilah. Beckett was attending the college where her parents taught when there was a fire that killed two people. Beckett's roommate disappeared that night. The story goes back to that time and you know Beckett was involved, but the how is slowly meted out.

Delilah decided to go to the same school, against her mother's wishes. When Beckett receives a middle of the night call from her daughter's phone, but there is nobody on the other end, Beckett immediately drove to the college to make sure her daughter was safe. But she could not find her.

The story was good and the ending satisfying, but somehow it didn't capture me enough to give it 5 stars. I strongly recommend it, especially for fans of the author, but I also recommend her other work.

This was my first book by the author but unfortunately I did not love it. For me, it was slow and I did not connect with the plot or characters. I felt that the Howling was not properly explained and I did not understand fully what it was. I did like how it ended but I had a hard time getting there. I will give her books another try though. Maybe it was just this one for me!

A mother with a dark past that she tried to leave behind after college but then her daughter applies for that same college. The past didn't want to stay buried for long but this time it's her daughter.

Beckett left Wyatt Valley under a cloud of suspicion when a traditional college hazing known as the Howling went sideways. Two men died and Beckett's roommate disappeared. Now, many years later, her daughter Delilah is a student there, having applied in secret and with a full scholarship Problem is that someone is out for revenge and Delilah is at risk. This moves through Beckett's life and the plot really picks up in the present, when the twists come and the secrets are exposed. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. It's classic Miranda territory and a page turner that will be great for travel.

Megan Miranda’s You Belong Here is a shifty thriller that had me completely off‑balance, in the best way possible. From the start, I was hooked; this was a wild, twisty ride.

The story kicks off with Beckett Bowery, who fled the quintessential college town of Wyatt Valley after a disastrous senior year. Two men dead, a roommate vanished, and rumors swirling that Beckett might’ve been involved. For twenty years, she’s kept her distance- but when her daughter Delilah secretly wins a full scholarship to the same college, Beckett can’t ignore the past or her estranged parents, anymore.

Miranda’s established ability to keep you guessing still had me doing double takes and questioning EVERYONE. The list of folks I suspected just kept growing, loyalties became murky, and every time I thought I knew who was behind the mystery, that certainty would be snatched away.

If you’re looking for a twisty page-turner, filled with a layered, complicated mystery reveal, timeline collisions, emotional chaos, and strong but vulnerable female characters, Megan Miranda is your gal. It did not disappoint.

Huge thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster (The Simon Element & Marysue Rucci Books ) for the advanced reader copy of this incredible thriller, I don’t get paid to read these twisty books and these thoughts are all my own.

I was lucky enough yo get an advanced copy of this book and was thrilled to read it, as I love Megan Miranda books. This one started off with a missing college student from 20 years ago, then flashes back to present day. While it was twisty and I didn’t see the ending coming, I wouldn’t say this book was one of my absolute favorites.

this is one word……. BRILLIANT!!! I read this and loved it so much that I wanted a hardcover copy and chose it as my book of the month. I would always recommend any book by Megan Miranda.

Always love Megan Miranda books and this one was no exception. Devoured it in less than a day! I liked the mother-daughter tension and while some parts were a bit predictable, it was certainly still worth the read.