Forget Me Not” by Stacey Willingham had potential, but unfortunately, it didn’t live up to the expectations of a gripping thriller. The plot was a painfully slow burn that struggled to hold my attention, with the suspense not really kicking in until around 75% of the way through the book. By then, it felt like too little too late. I was especially disappointed because Stacey Willingham quickly became a favorite author of mine after her first few books, which were far more engaging and well-paced. The only saving grace here was the ending, which finally delivered some tension and intrigue—but it wasn’t quite enough to redeem the rest of the book.

Forget Me Not by Stacy Willingham is a mysterious slow burn thriller about a journalist who returns to her hometown and discovers there might be more to her missing sister than she realized. This book is very well written and the plot is well paced. While there’s not much action, the sequence of events of Claire unraveling the mystery is very engaging. I loved the incorporation of Marcia’s journal and how that advanced the present timeline. All of the resolutions were satisfying and I felt as though the loose ends were tied up well. This is my new favorite book by this author and I highly recommend it. (4.5/5)

**This ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.**

I’ve read a lot of thrillers over the years and find most formulaic and easy to predict. I rarely give out 4 stars to a thriller. But this one is well deserved!

Stacy Willingham is one of my favorite thriller writers because in addition to the twists and turns the reader expects, she also delivers complex characters and well paced plots. I liked Claire’s backstory and the fact that she was an investigative journalist. It made sense why she was tirelessly digging for the truth.

The last quarter of this book had me up way too late trying to figure out what was happening next. There were so many bombshells and reveals in quick succession that it could have felt rushed or overdone but it really worked. Everyone had secrets and when they were finally revealed, the plot made sense.

This was a fun ride that I devoured in 2 days. Top notch thriller.

I received an advanced reader copy of this book through NetGalley. It will be published in August 2026.

I could not put this book down! I felt immersed in the farm, the mystery, and the fast-paced twists and turns. I love when a story has me questioning the narrator’s sanity.. I liked how the POV switched back and forth from the diary to the present day. One of my favorites in a while, highly recommend.

Stacy Willingham continues to be one of my favorite thriller authors. I am so grateful for an early copy of this book. Atmospheric and chilling, I could not put this novel down, reading until I could barely keep my eyes open. One of my favorite suspense books I've read this year. Thank you Minotaur and NetGalley.

This was a twisty thriller with a very dark atmosphere. The story of a man , Mitchell, who grooms multiple girls over many years in order to get what he wants from life- a family who he controls and a private life living on Galloway farm. How everything is connected in the end was very cleverly written and I didn’t guess the surprise at the end. This was a quick read and if you enjoy thrillers you will like this one. It is not my favorite book by willingham but still very compelling and lots of twists. Thank you NetGalley for the digital copy. All opinions are my own.

I needed a few days to think about this book. I couldn’t actually get it off my mind. There was so much going on. Stacy Willingham is such a descriptive author. I will start by saying that I thought I had this book figured out pretty early on. I did not. There were more twists and turns than I ever could have imagined. Some of the biggest to me - Lily’s reveal and that she killed Marcia. Annie, their mother, having lived on “the farm”. Liam and Natalie being siblings. The chief being Montana, so obviously corrupt. I was relieved they found out the truth about Katherine, and that they found her camper in the forget me nots. I was glad Liam came clean, and was also finally free from being imprisoned at the Galloway. Mitchell being the leader, the groomer, was so ick. Going back to this author’s insane descriptions, I felt gross in the camper and like I could smell his smoke. The way he spoke to Marcia the first night, I knew exactly what he was doing. It was emotional to read Marcia’s POV through her diary. I wanted to save her, to tell her to run so fast and so far! To finish this up, I just want to thank NetGalley and Stacy Willingham and her team for allowing me access to this ARC for my honest review. I really liked the book. It was emotional, and even though it has a lot going on and you definitely had to pay attention, it wrapped up nicely in the end. Wasn’t a huge fan of the epilogue, but I get it. She was able to actually tell the stories of these peoples’ lives, whereas before in her career, she never felt she gave them enough. 4 ⭐️

This author is becoming one of my favorites. Her newest, Forget Me Not, is a slow burn thriller that concentrates on the characters rather than non stop action. Claire comes home to help her mother recover and begins unraveling family secrets connected to her long gone sister. The timeline is the present with flashbacks to journal entries, and it's easy to make the transition and not get confused. I had some frustration with one character, but I enjoyed the story and the twists. It was very atmospheric (as Stacy Willingham's books tend to be) and will be a great read for hot, lazy summer days.

This is the second book I’ve ready by this author both of which were very good! I stayed up way past my bedtime several nights reading this book! There were several twist that I did not see coming! Claire in back near her home town learning more about her sister!

Stacy Willingham is one of the best thriller authors of our time in my humble opinion. Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book. This story was everything I look for in a thriller and more. Stacy Willingham’s ability to write is simply next level. She crafts the most unique and eerie stories coupled with incredibly eloquent writing that grips you with every word. I cannot wait for this book to be published. I think this book will be one day at the same level as books such as Gone Girl, a modern classic recommended for years to come.

This was very twisty. I love a good plot twist. It took me a little while to get into this book but once I did I had to keep readying.
Thank you Netgallery for this ARC

One thing that did frustrate me in this book was how Claire’s mom kept all the information from her about the farm… I felt like she knew what happened to Natalie but couldn’t tell Claire…

Another great thriller from Stacy Willingham! I love when I can figure some things out but when there are some big surprises too. And this book was great in that way.

22 years ago when Claire was 11 years old, her 18 year old sister disappeared, never to be found. When Claire’s father convinces her to come home for a month to help her mom heal from a broken leg, Claire begins to piece together details from her sister’s last few months of life with the help from a 40 year old diary.

This is a slower moving character driven thriller. Told in two timelines with some overlapping characters, it’s fun to try and figure out how all these people fit together. And the ending is very satisfying which is great to not be left with tons of questions.

I received this Advanced Readers Copy via NetGalley. It releases Aug 26, 2025.

4⭐️

A slow burn that was suspenseful and intriguing. I enjoyed the past chapters and it was exciting seeing everything come together. Some of the twists were good and surprising! Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was not for me. It was boring, I couldn’t get into the story at all. Which surprised me because I have really enjoyed all of Stacy’s other books. I got to 52% and decided to DNF for now. At 52% in the book nothing has happened and I don’t really know if something is going to happen. There is a theme of kidnapping/traffiking/polygamy however, I don’t know which or even if any of these things are happening I am just grasping. maybe I will pick it up again at a later date and find it more exciting.

Forget Me Not is my third book by Stacy Willingham, and she continues to prove why she’s become a must-read author on my shelf. This story pulled me in from the start, but it’s the last 20% that really blew me away—packed with twist after twist - I couldn’t stop reading! 4.5 stars!!

This book dives deep into family secrets, the bond (and complexity) of sisterly love, and the haunting consequences of past trauma. At its heart, it's a story about brave women—some broken, some fierce, all layered and real. Willingham also weaves in an unsettling undercurrent of danger, exploring how men can lurk at the edges of women’s lives, especially those seen as vulnerable—whether they’re lonely, grieving, or living under the control of overbearing parents.

Willingham has such a gift for writing suspense that’s not just twisty, but also deeply emotional. Her characters feel human, and the stakes always hit hard. I truly couldn’t put this one down and can’t wait to see what she writes next.

Highly recommend for fans of emotional thrillers with depth and heart!

A big thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the E-ARC in exhange for my honest rev

As always Stacy Willingham slays!

I loved the FMC, so flawed, going through a hard time, still grieving the loss of her sister whilst dealing with unemployment.

When a phone call sends her back to her home town things get really interesting.

I always love books by this author she has a fantastic ability of drawing you in and making you care about the plot and the characters.

Thank you for the gifted copy!

Publish date Aug 26th

Forget Me Not is a moody, atmospheric mystery that pulled me in from the first page and didn’t let go. Stacy Willingham blends slow-burn suspense with rich Southern Gothic vibes in this story of grief, buried secrets, and a sister’s desperate search for the truth.

Claire, an out-of-work NYC journalist, returns home to South Carolina to help her estranged mother—only to find herself working at the same eerie vineyard where her sister Natalie worked before she disappeared 22 years ago. When Claire stumbles across a decades-old diary written by one of the vineyard’s former owners, she uncovers disturbing clues that may tie the past to her sister’s unsolved case.

Told in dual timelines—Claire in the present and diary entries from the 1980s—Willingham masterfully weaves together a chilling story full of cultish undertones, small-town secrets, and emotional depth. The setting was vivid and immersive—I could practically feel the humidity and hear the cicadas. I especially loved the creeping tension and how the clues slowly built into something much darker than I expected.

There are some solid twists, especially toward the end. While some may feel a bit over-the-top or rushed, I found them satisfying and unpredictable. The cult subplot gave me Manson family vibes in the best way.

If you’re into slow-burning psychological thrillers with layered characters, moody Southern settings, and a mystery that keeps you guessing—this one’s for you. Willingham nails it again.

Stacy Willingham’s “Forget Me Not” is an engaging slow burn mystery. Set in the muggy southern summer, Claire is an unemployed NYC journalist home to help her elderly mother. As the story unfolds the reader is taken along as Claire finally grieves the death of her sister two decades later. Beautiful written and with a surprise ending makes for a great read.

Claire is forever haunted by her sister’s death that took place 22 years ago. She tries so move on, but finds herself back in her hometown temporarily after losing her journalism job in the New York City. She ends up working on Galloway Farm where her sister used to work when she was in high school. Claire finds a diary from one of the old vineyard owners, Marcia, and starts seeing correlations between this woman’s life on the farm and with Natalie’s death and disappearance. She is not willing to go back home until she gets some answers.
This story kept me on my toes. It is told from Claire’s point of view and also Marcia’s diary from the 1980s. In the diary/story telling from the past, there were a lot of characters to keep track of—a couple too many in my opinion, but that is one of my only critiques. There was an eerie atmospheric feeling surrounding most of this book that kept me engaged. There are a lot of pieces to this puzzle, cult vibes which I love, and the story is full of twists and turns.
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Matin’s Press for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I’ve read all of Stacy Willingham’s books, and this is yet another solid thriller! Set mostly in rural South Carolina, the story follows Claire, an out of work journalist whose sister disappeared 22 years earlier. She returns home to help her mother after an accident but is soon sucked into the vineyard that her sister worked at briefly before her disappearance. Claire begins living and working there and starts to piece together a bigger mystery…

I liked the dual storylines through the diary; honestly, I love the culty stuff (this had Manson family vibes) so I wish we got more of that story. The ending was twisty and while I predicted some of it, I didn’t see it all coming. There is one part of the ending that felt illogical/unresolved for me and that is my main criticism- I don’t like to leave spoilers so I will stop there! But overall, this is a fast-paced novel with a cool setting, perfect for a summer read.


Thanks again to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book!