After Willingham's last novel and attempt to write a more juvenile story, she's back with a grown-up novel full of mystery and family secrets.
The setting was lovely and atmospheric. The main character was easily relatable and realistic. Characters' development were on point and the conclusion, even though not necessarily original, can pass as unpredictable by less hardcore mystery readers.
I've had a great time with this book, and I highly recommend it to anyone who has read one (or both) of Stacy's first 2 novels and enjoyed it.

This was an atmospheric mystery that was super bingeable. I didn’t expect some of the twists which is always fun. My biggest complaint is that I felt like there were some questions I would have liked answered in the end. Otherwise I really enjoyed this and read it in one day. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

The vibes here? Haunting! Get ready to spiral into your next summer of secrets 🤫

FORGET ME NOT by STACY WILLINGHAM
Genre: thriller/suspense 
Rating: 4.5 ⭐️

If you love a moody, atmospheric thriller that feels like the sticky heat of summer, this one is calling your name! Willingham delivers on a twisty, deeply emotional story that grabs you by the throat and doesn’t let go.

The writing is immersive and beautifully unsettling as each page drips with atmosphere. The characters elicited just the right amount of emotion too. I love when an author can make me despise someone so much or root for them with every page!

Can’t forget to mention that Willingham is a master of the slow-burn spiral. Just when you think you’ve got it figured out, she pulls the rug out from under you. There were a few twists here I genuinely did not see coming, but it all clicks into place at the end.

As some other reviewers have mentioned, the pacing stutters a bit in spots, but honestly, the eerie pull of this story pulls it back on track. You’ll get plenty of small-town secrets, mother-daughter tension, and a constant sense of “is someone watching me?”

If you’ve ever wondered what it would feel like to dig up the truth no matter how painful, or dangerous, then you’re going to devour this one!

Big thanks to the author, publisher, and @netgalley for this early copy! I’ll be wandering that vineyard in my mind for a while 💀

"Forget Me Not" by Stacy Willingham eventually delivers, but it takes a while to get there.

I’ve come to expect strong writing and suspense from Willingham, and while "Forget Me Not" ultimately lives up to that, the first half felt like a slow burn that struggled to fully hook me. It wasn't until the story hit its stride in the second half that I was fully engaged.

The novel follows Claire Campbell, who returns to her South Carolina hometown nearly 20 years after her sister’s mysterious disappearance. What begins as a trip to confront old grief and reconnect with her distant mother quickly turns into a chilling unraveling of secrets—both personal and deeply rooted in the town's past.

The premise—a decades-old disappearance in a small Southern town—immediately intrigued me. And once Claire begins to peel back the layers of the past, the eerie atmosphere and creeping tension really shine. The back half of the book flies by, with twists and reveals that had me audibly reacting.

Though it took time to find its rhythm, the payoff is worth it. If you can push through the slower build, you’ll be rewarded with a gripping, twist-filled ride! 4. stars

Following the success of the runaway best seller, A Flicker in the Dark, Stacy Willingham returns to the murky waters of Southern Gothic suspense with Forget Me Not, a story that examines how trauma reverberates across decades. Coming out August 26, the novel focuses on Claire Campbell, a journalist who has spent 22 years running from the ghosts of her past.
Haunted by the tragic murder of her sister Natalie, an event that drove their parents apart, Claire escaped her South Carolina hometown of Claxton for a fresh start in New York City at The New York Journal. She has not been back since she left 15 years ago but an unexpected call from her father brings her back home to deal with all of it again.
Now a freelance writer with her own schedule, she decides to take a job for the summer in the nearby Galloway Farm where her sister once worked before she disappeared. She will be picking grapes and doing other farm chores while staying on the farm in the guest house where she makes a surprising discovery: an old journal.
The past and present begin to be woven together as Claire uses her journalistic skills and the mysterious diary to create a narrative about the history of the farm and its people. What seems to be a tranquil atmosphere is anything but as the diary starts to reveal the story of a runaway teenage girl whose love for an older man turns into something dangerous as long-unsolved crimes are detailed in its pages. Claire believes the account holds clues to Natalie’s fate.
As things turn dark and mysterious, it is a race to the finish for readers to discover just what happened on the farm…and where the bodies are buried.
Stacy Willingham had remarkable success with her debut novel, A Flicker in the Dark. Actress Emma Stone’s production company along with HBO Max are developing a series based on the novel. Willingham lives in Charleston, South Carolina, with her family.
My review will be posted on Goodreads starting July 7, 2025.
I would like to thank Minotaur Books, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in return for an objective review.

Unfortunately, this wasn’t my favorite of hers. I had a feeling I knew where this one was going early on. For the most part, I was correct, so it lost a bit of its appeal. This is definitely a thriller filled with family drama. I found the setting more compelling than the characters.

Read if you enjoy…
▪️southern thrillers
▪️family dramas
▪️isolated settings
▪️alternating timelines
▪️cult-ish trope

Thank you @netgalley and @stmartinspress. 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐌𝐞 𝐍𝐨𝐭 publishes August 26th.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC. - I received both an eARC and an advanced audiobook from Macmillan audio and listened to the story. However, the review remains the same.

Ah... unfortunately, Stacy Willingham's newest novel was not for me. The first 1/3 of the book had so many lines describing things as comparisons to other things (what terrible language I am using) and I found myself rolling my eyes. I could hardly get through it.

By the time the story picked up and the mystery kicked off, I was already kind of checked out.

I enjoyed the character development of Claire, her distress over losing her sister, and her strained relationship with her mother. She is at a crossroads and needs to move on with her life, not live in the shadow of her sister's disappearance. The balance between what Claire knows and when in regards to her sister's disappearance moves the plot and creates a great deal of tension. This was a well-constructed thriller with fully developed characters.

This book started off very slowly for me and it just never really clicked. I absolutely loved ‘A Flicker in the Dark’ so was slightly disappointed this one did not connect with me as strongly.

This novel makes you asks: How far would you go to uncover the truth? And what happens when the place you sought for healing becomes the key to everything you were trying to forget. A fast-paced and gripping Southern thriller, which delivers an addictive blend of suspense, mystery, and atmospheric tension perfect for fans of Stacy Willingham’s work.

I loved this one! I have yet to find a Stacy Willingham that I did not enjoy, but this one was next level. I have read several books that tried to give the culty vibe, but none have pulled it off like this one! There were numerous twists and turns that kept me on my feet and bonus points because they all made perfect sense. This book was a "read in one sitting" type of book!

Forget Me Not is a haunting and beautifully written story about a woman trying to find her way while holding on to the memory of her sister. It’s layered with quiet emotion, unexpected twists, and a sense that not everything—or everyone—is quite what they seem. As she searches for herself, she’s also pulled into a new mystery, which adds urgency and heart to the story. It’s not over-the-top dramatic, but it kept me engaged the whole way through. A thoughtful, memorable read that strikes just the right balance.

I was really excited to read Forget Me Not! The premise hooked me right away, and Stacy Willingham has a knack for creating emotionally complex female leads. I appreciated the atmospheric details of Galloway Farm and the way Claire’s past slowly unraveled alongside the mystery of her sister’s disappearance.

That said, I struggled to stay fully engaged. While the book started strong, the pacing lagged a bit in the middle, and I found myself wanting more depth in both the character relationships and the emotional stakes. The mystery itself was compelling but didn’t quite land with the impact I was hoping for.

Still, fans of dark thrillers might find a lot to enjoy here. For me, it was a solid read, just not my favorite from this author.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC!

THE TWISTS TWISTED SO HARD!

Thank YOU Stacy and NetGalley for this ARC. I sped read it because I couldn't put it down. What a thriller! I pride myself on figuring out the twists but I was not able to, and the shock I felt reading this book!!

Forget Me Not, is a beautiful story surrounding the lengths one will go for the ones they love, but it's also a haunting story.. a heartbreaking story about misplaced love and trust. The atmosphere for this book was spot on, it gave me a claustrophobic feeling. It was creepy, chilling and strange. And again, I may have suspected something but I didn't see the twists until they were right in my face!

I'm a big fan of Stacy Willingham, hello Flicker in the Dark and All the Dangerous Things!!! But I think this one is my new number one of hers.

Forget Me Not by Stacy Willingham is a gripping psychological thriller that kept me guessing with its unexpected twists. The suspense builds steadily. A compelling read for fans of mystery and crime fiction.

Stacy Willingham hits another one out of the park with Forget Me Not!

Claire is in a dark place, maybe she has been since her sister went missing, was presumed dead and she never got over it. Now down on her luck, heading out of the city, back to the south she uncovers way more than she bargained for in her small home town. This was dark, twisty, and full of suspenseful twists I genuinely didn’t see coming. This really hooked me - kept my interest and didn’t let me go until the bitter end. My only bone to pick was the snake scene. OMG WHY!

This book was a 4.5 star rounded up. It was absolutely gripping, I read it from start to finish within 24 hours. My only frustration is that when the main character had the opportunity to provide certain evidence to the officer, like the diary for example, she didn’t and just walked away and went right back to the farm, which we all inevitably knew would possibly be her demise. It was one of those instances when you were watching a scary movie and the main character does the most idiotic thing that everyone knows you shouldn’t do. Other than that, I love the short chapters. I was engaged the entire time, and even though I guessed some of the twists, there were still twists in the end I didn’t see coming.

★★★★

Stacy Willingham never fails to impress, and Forget Me Not is no exception. This is one book you won’t forget anytime soon!

Nearly 20 years after her older sister’s mysterious disappearance, Claire Campbell returns to her South Carolina hometown for the first time since high school. What starts as an attempt to face old grief and reconnect with her estranged mother quickly turns into a summer of unraveling long-buried secrets tied to both her family and the town itself.

I was hooked from the premise alone, an unsolved disappearance in a small Southern town instantly caught my attention. As Claire digs deeper into the past, strange memories and revelations start to surface, and things get increasingly eerie in the best way.

The first half of the book is a slow, simmering build full of tension and unanswered questions. But once things start unraveling, the pace picks up fast. I devoured the second half in one sitting. Just when you think you’ve figured it all out, Willingham throws in twists that had me literally gasping out loud.

Willingham masterfully builds a sense of unease, and her atmospheric writing is one of my favorite things about this book. The thick, southern heat, the crashing storms… it all adds to the story’s unsettling vibe. She even weaves in Occam’s razor: the idea that the simplest explanation is often the right one. But as this story shows, even the simplest answer isn’t always the truth.

A haunting, twisty, and atmospheric thriller that cements Stacy Willingham as a must-read author for me!!!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Woman with a missing sister returns home to small town where things are not as they seem… you know the drill. The main character is supposed to be an investigative journalist but continues to make the dumbest decisions imaginable. Boring, predictable, probably shouldn’t have bothered finishing this one. And can we please stop using diary entries in mystery/thrillers, nobody writes full blown dialogue and play by play descriptions of events in their high school journal!?!!?!

I love every book this author writes! Her stories are always so atmospheric and suspenseful. I felt this novel had a bit more depth then her prior books

Claire Campbell has moved on from her traumatic past, living and working in the big city. Her older sister disappeared two decades ago in her small hometown in South Carolina. She finds herself heading back to care for her estranged mother but her plans take a unique turn when she decides to settle in at a guest cottage on Galloway Farm

The owners, while odd, don’t bother her, but she can’t help but feeling like something is off. Then she finds the diary of a past missing woman, describing her time with the owners. Clues begin to appear and she can’t help but connect this woman’s story to her sister’s disappearance..

It’s easy to keep wanting to write this review but I’ll stop there as I don’t want to share any spoilers. You’ll have to read it to find out what happens next!