This story follows our FMC Stephanie as she attends her estranged sister Aurelie's wedding with an ulterior motive of trying to solve a mystery from their past. The story is moody and atmospheric, and I found the pacing to be a bit slow. There is also some timeline jumping that I found confusing to follow in the audiobook format. That being said, the narrators voice is so lovely! I found the writing to be a bit verbose for my taste, but at least I enjoyed listening to it! While this wasn't my favorite, I would rate it a solid three stars, and will be checking out what Claire Ackroyd comes out with next.


I'd like to thank Netgalley, Lake Union Publishing, and author Claire Ackroyd for this ARC in exchange for my unbiased opinion.

The Surfacing by Claire Ackroyd was a good listen, atmospheric, well-written, and intriguing enough to keep me interested throughout. The setting was vivid, and the premise had a lot of potential, which is what initially drew me in. I found myself pulled along by the mystery and wanting to know how it would all unfold.

That said, I felt like the story didn’t quite go as deep as it could have. The characters, while interesting, felt a little underdeveloped. I would’ve loved more emotional nuance and backstory to fully connect with them and their motivations. The narration itself was smooth and well-paced, which made it easy to stay engaged, even when the story felt a bit surface-level.

Overall, I enjoyed it and would still recommend it to a friend, especially someone who likes a quiet, slow-burning mystery. It’s a solid listen, just one that I wish had dug a little deeper.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced audiobook copy.

The Surfacing by Claire Ackroyd and narrated by Elizabeth Knowelden, I was so lucky to have read this book but when the audiobook came out I had to listen to it. It just goes to show what a great book this was and the audiobook was superb. This book was a well written and all the characters were perfect for this audiobook. I really enjoyed listening to it.
I found it a great holiday listen or relaxing on your day off.

It was twelve years since teenager Peter Ferguson drowned in Loch Ness in Scotland. On the very same night Stephanie and her sister, Aurelie, were camping on its shores. Sadly their family life as they knew it fell apart, they became sisters that no longer speak to each other. As years go by, Aurelie is getting married, Stephanie realises that a reunion might finally bring the truth out into the open, about that fateful night to the surface.

As the wedding celebrations get underway, tongues loosen amongst the guest , and dangerous whispers circulate all around them. There is real danger that the whole truth will come out about that night which will break them all apart forever.

Secrets maybe hidden deep and forever, but they have a way of coming out to the surface. the clock is ticking and their secrets are boiling to the surface. . . . .

Superb audiobook and the narrator Elizabeth Knowelden was excellent!

Big thank you to Brilliance Publishing | Brilliance Audio for my audiobook. x

This for most of the story is 3 however the plot twist at the end and the narration definitely scored higher at 4, all the characters were easy to understand and follow.

Overall this was an enjoyable listen we are introduced to the fmc Stephanie who is going to her sisters wedding albeit not overly excited about it when their are old stories that haven’t been revealed by their mother.

Although Stephanie wouldn’t have felt it the time or place to handle any situation on her sister’s wedding day some things just won’t go away and they come to surface anyway. Particularly as the wedding is being held at their old holiday destination where a lot of their family ties are linked and the stories buried.

With thanks to NetGalley & Brilliance Audio for this ELC in return for an open honest review 🙏🏼❤️🎧📚

I’m really surprised that the ratings aren’t a bit higher for this title. It’s the most I’ve enjoyed a mystery/thriller in a while. I didn’t guess the ending, or the actual end either and that’s always a massive win for be.

All in all a cracking debut, our fmc is snippy, snarky and I found her to be really funny, but as the story progressed I could also empathise with her. Set on a location wedding we first meet Stephanie as she makes her way to her estranged sisters wedding, the location is where they spent childhood holidays, and also at the root of a lot of longhand secrets, the story itself it plotted really well and flips seamlessly between now and then, there are some beautiful descriptions of some lovely parts of Scotland if you fancy a visit, and as I said I did not guess the outcome. I really enjoyed Ackroyds writing style and use of language.

I’ll look forward to more to come from the author, and I absolutely loved the narration, Elizabeth Knowelden felt like the perfect fit for Stephanie 🎧

Huge thanks to Brilliance Audio via NetGalley for the opportunity to review this audiobook which is available now.