The Wonder State was a gorgeous read, and I enjoyed it so much that I immediately checked out Sara Flannery Murphy’s previous novels from my local library. In many ways, the book was a surprise to me. The set up is a familiar one from a lot of thrillers: former high school friends reunited by a long-buried secret surfacing. No shade here—I love tropes and there’s a reason I Know What You Did Last Summer is so much fun. However, The Wonder State goes in a different direction, leaning hard into the speculative and into the emotional bonds between the characters. Don’t get me wrong—it’s definitely a puzzle box of a book, and an excellent one. I had to stop myself from skipping ahead several times just to see if my suspicions were correct.

For me, where this book shone was in its deft and nuanced characterization. All of the high school friends appear one dimensional tropes at first glance (the jock with a heart of gold, the rich and disreputable siblings, the redneck girl with an addiction problem who was left behind, the Black nerd…) but quickly became real people with interesting and complicated motivations. In many ways, this is a book about childhood friendship as a kind of romance, a first love that marks you forever. I loved this novel and the story stayed with me long after I finished it.

On a minor note, it was also such a pleasure to read a book set in Arkansas by someone local who loves and appreciates the region and is able to offer more than a stereotypical one dimensional picture of it. If you loved Eternal Springs, I recommend a visit to Eureka Springs, where there may not be any mysterious and magical houses but there’s still a lot of beauty.


Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for an early copy of this book.

There's something about The Wonder State by Sara Flannery Murphy that reminded me of The Secret History. A group of friends. A shared secret. A tragedy.

A group of friends are summoned by a cryptic letter from a high-school friend. When they all return, they have to confront their past and what they left behind. But...that's the simple summary. This is more about the desire to be somewhere else, to escape your circumstances, to have a better life. It's falling in love and wanting to stop time.

Come into this book with an openness for magic, for retribution, for friendship and rekindled love.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review.