The Woman in the Library

This was very confusing honestly. With 3 different storylines? but I can't tell if they're actually different? I don't know I just couldn't keep up

Great read.

A story within a story. Great premise with a murder in the library and sort of a beta-reader & author within the story was different. Good read!

I had this on audio and would sometimes drift off when reading. But solid 3 stars!

Not very interesting, there were interruptions that had little to do with the story, and the ending was not a surprise.

She keeps mentioning how Cain's car is parked here or there in Cambridge or Back Bay, and I find myself asking, WHERE THE F*** ARE THESE PARKING SPOTS AND WHY IS NO ONE COMPLAINING ABOUT THE T??

Also. What was the meaning of the last paragraph???? Why does that person show up?? Not sure I get that bit.

This is my first book by Sulari Gentill and I think she is a good author. I liked the book within a book concept. It wasn't overdone at all IMO. Although Leo bugged me I think he was supposed to. I did like the main mystery and how it was more of a character-based story rather than a quick mystery that is solved and you don't get to know the character that well.

I'm disappointed that this didn't work for me. I even went in with tempered expectations after seeing mixed reviews. I just didn't find the story convincing, at all. The dialogue is stilted, the characters feel flat, and I figured out the murderer about a quarter in. Perhaps this was intentionally cartoonish, but it didn't feel like it was done well enough to justify that.

Let me start this review off by telling you I don't really read mysteries. I read this because my mom (a librarian) saw this book and thought I might like it.
She was right. This book was stunning. There is no way to explain the joy and excitement this book gave me.
It was sweet and funny, but also chilling and anxiety inducing at times.
The characters were great and so well written. This is one of those books where you can feel yourself falling in love with the love interest as the character is falling for them.

I must say, I never thought Cain was the killer, honestly, I was afraid it was Marigold. The fact that it was Whit was completely out of left field! I never would have guessed it was him!

This was such a good book and I highly recommend it on anyone and everyone!!!

I really enjoyed it. It was kind of predictable in the second half, but I very much enjoyed the story and the style in which the novel is written. The narration was also very good.

A book that asks the audacious question “What if a story-within-a-story structure had no purpose or payoff at all?”

(Its side question is “What if we went out of our way to assert things like ‘Americans don't use the word beanie' or ‘Americans never call it a phone, they call it a cell phone'?” The errors were so obvious and unforced that I thought they would comprise some kind of plot point. Incorrect!)

The only thing I liked about this book is what most other reviewers hated: the interspersed letters from a rabid fan. Maybe I liked these bits of commentary on the preceding chapter because they criticized differences in American and Australian word/phrase choice or weaknesses in characterization, plot, etc. Otherwise, this is one of the worst locked-room mysteries I've read. All of the characters begin and end as caricatures with no development.

I'd also like to know how many writers can afford to eat out every meal in expensive Boston. Or why the author chose to set the book during the COVID-19 pandemic, but not one of our main characters ever seems to wear a mask, avoid going out, or take notice of a worldwide plague other than creating a device to keep the fanboy at home for awhile.

I could go on about how many things are wrong with this book, but it's partially my fault; I know better than to read a book with woman or girl in the title.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ – Love the cover of this one!

This was a thoroughly entertaining read. A mystery within a mystery that was amazingly well written and paced. A plot that is clever and keeps you guessing until the end. Wonderful characters and a great setting. What more can you ask for? I knocked this one out in two days.

Interesting, but I was totally confused by the two Leo characters. Was Hannah real? Was she Leo's muse all along? I had theorized that Hannah was a policeman posing as a famous author to draw out a confession from angry, racist Leo. When the Cain/Will/Marigold storyline ended, I expected the finale of the Leo/Hannah storyline. What did I miss?

Just confused.

Lots of weird plot holes and things that didn't really make sense. For instance, how do Freddie and Marigold become “best friends” in three days? And when Leo tells the author about specific words she's using that are more Australian than American it sometimes makes sense, except that Freddie is Australian so it would make sense for at least her to use Australian terms.

And why was Leo suddenly so focused on the pandemic? Was it just to place the story in a time period? I think leaving Leo out and just writing a straightforward novel would let the story flow better. As it was I was pulled out of the story constantly to listen to an unlikeable character blabber on. Why was she sending him her manuscript even? I'm not sure if I missed that part or if that was never explained either.

4.25

3.75/5 stars

I liked the way it went back and forth between chapters and letters. The storyline with both of them was strong and suspenseful. I suspected several people and in the end one of my suspects were right because I suspected everyone at least once. The bad guy gets caught at the end, but it still ends in a creepy note. These characters will stick with me.

LOVED! This was so unsettling, absolutely Un. Nerv. ING! The creepy rollout was such a huge blast, I've never read anything like it. Waiting with bated breath for the sequel, please god let there be a sequel...

I love books that have bookish scenes or content in them. I snagged this one from NetGalley because of the title. I didn't expect to like this one so much to be honest

What a fun, refreshing, clever mystery! This is my first book by Gentill but I'll certainly be going back to check out her previous ones. You know the feeling when you're only a few pages in to a new novel, but you still let out a giant sigh of relief, knowing that regardless where the story takes you, you're in the hands of a writer who knows what she's doing. That was my experience with this fun romp of a mystery, with a murder taking place right under the noses of our four leading characters (who are strangers to each other) at the Boston Public Library and being informed that one of them is actually the killer, though seemingly none of them could be. Add in a clever conceit of a man who's a neighbor of one of them and is corresponding with a well-known mystery author, trying to interest her in using the event as the springboard for her next book. Thoroughly entertaining, lively prose, and a plot that kept me guessing.

Thanks to NetGalley for my advanced reader copy.

I love a book that has a side character that's honestly creepier than the main cast. I just loved the format of this book.