Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
St. Medard’s Bay is a community of survivors, having remained standing through several hurricanes over the past 100 years. But it was the political storm that nearly brought her down when the son of the state’s most loved politician was found dead after one of the hurricanes. His family, and most of the town, blamed one low-class woman the man had been in town to see. Their affair was the worst kept secret around, but she was still acquitted of his murder. It was another of his secrets, though, that caused a stir in the middle of yet another storm and nearly saw the end of life as the community knew it.
Best-selling novelist Rachel Hawkins is back with another gothic thriller readers will love in The Storm. With her signature family drama and unexpected turns, Hawkins keeps readers on the edge of their seats throughout this novel. Full of family drama and small-town gossip, The Storm is a great follow for last year’s The Heiress. For anyone who has lived on the coast in hurricane season, this feels like a love letter to the storms that can so quickly turn on us, but also a cautionary tale of how teenaged puppy love can destroy your future.
I give The Storm 5 out of 5 stars. I was blown away last year by The Heiress and was hoping the same would happen with this novel. I was not disappointed! What happens between friends and lovers on these pages left me wanting more of these characters. This was a little bit of a slower start than the previous book, but I found myself enthralled a few chapters in. So much so, in fact, that I pulled the classic all-nighter to finish this! It made me want to drive to the Gulf and find a little town like St. Medard’s Bay to explore. One of the reasons I have been so in love with Hawkins’ work is her scene crafting and the details woven into each page. I always feel like I’m right there!
I would direct this novel to more mature audiences over 16 – with notes of underage sex and repeated adultery, this may hit on sensitive subjects for some readers. If you’re looking for a good thriller to get lost in for the weekend, this is definitely the book for you though! I’d also recommend this to readers who have enjoyed Hawkins’ other works, or novels like Megan Church’s The Mad Wife or Kelsey Cox’s Party of Liars. Suspenseful with a twist of romance, this novel will leave you in awe of her writing!
The Storm will release on January 6th. Preorder yours today on our Bookshop.org page!
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What I’m Reading
- Current print book: Daughter of Egypt, Marie Benedict
- Current audio book: Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams
- Book I’m most looking forward to: How to Be Okay with Nothing is Okay, Jenny Lawson
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