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A review by eyreibreathe
The Night Swim by Megan Goldin
4.0
Rachel Krall hosts the ultra-popular true crime podcast Guilty or Not Guilty. For season three, she travels to the small coastal town of Neapolis to cover a rape trial - the town's 18-year-old star athlete has been accused of raping a high school student. After a pitstop en route, Rachel discovers a note on her windshield addressed to her. This in itself is more than a little unnerving, but even more disturbing is what she finds in the letter itself from listener Hannah. Twenty-five years ago, in the same little town of Neapolis, Hannah's older sister died a tragic and unexpected death. A drowning, it was said...but Hannah knows better, and now she's begging Rachel to solve the case of what happened all those years ago. Past and present collide as Rachel delves into the evils of Neapolis in The Night Swim.
This book took a little time for me to get into, but once I did, I was can't-put-it down fully invested. I really liked how it involved two narrators and two cases that shared parallels. Through Rachel, we experience the present-day rape trial, and through Hannah's letters, we go back in time and slowly learn what happened to her sister. For anyone who is a fellow HSP, I will say that there were times I struggled with the narrative. Hearing details of rape and brutality and seeing the effects upon their victims was heartrending. It's also the mark of a good writer that I felt these emotions so acutely. As far as the whodunnit in the book, I did figure it out pretty early on, but I don't feel like it was obvious, so it should come as a surprise for many readers. This was a gripping read. If you like podcasts, a true crime feel, courtroom dramas, and thrillers, this book should definitely be on your radar.
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
This book took a little time for me to get into, but once I did, I was can't-put-it down fully invested. I really liked how it involved two narrators and two cases that shared parallels. Through Rachel, we experience the present-day rape trial, and through Hannah's letters, we go back in time and slowly learn what happened to her sister. For anyone who is a fellow HSP, I will say that there were times I struggled with the narrative. Hearing details of rape and brutality and seeing the effects upon their victims was heartrending. It's also the mark of a good writer that I felt these emotions so acutely. As far as the whodunnit in the book, I did figure it out pretty early on, but I don't feel like it was obvious, so it should come as a surprise for many readers. This was a gripping read. If you like podcasts, a true crime feel, courtroom dramas, and thrillers, this book should definitely be on your radar.
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐