The Girl from Widow Hills

by Megan Miranda

Everyone knows the story of the girl from widow hills...

When Arden Maynor was six years old, she was swept away in a terrifying storm and went missing for days. Against all odds, she was found alive, clinging to a storm drain. Fame followed, and so did fans, creeps and stalkers. As soon as she was old enough, Arden changed her name and left Widow Hills behind.

Twenty years later, Olivia, as she is now known, is plagued by night terrors. She often finds herself out of bed in the middle of the night, sometimes streets away from her home. Then one evening she jolts awake in her yard, with the corpse of a man at her feet.

The girl from Widow Hills is about to become the centre of the story, once again...

• ISBN10: 1501165429
• ISBN13: 9781501165429
• Publish Date: 23 June 2020 (first published 4 June 2020)
• Publish Status: Out of Stock
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Simon & Schuster
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 336
• Language: English

Reviews

[kimbacaffeinate]

I’ve enjoyed Megan Miranda’s books before, and The Girl from Widow Hills delivered a well-crafted tale from pacing to red herrings. Olivia was an unreliable narrator with memory loss and troubled childhood who has managed to pull herself together only to find herself confronted with the past and fearful of what may or may not have happened in her front yard.

Friends, detectives, her neighbor and people with connections to her past drag us in and make us doubt not just Olivia but others around her. When evidence seems to fall one way, Miranda twists and reveals to hold the listener captive.

The narration enhanced the story, giving another dimension to the characters and helping to build the suspense. Rebekkah Ross nailed the narration, particularly with the voice of Olivia. I could hear her uncertainty and taste her fear.

Fans of Ruth Ware and Greer Hendrick will want to add The Girl from Widow Hills to their bookshelves. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Reviewer

[Sophia]

Happy Publication Day!

3.75 stars

Despite being on my to-read list for years, I'd never read any Megan Miranda before, but oh boy did I enjoy this one.

The Plot:
When Olivia Meyer was six years old she was swept away by a torrential storm while sleepwalking. Her eventual rescue after three days was branded a miracle, but the subsequent media circus and public attention led to Olivia changing her name and moving away. Twenty years later, she begins sleepwalking again and one day, wakes up to find herself next to a dead body, her hands covered in blood.

The Good:

∙ Red herrings galore! Plot twists I did NOT see coming!
∙ Interesting, complex characters.
∙ THAT ENDING. I thought I had the killer solved but Megan Miranda fully shocked me with that twist.

The Bad:

∙ A little too slow-paced at first, but it picks up in the second half.
∙ I wish we'd had more insight into Olivia's relationship with her mother.

The Ugly:

∙ Nothing! I loved this book and will be reading more of Megan Miranda in future.

Thank you to Atlantic Books and Netgalley for sending me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.