Publisher: St. Martin’s Press / Macmillan Audio
Published: January 4, 2022
Source: Netgalley via the Publisher
Summary:
From the New York Times bestselling author of The Wife Upstairs comes a deliciously wicked gothic suspense, set on an isolated Pacific island with a dark history, for fans of Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware.
When Lux McAllister and her boyfriend, Nico, are hired to sail two women to a remote island in the South Pacific, it seems like the opportunity of a lifetime. Stuck in a dead-end job in Hawaii, and longing to travel the world after a family tragedy, Lux is eager to climb on board The Susannah and set out on an adventure. She’s also quick to bond with their passengers, college best friends Brittany and Amma. The two women say they want to travel off the beaten path. But like Lux, they may have other reasons to be seeking an escape.
Shimmering on the horizon after days at sea, Meroe Island is every bit the paradise the foursome expects, despite a mysterious history of shipwrecks, cannibalism, and even rumors of murder. But what they don’t expect is to discover another boat already anchored off Meroe’s sandy beaches. The owners of the Azure Sky, Jake and Eliza, are a true golden couple: gorgeous, laidback, and if their sleek catamaran and well-stocked bar are any indication, rich. Now a party of six, the new friends settle in to experience life on an exotic island, and the serenity of being completely off the grid. Lux hasn’t felt like she truly belonged anywhere in years, yet here on Meroe, with these fellow free spirits, she finally has a sense of peace.
But with the arrival of a skeevy stranger sailing alone in pursuit of a darker kind of good time, the balance of the group is disrupted. Soon, cracks begin to emerge: it seems that Brittany and Amma haven’t been completely honest with Lux about their pasts––and perhaps not even with each other. And though Jake and Eliza seem like the perfect pair, the rocky history of their relationship begins to resurface, and their reasons for sailing to Meroe might not be as innocent as they first appeared.
When it becomes clear that the group is even more cut off from civilization than they initially thought, it starts to feel like the island itself is closing in on them. And when one person goes missing, and another turns up dead, Lux begins to wonder if any of them are going to make it off the island alive.
My thoughts:
Last year, I absolutely loved Rachel Hawkins’ The Wife Upstairs, so of course I jumped at the chance to get my hands on an early copy of Reckless Girls…and what a fun escape it was. I once again went the audio route and I personally think it’s the way to go if you get a chance.
I would describe this one as a slow-burning suspense story that really gets under your skin. I love that there are so many different points of view and that it moves back and forth in time. That really allows us to get to know all the players…or does it? Do we really know who we are dealing with here or just who they want us to believe they are? You really need to pay attention here because as the flashbacks are giving us the backstory, clues are being dropped, if you know what to look for.
This book, while a slow-burner, builds tension and suspense at just the right pace to keep you hooked. I really had no idea where things were headed, other than it wouldn’t end well. The twists were so well played and kept me guessing every time a new one popped up.
I’ve always loved locked-room mysteries and this one was just so clever, happening on a remote island. It definitely doesn’t make me want to head to one anytime soon, but I did enjoy this one all the same and highly recommend picking it up!
Audio thoughts:
I was excited to see that this book was narrated by Barrie Kreinik, who is one of my favorite audiobook narrators and she did such a great job bringing this story to life. With six different characters, she really does a great job giving each one their own voice, even using different accents when needed. I also think this book just lends itself to audio so well, making it the type of book that you just don’t want to put down…and that is partly because of the story and partly because of the narrator.
