Reviews

The Night Swim: An absolutely gripping crime thriller you won't want to miss by Megan Goldin

laelyn's review

4.0

Megan Goldin is a new author to me, but I heard really good things about "The Night Swim". And while I can't say I enjoyed the content due to how horrible its themes are, I did really enjoy my reading experience as a whole. "The Night Swim" is highly relevant in a world in which rape culture is everywhere, that sees most rapists going free and seemingly having an entire army of apologists ready to fight for them and against the victims. The role of social media, the victim blaming, the power dynamics, the trauma of not just the crime itself but having to relive it during your attacker's trial - "The Night Swim" doesn't hold back and looks at all of these issues at point blank. It's at times tough to read, but important nonetheless.

The thriller elements are alright, this is not a nail-biting pageturner and the twists didn't blow me away, though the final one definitely threw a punch. Our protagonist is Rachel, an already famous podcaster who started the big true crime podcast hype that is sweeping the nation, and for her third season she chooses a horrible case of rape that is on trial at the moment. At the same time, a fan and kind-of-stalker named Hannah keeps writing her letters about a cold case involving her deceased sister - who officially drowned in the very town the trial is being held, but Hannah knows she was actually murdered.
The writing is solid and I quite enjoyed the mixed media approach, using a traditional narrative style mixed with podcast episodes and Hannah's letters.
All in all, this is a good thriller but a very important read and I'll be reading Goldin again.

Many thanks to Canelo and Netgalley for the arc!