The Girl From Widow Hills by Megan Miranda | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Title: The Girl From Widow Hills

Author: Megan Miranda

Format: eBook (kindle unlimited)

Pages: 325

Publication Date: 6/23/20

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Categories: Psychological Thriller, Suspense, Murder Mystery

Everyone knows the story of “the girl from Widow Hills.”

Arden Maynor was just a child when she was swept away while sleepwalking during a terrifying rainstorm and went missing for days. Strangers and friends, neighbors and rescue workers, set up search parties and held vigils, praying for her safe return. Against all odds, she was found, alive, clinging to a storm drain. The girl from Widow Hills was a living miracle. Arden’s mother wrote a book. Fame followed. Fans and fan letters, creeps, and stalkers. And every year, the anniversary. It all became too much. As soon as she was old enough, Arden changed her name and disappeared from the public eye.

Now a young woman living hundreds of miles away, Arden goes by Olivia. She’s managed to stay off the radar for the last few years. But with the twentieth anniversary of her rescue approaching, the media will inevitably renew its interest in Arden. Where is she now? Soon Olivia feels like she’s being watched and begins sleepwalking again, like she did long ago, even waking outside her home. Until late one night she jolts awake in her yard. At her feet is the corpse of a man she knows—from her previous life, as Arden Maynor.

And now, the girl from Widow Hills is about to become the center of the story, once again, in this propulsive page-turner from suspense master Megan Miranda.

Content Warning: Death, Abuse

I really needed something to get me out of my reading funk and this definitely did that. Maybe I just miss reading standalone books?

Arden Maynor, now going by Olivia has a famous past that she’s been keeping secret for awhile. She was a little girl when she went missing and found in a storm drain. It made national news and her life has never been the same again. I like how we get a glimpse of Olivia’s life growing up away from the spotlight and what it’s done to her. Media attention isn’t always so glamorous, it can be dangerous as well. I like how the author talked about how stories get manipulated to fit a narrative, to appease an audience, to feed the hungry masses but we hardly know the truth of the matter.

This story had the creepy vibes with the house in the woods, far from the main town. Olivia is an unreliable narrator – she had trauma from her past, memories of her mother who had just passed and suffer from sleepwalking episodes. She also has anxiety with enclosed spaces. I could feel the anxiety through the pages and a lot of the story made me question things about her. I also liked how the secondary characters made me suspicious as well.

I enjoyed how the story unravels but there were some spots that seemed slow. I still managed to finish the book in one sitting though, which was nice. The twist in the ending reminded me a bit of another book (but it’s a much more darker one) which I won’t talk about since I don’t want to spoil anything.

Why you should read it:

gives you the creeps and makes you suspicious of everyone
an unreliable narrator but we get a glimpse of what happens after the media attention
you like suspense and thrillers

Why you might not want to read it:

some slow parts but not enough to make me stop reading

My Thoughts:

I see Megan Miranda books all over my Kindle Unlimited but have never read a book of hers until now. I wanted to see why she has so many people reading her book and I can say I see the appeal! This is coming from someone who doesn’t read a lot of thrillers these days. It was a nice change of pace and I loved that it was a standalone.

📚 ~ Yolanda

Quotes From the Book

A story about you doesn’t necessarily belong to you. It belongs to the writer. To the witness. To the teller.”
Megan Miranda – “The Girl From Widow Hills”

This was what people wanted: They wanted it all. They wanted to fit you in a box. Hold you in the palm of one hand. Sum you up in one sentence. The shorter, the better. So they could understand who you were and the role you were intended to play for their benefit.”
Megan Miranda – “The Girl From Widow Hills”