I’m still not sure how I feel about this book. Was it good? Yes. Did the title completely match the story? No. I thought I had guessed the ending which made part of the story boring but I did not guess it. It was good. I’d say 3.5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley for this advance reader copy in exchange for my free and honest review. While there were some missteps and unclarified or not truly realistic details throughout this novel, it had enough twists and turns to grab me and not let go. Definitely worth a read and watch out for that twist at the end, because when you think you’ve got it all figured out, guess what? You don’t. 😉

This book is more geared toward a YA audience and while I enjoy reading YA books this wasn't a favorite. There are some exciting and fast-paced scenes, but overall, I found this book to be bland. It seemed to be more of a drama than a thriller.

The Girl In The Basement by Eoin Dempsey

The Girl In The Basement is a psychological thriller mystery. The beginning of the book centers around Ellie Welsh and her budding relationship with Football player and high school superstar Josh Thomas, and her subsequent kidnapping and imprisonment in a basement. Josh has had his own set of horrible circumstances including his previous girlfriend Rachel being murdered and him being suspected of murder. Fast forward twenty years and Josh has returned and her seventeen year old daughter Jess has disappeared.

The pacing throughout the book was good. Overall I liked the book and the mystery throughout. The character development was ok, and I found myself questioning relationships throughout. If I was dating a guy whose girlfriend was murdered, I guarantee that my family would have been more curious and less - oh hes our football teams future. I also felt the middle of the book and parts surrounding her kidnapping were very rushed. I enjoyed the references to local places and the way the author wove those into the story.

Overall this was a middle of the road story for me. Nothing that really jumped out and made it great, but also had a good storyline. I also liked the authors writing style. I was anticipating more mystery and thriller.

I really enjoyed this one!!
It is a little bit slow in the first 3/4 of the book. I wasn't so sure about it, then all of a sudden you're hit with information and twists and it moves faster!
Would definitely check out more work from this author.

The Girl in the Basement - ARC - Eoin Dempsey

OUT NOW!!

“Twenty years ago she was taken. Now her daughter is next.”

I read the description and immediately knew I needed this! This was heartbreaking and had all the twists and turns. I love the different timelines for the FMC but just felt so bad for her! I thought I knew what was happening but another thriller got me!

If you like:
Thrillers
High School Romance
Complicated Family Life
Twists and Turns

Give this a try!

Definitely check trigger warnings for this one as some material may be sensitive for some viewers.

I was expecting this to be more of a thriller. The first half was a lot of back story about the teens in highschool and it felt more YA. the second half started to pick up, but then at the end I was left disappointed. Overall it was just okay for me.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Brilliant. An absolutely addictive read. I loved this one! Thrilling and tense, packed with suspense. Just wow! Very highly recommend it to all.

A well written creepy read! Great characters and great pace, this was a fantastic read. It was twisty and turny and had a surprise twist at the end. I adored the characters and this one kept me guessing. A must read

This book was difficult to read. I know that the story has a young adult main character, But if not more like a young adult thriller than an adult thriller. I had trouble paying attention with the dual point of view, characters weren’t very liable, I just felt like the chapters were too short to really even have any tried details of the thriller in them.

This book was under 300 pages, but it dragged and I felt like I had a keep forcing myself to finish it. I didn’t enjoy it, And although it had such great potential (as well as a great title!) I felt like I fell flat.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars out of 5

Although I think the description is somewhat misleading, I truly enjoyed this one! Absolutely loved the ending and the twists and I cannot wait to read more from the author!

I am a bit conflicted about this book. The title and blurb led me to believe it was a thriller about a mom (Ellie) that was kidnapped twenty years ago and escaped- only to have her own daughter be kidnapped. However, the first chapter is about the girl in the basement, then approximately 60-70% of the book is about a high school girl who falls instantly in love with the new quarterback (Josh) at school. This quarterback is suspected of killing his previous girlfriend. So that would be very interesting, except that I felt I was suddenly thrust into a YA novel. It describes their romance and football games. I understand the purpose was to show us about Josh's family life, but I felt it took away from the thriller aspect.
After going into detail about that, we return to the present and Elli's daughter is kidnapped. So the last 20% or so of the book is the thriller part, trying to find Jess (Ellie's daughter), and figure out who the kidnapper was. I had that figured out, but there is a twist that I did not see coming!

I feel that this book leans more towards a YA audience. While it did keep me engaged, it was frustrating to expect a thriller and not get it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for the ARC. This is my honest, voluntary review.

This one ended up being so much more than I expected. It's interesting, the characters are great, the mystery is a page-turner. This was my first read by this author and it won't be my last. I didn't see the reveal coming and that makes a great mystery read.

Alright, so The Girl in The Basement is totally that gripping thriller you can't put down! Picture this: Ellie, just a regular high schooler, falls for Josh, the new star quarterback with a mysterious past. Drama, right? But wait, Ellie gets abducted after a party, like majorly scary stuff! Fast forward twenty years, Ellie's rebuilt her life, but guess who's back in town? Yep, Josh, wanting to reconnect. And bam, Ellie's daughter goes missing. Cue the suspense!

This book had me hooked, flipping pages like crazy. The story jumps between teenage Ellie's drama and present-day, keeping you on edge. The twists? Mind-blowing! Though, TBH, the synopsis kinda gave away too much, so skip that and dive right in.

Overall, The Girl in The Basement gets a solid four stars from me. It's a quick read with all the suspense and surprises you crave. I'm totally spooked in the best way possible!

Wow! Absolutely powerful story that I didn't want to put down. Some spots were a little slow in the beginning, but a lot of it was the story building. Ellie was kidnapped when she was a teenager and she escaped, now 20 years later her teenage daughter is kidnapped. Could she have been wrong when she blamed her boyfriend's dad? She's not sure and I certainly was not prepared for who did it! Great story for a summer weekend read.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. This review is based on an ARC from NetGalley, courtesy of the publisher.

Slow start. About halfway through I really starting enjoying it. I thought I had it figured out, but near the end I found that I was wrong! Great story.

Let's start with the good. As I was reading, I had guttural reactions to what I was reading. For example, when Josh's dad was alone with Ellie, I felt uncomfortable. When she is locked in the basement, I felt claustrophobic. The atmosphere and events were conveyed well.

What I didn't like this book: the pacing. It took around 50% of the book to get to the first major event. From 60%-73% is fluff and the second major event is almost glossed over, too quickly.

The mystery was easy for me to solve. Also, I didn't really believe in the insta-love between Josh and Ellie. I also expected Ellie to be more on her guard in the relationship as Josh's last girlfriend was murdered.

I'm sad that this one didn't work out for me. The premise and synopsis are interesting. I just wish the story written matched.

Thank you to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The storytelling in The Girl in the Basement can, at times, be a bit off-putting. But if you can get past the pacing and the jumps back and forth through time and get caught up in Ellie’s story, it does make for an intriguing mystery about family, football, and long-held grudges.

Full review published on NightsAndWeekends.com and aired on Shelf Discovery.

Holy smokes. Where did the time go? I speedily raged through this book because I had to know the ending. It is an easy read as the writing is smooth and easy to follow. It is top notch crime thriller.

The story begins with a girl being held captive in a basement. Then the story goes back in time and we get to know Ellie. Ellie is a high school senior who is excited to be a senior. When a superstar football player comes to join the football program, everyone is beyond excited. Josh is a superstar, but he brings some major baggage with him. Even though Ellie is warned to stay away from him, she finds herself involved with Josh until a horribly traumatic experience destroys their lives.

Fast forward 20 years and Ellie is helping others, who have been victims, overcome their nightmares. She has a daughter, Jess. Suddenly Josh appears in her life again, and it seems history is repeating itself. It seems when Josh is in her life, everything falls apart.

This story was cleverly written to draw the reader into the story immediately. I knew there was unfinished business, but I was not really certain what path this story would take. There were some twists that I did not see coming, and they provided even more mystique to this plot. If you enjoy a good crime thriller and you are a football fan, you will enjoy this one.

Thank you to to Storm Publishing and NetGalley for this ARC. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Oh my god this book! At first i genuinely thought the ending was all mapped out and WOW was i wrong🤣 loved it from start to finish, and extremely LOVED the plot twist and the ending🥲🥹Can’t wait to read more from this author, so grateful to net galley and the author for the arc!