I devoured this book. I actually tried to slow down so I could savour it!

Catherine Ryan Howard’s writing is so engaging and I was hooked from the start.

A ghostwriter in a ghost estate in a ghost town with a possible killer … what could possibly go wrong?

I loved the premise of this book! The vivid descriptions of the uninhabited town transported me there and the feeling of isolation for Emily is palpable from the beginning.

I’m incredibly grateful to have read an early copy of this book. Thanks so much to NetGalley and Random House UK for the ARC.

My go to author for thrilling twisty trashy holiday novels...I still think of The Nothing Man it was chilling and so well written...so much more than what's on surface Ryan's books. This was no exception full is eerie moments that make you question what you are reading you are kept on the edge of your seat. For it dragged a little to begins with picked up pace and it had me racing towards the end. The characters are bit two seminal but the plot and the concept of the ghostwriting levelled that off. I predicted some parts but for the most I still was shocked with some of the twists. It's a good read but lacks the padding to make it a great novel but nonetheless I enjoyed it and it is perfect for a thrilling escape read that packs a bit more than the run of the mill.0

I love Catherine Ryan Howard, her work is clever, well thought out and twisty as hell!

This book hit slightly different. I was expecting more of a twist at the end, you get plenty throughout the book but the ending fell a little flat for me unfortunately.

I do however still recommend this book and all of her previous work

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK for the ARC.

Catherine Ryan Howard never writes the same book twice, and challenges herself with every novel. This time, a ghost writer grapples with the fear that her subject might not be the innocent man she has been led to believe. Throw in a cold look at the publishing industry and a bit of Florida glamour and you have another great CRH read.

I could not put this book down!! The twists in this book had my mind racing! The whole " who can Emily trust " has me going back and forth for page after page. Amazing Read!

A cool plot idea, and a stunning cover with a great title. There's lots of reasons to pick up this book. It was a good story too, but felt very 'early' if that makes sense, as if it needs some more work. But it has loads of potenital!

Twisty thriller that tells the tale of writer Emily who has been selected to ghost-write a book looking into the murder of Kate. Her husband has always been a suspect which he has strong denied and now he has asked if he could publish a memoir via the publishers Emily works for declaring his innocence. However when Emily flies out to America to discuss the book with him, all isn't as it seems. This book made me want to carry on turning the pages to find out exactly what really happened to Kate back in Dublin the year before and why now does Mark her husband want to try and clear his name. Other characters added into the mix added death to this storyline. I enjoyed reading this and would recommend to others who enjoy thriller mysteries.

I really enjoyed this, the descriptive writing was fantastic of the newly built town, i could picture it so vividly. The story grabs you from the beginning but there was a bit too much repitition for me. I would have preferred not to have known at the beginning that there was going to be another fire but overall very good, will definitely read more by her

I really liked the idea behind this story. It has all the essential elements of a gripping thriller. I particularly liked elements of the publishing world being part of it. The characters were all well written and we do feel we understand their behaviour. However, I felt there was far too much explanation of the setting. It was convoluted at times when all the reader needed was a sense of isolation for the MC. Overall, it felt like a first or second draft that still needs work. But the idea of the plot was very good and I did want to know what happened in the end.

Perfectly paced, great scene setting and a slow reveal, this was my kind of thriller.

A year ago Jacks wife died in a house fire and despite rushing into the burning building he was unable to save her and suffered terrible burns in his attempts to get her out. What looked like a straightforward case took a new turn when it was discovered that her injuries indicated that she was dead before the fire took hold.

With it looking more and more likely that an arrest warrant is about to be issued, Jack wants to tell his story. He's found a publisher and needs a ghostwriter, author Emily under contract to the same publisher having already received an advance for a second novel she's failed to deliver isn't really in a position to say no.

Taking up residence with her subject at an isolated beach house Emily is uneasy from the outset, their meetings leave her with more questions than answers and the other side of a connecting door is a man who may or may not have killed his wife.

I found this novel easy to get into and hard to put down. The first novel I've read by this author and I'll definitely be checking out her previous
books.

I've read a few of this author's books and enjoyed them, so I was very excited to be given the opportunity to read an advance copy.
The premise is good. Jack's wife is found dead inside a burning building and he is under suspicion but did he do it? Author Emily has been given the chance to ghostwrite his story and flies out to a strange half completed town in Florida to meet Jack and hear his story.
I enjoyed it to a degree, it was an intriguing story. Did he didn't he? But new characters are introduced and they don't act normally. Why are they lurking in the background why don't they just say hi my name is .......like a normal person. Obviously it to add mystery and add to the who did it aspect of the story but to me it felt a bit convoluted.
There where a few mild twists but to be honest nothing came as a surprise. The book lingered over the whole booked writing aspect and then ended quite abruptly. I'm giving this 3 stars because it wasn't a bad book but not her best.

I've tried twice now to read this but the numbers on each line are just too disruptive. Not even just at the end of lines but in some cases mid-word. I'm struggling to see beyond them,.especially when they're slowing my reading down so much.

Would definitely give it a proper go without those numbers as I usually love CRH books.

This book definitely has all the right ingredients for a good book but it just didn’t have the wow factor unfortunately. Untrustworthy characters, isolated environment, an author - all things that I really like in books but I wouldn’t say there were many big surprises in the plot or the overall ending so this would be a 3/5 for me.

Thank you to netgalley for providing an ecopy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

So good! I'm a big fan of Catherine Ryan Howard and this new book was as good as all the rest. Fantastic story not something I've come across before, in terms of the ghost writing aspect. And so clever to weave in the murder across the now and before. The ending was a huge surprise, which I loved!

I am a huge CRH fan but this one didn't grab me the way others have.
I love the premise - I love a good did he or didn't he - and it was executed well but it just didn't grip me. I've usually read her books in a day but I found myself slower to pick this up.

I will say though the setting of a "currently being constructed town" added to the sense of isolation and it clearly reflected how Kate probably felt in life. It added to the sense of creepiness and manipulation of the whole situation.

I'll definitely continue to read CRH books as I've always found them intriguing & well written but maybe this one just isn't for me.

Wow wow wow! From the very beginning, this had me absolutely hooked. I didn’t want it to end – as I got closer to finishing, I wanted to put it to one side and wait so that it wouldn’t be over. But then I just binged it instead!

Burn After Reading follows Emily – a successful author who has struggled to write her follow-up novel. She’s offered the job of ghostwriting a biography, and has no real choice other than to say yes, for the money. The job, though, quickly turns into a nightmare.

The man she is tasked with writing for, Jack Smyth, is the prime suspect in the murder of his wife. And he wants to tell his story. So for one week, Emily finds herself holed up in a deserted house in Florida to get all the content she needs.

This was one of those books where I literally loved every sentence – the writing was so good. So descriptive, and thoughtful and powerful. Catherine Ryan Howard really has a gift for writing in such a clever way, whilst very slowly unravelling the plot in a totally unexpected way. As all of the pieces gradually fell into place, it was both totally scary in parts and absolutely fantastic!

And the setting – Sanctuary, Florida – a brand new town in the process of being built, where there is hardly anyone around, and Emily feels constantly unsafe inside the annexed apartment, connected to the main house by doors that could open at any time – it was so gloriously creepy! An absolute triumph!

Jack Smyth, former cyclist, ran into his burning house in a vain attempt to rescue his wife from the flames. However, when it transpires that his wife was already dead before the fire started, sympathy for Jack soon turns to suspicion and, one year on, Jack feels the only way to tell his story is through writing a book.

Emily, whose first novel was a major success, is struggling to write her second book. Tied into a two book deal, she is at risk of having to return her advance when she is given the opportunity to ghost-write Jack's book. Although she has never done anything before, the chance to clear her debt is too great and she agrees.

What follows is a brilliant, page turner full of twists, turns, deception and a thrilling conclusion. Thanks to Netgalley and Random House UK, Transworld Publishers | Bantam for an ARC in exchange for an honest review

Emily Joyce has a job as a ghostwrite for former professional cyclist Jack Smyth who lost his wife a year ago in a fire. She is asked to write his memoir and get a confession out of him if possible. The book is full of twist and will leave you guessing who can Emily trust.

I loved everything about this book!
From the cover and the very clever title, the setting in Dublin and Florida, and characters you can believe in and care about.
I have read a couple of books by Catherine Ryan Howard, and her "Nothing Man" stayed with me for months as one of the best thrillers ever.
So I was delighted to be allowed to read an advance copy of "Burn After Reading".

Emily is a bestselling writer, who is finding it difficult to produce the second novel she promised the publishers.
So they ask her to spend some time ghostwriting a book for a charismatic retired professional cyclist, rumoured to have murdered his wife. He wants to put the record straight, squash the rumours, and prove his innocence.
The story is told from various viewpoints and back and forward in time, then it all slowly weaves together.
But who is telling the truth? Who is a friend, who is a threat? Who are the mysterious woman and strange man who seem to be following Emily?
The story almost has more twists and turns than the tour de France..
I really enjoyed the slightly unreal atmosphere of isolation, and the bizarre but believable setting.
Like Emily, the only things I knew about professional roadracing were "yellow jersey" and "Lance Armstrong cheated". So I found the insights into a racing team fascinating.

The only problem with this book (and it seems to be a fashion these days) is that quite a chunk of it from near the end appears at the beginning. So throughout, I already knew part of where it was leading, and exactly how Emily would end up in danger, which made it much less tense and enjoyable for me than it could have been.

I discovered Catherine Ryan Howard through a book subscription box where I got a copy of The Nothing Man (which is also an amazing thriller if you haven’t read it!) and was so excited to receive an advance copy of her latest thriller. This story is compelling and haunting in places and kept me gripped to the page. I loved the flashbacks and excerpts of story within the story giving added information whilst providing a lot of suspense. It seems cliche to call it suffocating but the short chapters and tense action make it exactly that!