The Storm by Rachel Hawkins

Synopsis (via Goodreads): St. Medard’s Bay, Alabama is famous for three things: the deadly hurricanes that regularly sweep into town, the Rosalie Inn, a century-old hotel that’s survived every one of those storms, and Lo Bailey, the local girl infamously accused of the murder of her lover, political scion Landon Fitzroy, during Hurricane Marie in 1984.

When Geneva Corliss, the current owner of the Rosalie Inn, hears a writer is coming to town to research the crime that put St. Medard’s Bay on the map, she’s less interested in solving a whodunnit than in how a successful true crime book might help the struggling inn’s bottom line. But to her surprise, August Fletcher doesn’t come to St. Medard’s Bay alone. With him is none other than Lo Bailey herself. Lo says she’s returned to her hometown to clear her name once and for all, but the closer Geneva gets to both Lo and August, the more she wonders if Lo is actually back to settle old scores.

As the summer heats up and another monster storm begins twisting its way towards St. Medard’s Bay, Geneva learns that some people can be just as destructive—and as deadly—as any hurricane, and that the truth of what happened to Landon Fitzroy may not be the only secret Lo is keeping…

I ended up giving this one 3.5 stars, but I rounded it up to 4 because I liked it more than I didn’t. My biggest issue was the lack of identifying information regarding POVs. The chapters had hurricane titles or dates and countdowns, but you didn’t know which perspective you were reading from until you were a few pages in. You also didn’t always know what time period you were in, since some of the information was shared from the past. Sometimes it was when Lo, Ellen, and Frieda were kids. Other times it was from the perspective of one of their parents when they were younger, or we’d jump to Geneva’s perspective in the present.

If you can look past the mental whiplash, the story is really interesting. I wasn’t sure who was responsible for the murder of Landon Fitzroy, but I did know there were a lot of potential suspects. I kept changing who I thought it was as new information was presented, and there was one twist toward the end that I wasn’t expecting. However, I did suspect that one person was involved from the beginning—I just wasn’t sure how they were involved until later. One of the twists caught me by surprise because the person’s age was unexpected. I can’t remember if it’s ever specifically mentioned in the book, but I had assumed they were younger based on the information I was given.

I did end up reading this one in a single day. The Storm easily held my attention, and I wanted to know who was responsible for the murder and whether people were as innocent as they seemed. Hawkins does a great job of making everyone look like a potential suspect, and I enjoyed discovering the culprit alongside Geneva. I just wish the story had been organized a little better and that the perspectives had been clearly labeled to avoid any confusion. (★★★⭑☆)

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.