Something in the Water

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for a honest review.
This is the second book that I have read by an TV actress who wrote a novel, and in both cases I have been pleasantly surprised. Something in the Water by Catherine Steadman is a well written, taut thriller. The opening pulls you in immediately. After the first chapter, you get the back story of how it came to be that Erin is digging a grave for her husband, Mark.
Erin is a documentary filmmaker, filming a series about the people serving sentences in prison, who are due to be released soon. One is an arsonist, the other helped with an assisted suicide, and the third is a mobster. Mark is a banker, who has lost his job. Erin and Mark are trying for a family, and show more planning their wedding and idyllic honeymoon, when something happens to turn their lives upside down. How they handle this unexpected event changes everything.
Things happen in the story that make you question just about everything you thought you knew about the characters. The author weaves a tale of greed, deceit, and murder. Very well done!
I look forward to reading much more from this author!
#SomethingInTheWater #NetGalley #CatherineSteadman show less

4.25 Stars — This anxiety-inducing book was A LOT of fun to read. It’s gotten major buzz since it’s a Reese’s Book Club pick. There were 200 holds for it at my library, but I noticed ONE copy was available on the Limited Loan shelf at the branch across town. Of course, I’m there when they opened that morning to elbow my way to the top. I had to know what’s in the water!!

The opening chapter starts with a bang. You’re left wondering, how in the heck did it come to that?? The set-up: A honeymooning couple make a shocking discovery on their trip to Bora Bora. OK, so after the stunning opening, the pacing was very slow until about the 30% mark. I think I was just TOO impatient – waiting, waiting, waiting – to find out what show more was in the water. And then, thunk thunk thunk…

SOMETHING IN THE WATER was such an entertaining book, but also made me very nervous! Some of the decisions the characters made (especially Erin) made me STOP to blink my eyes repeatedly. What were you thinking??

After the big discovery, the author did a fantastic job keeping the suspense going and the pages turning. I can’t think of a more perfect “beach” thriller to read this summer. This is Catherine Steadman’s debut novel (wow!), and I’m looking forward to reading more from her in the future. show less

I should have listened when a friend said "you're not going to like it". I should have trusted. The whole thing was ridiculous and convoluted. I never liked a single character in it so their fates were of little consequence to me. It starts off very strong, very interesting & catchy first chapter. Then of course, Erin & Mark find "something in the water" on their honeymoon but it takes A LOOOOONNNNNGGG time to get there, like halfway through the book. Then after that it gets a little more interesting, but very little. Also remember, you don't like any of these people so you're not ever rooting for them, not even once. I don't recommend this book, unless you're looking for something that you never have to think about and which requires show more no real commitment from you to read. I do think the author has promise, but I will read reviews before reading anything from them again. show less

It was exhausting being inside Erin’s (the narrator’s) head. She examined thoughts, possibilities, probabilities, everything in minute detail. The one thing she never examined nor doubted was her love for her new husband, Mark, and there’s the rub. The ending is perfectly told in the first chapter. How we get to that point is laid out in forty subsequent chapters each subtitled to give the reader a glimpse into what to expect.

It is a big year for Erin. She has obtained funding for her first solo project, a documentary following three prisoners during and after incarceration. Her upcoming wedding to Mark; everything seems to be “at a magical point”. Maybe not. Mark loses his job as an investment banker for an undisclosed show more reason. No severance, bad economic timing, no job prospects, limited savings and a mortgage on his only asset, his house. They minimize the situation, downsize the wedding, shorten the honeymoon and everything will be fine. Off to Bora Bora for their honeymoon and when something goes “thunk, thunk, thunk’ in the water the downward spiral begins. Now the beguiling question of whether something is flotsam or jetsam begins to define everything, the truth, the lies, the deception, the fear, the idiocy of all of it. It would be too easy to add more but they would all be spoilers.

The tension is at all times handwringing tense. The characterizations and their circumstances are spot on. This book is a true testament to “How quickly what is good can become not good enough through comparison.” There are no altruists in these pages just varying levels of greed and for me that’s the rub.

Thank you NetGalley and Ballantine Books for an ARC show less

Something in the Water from Catherine Steadman is not without its flaws but it ultimately succeeds. In part because of the first person narration but also because many common story elements are used and presented in unique ways. Certainly not for everyone, especially those who feel the protagonist should never make foolish decisions or should be particularly likable. If you're comfortable with characters being less than perfect, like all of us, then I think you'll enjoy this.

The first line, which is also used in the promotional material, is an attention-grabber and the entire first chapter is a wonderful opening. This is one of the fairly common elements I think Steadman uses very well, opening with a scene that sequentially would come show more at or near the end of the book in a simple chronological presentation. The set-up means we are curious about how she arrives at this point rather than wondering what the end point will be. Again, some prefer simple chronological storytelling and really only want a story to be told to them. Some, I think many, enjoy knowing something of the end but wondering what in the world could have brought her to that point. Not quite as simplistic as the pure chronological presentation but really just a shift in what the reader will ponder.

Both Erin and Mark can be annoying. I am not of the mind that they are as bad or as unlikable as some seem to see them. I particularly don't think they are that bad in the early part of their relationship. Like many of us, they discover aspects of themselves when either bad luck or good luck confronts them. We often learn more about ourselves when presented with life-changing events, whether good or bad, and they are hit with both, so they make some bad decisions and become less than what they likely considered themselves to be as people.

I personally liked getting plenty of detail, I think it fits with who Erin is and even when Erin goes into minute detail about a Glock it highlights how foreign a gun is to her while also showing how she becomes comfortable with it. I empathized with Erin even when I was annoyed by some of her actions. She seemed to have always felt like she didn't quite belong at many times in her life and she developed mechanisms to either fit in or at least not draw attention to herself. That odd mixture of confidence and doubt at the same time, believing in oneself at the same time you doubt yourself.

I don't know what loose ends people have mentioned not being tied up. As far as the narrative of the story is concerned, everything was sealed pretty well. The only thing left hanging wasn't part of this story and seems to be a potential hint at a future volume. If you read attentively you should have all of your questions, as they pertain to the story, answered. You may find some things to be a stretch or even unlikely but if you read thrillers and mysteries you have come to expect some of that.

Reviewed from a copy made available through Goodreads First Reads. show less

I never peeked ahead, but I wanted to. The pace of this story is pushed by the decision making the characters must and do make. At times you are driven to seek answers, hoping the handwriting on the wall is not true. Sometimes it is not, but there is a twist around every corner. Not exactly a satisfying ending, but one that causes you to reflect beyond the book on what is right and wrong in the circumstances of our life journeys, as the best books do. Catherine Steadman is a master of character and suspense!

Well....I finished it. This was my bookclubs pick for this month. It sounded really interesting from the descriptions and reviews we read, but it just ended up not being a bit of a let-down for me. I kind of felt all the way through that the main character, Erin, was either extremely paranoid and worried about nothing or she was a total criminal mastermind. Throughout the story there were a lot of things that happened that made me say to myself "Um, no way, that's not how that works". Too many unbelievable little things that happened, to many convenient coincidences to be believable. BUT, I was thinking that it would somehow all tie up into a nice little psychotic package. By the time I got to the end I was waiting for that great big show more twist where the author would reveal that the protagonist had been behind it all along, and that she was really diabolical after all. But no, she was just the patsy. There were so many other ways that this story could have gone, what with all the different characters involved. The Crime Boss. The petty criminal who got radicalized by terrorists in prison. The woman who helped her mother commit suicide, or WAS it suicide? I thought the author could have come up with something a little more exciting to tie it all together. But, sadly no and the book just kind of ended. Not a complete waste of time, as it did hold my attention waiting for that twist, but a bit disappointed in the ending. It could have been so much more. show less