The Drowning Kind

A NEW YORK TIMES BEST THRILLER OF 2021
“A haunting exploration of grief and a tale that will make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up.” —Simone St. James, New York Times bestselling author
A woman returns to the old family home after her sister mysteriously drowns in its swimming pool…but she’s not the pool’s only victim.
Be careful what you wish for.
When social worker Jax receives nine missed calls from her older sister, Lexie, she assumes that it’s just another one of her sister’s episodes. Manic and increasingly out of touch with reality, Lexie has pushed Jax away for over a year. But the next day, Lexie is dead: drowned in the pool at their grandmother’s estate. When Jax arrives at the house to go through her sister’s things, she learns that Lexie was researching the history of their family and the property. And as she dives deeper into the research herself, she discovers that the land holds a far darker past than she could have ever imagined.
In 1929, thirty-seven-year-old newlywed Ethel Monroe hopes desperately for a baby. In an effort to distract her, her husband whisks her away on a trip to Vermont, where a natural spring is showcased by the newest and most modern hotel in the Northeast. Once there, Ethel learns that the water is rumored to grant wishes, never suspecting that the spring takes in equal measure to what it gives.
A modern-day ghost story that illuminates how the past, though sometimes forgotten, is never really far behind us, The Drowning Kind “is satisfying on every level: Marvelously chilling, elegantly written, a true page-turner” (Janelle Brown, New York Times bestselling author).
“A haunting exploration of grief and a tale that will make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up.” —Simone St. James, New York Times bestselling author
A woman returns to the old family home after her sister mysteriously drowns in its swimming pool…but she’s not the pool’s only victim.
Be careful what you wish for.
When social worker Jax receives nine missed calls from her older sister, Lexie, she assumes that it’s just another one of her sister’s episodes. Manic and increasingly out of touch with reality, Lexie has pushed Jax away for over a year. But the next day, Lexie is dead: drowned in the pool at their grandmother’s estate. When Jax arrives at the house to go through her sister’s things, she learns that Lexie was researching the history of their family and the property. And as she dives deeper into the research herself, she discovers that the land holds a far darker past than she could have ever imagined.
In 1929, thirty-seven-year-old newlywed Ethel Monroe hopes desperately for a baby. In an effort to distract her, her husband whisks her away on a trip to Vermont, where a natural spring is showcased by the newest and most modern hotel in the Northeast. Once there, Ethel learns that the water is rumored to grant wishes, never suspecting that the spring takes in equal measure to what it gives.
A modern-day ghost story that illuminates how the past, though sometimes forgotten, is never really far behind us, The Drowning Kind “is satisfying on every level: Marvelously chilling, elegantly written, a true page-turner” (Janelle Brown, New York Times bestselling author).
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✨ Summarized by Bookclubs AI
Readers say Jennifer McMahon’s *The Drowning Kind* delivers atmospheric, haunting prose with richly developed characters and eerie supernatural elemen...
This is not my usual genre, but it wasn’t as scary as I was worried it would be. I was and wasn’t prepared for that ending. I liked the back and forth from past to present, from the two different narrators. It is a cliché, but be careful what you wish for.
Wonderful read on a stormy night... 4.5 stars
I really liked this book through the first 75% of it. Then it felt like the Author just wanted to wrap it up. It did have some twists and turns but for such a big build up of the story and guessing what was happening the twists near the end were kind of disappointing. It was a good book but kind of a let down near the end.
Thank you Netgalley for this copy of Drowning King by Jennifer McMahon.
This is only the second book Ive read from Jennifer McMahon, but I can say with certainty that:
1. Her writing gets better.
2. The plots get creepier.
The Drowning Kind was emersive not only do you become part of the family in present time, but you also have a sense of time shifting when she reaches you into the past. Not only will this book give you chills, but it will leave you with a sense of foreboding long after youve read the last page.
This is only the second book Ive read from Jennifer McMahon, but I can say with certainty that:
1. Her writing gets better.
2. The plots get creepier.
The Drowning Kind was emersive not only do you become part of the family in present time, but you also have a sense of time shifting when she reaches you into the past. Not only will this book give you chills, but it will leave you with a sense of foreboding long after youve read the last page.
Do yourself a favor and go into this book blind. This
was my second novel by Jennifer McMahon and I was
NOT disappointed. Her writing is perfection. Creepy
and thrilling. Character development is fantastic. My
heart was racing at several points during this book. It
kept me guessing the whole time and I never expected
the twist at the end.
was my second novel by Jennifer McMahon and I was
NOT disappointed. Her writing is perfection. Creepy
and thrilling. Character development is fantastic. My
heart was racing at several points during this book. It
kept me guessing the whole time and I never expected
the twist at the end.
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