Locust Lane

Stephen Amidon

2023 • 254 pages

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Average rating2

For fans of Mystic River by Dennis Lehane and Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng, Stephen Amidon’s Locust Lane is a taut and utterly propulsive story about the search for justice and the fault lines of power and influence in a seemingly idyllic town. Can anyone be trusted? On the surface, Emerson, Massachusetts, is just like any other affluent New England suburb. But when a young woman is found dead in the nicest part of town, the powerful neighbors close ranks to keep their families safe. In this searing novel, Eden Perry’s death kicks off an investigation into the three teenagers who were partying with her that night, each a suspect. Hannah, a sweet girl with an unstable history. Jack, the popular kid with a mean streak. Christopher, an outsider desperate to fit in. Their parents, each with motivations of their own, only complicate the picture: they will do anything to protect their children, even at the others’ expense. With a brilliantly woven, intricately crafted plot that gathers momentum on every page, this is superb storytelling told in terse prose—a dynamic read that is both intensely gripping and deeply affecting.

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Jolissa

This review is published in full here: https://literaryquicksand.com/2022/12/audiobook-review-locust-lane-by-stephen-amidon/

Audiobooks are still a relatively new thing for me, but I'm loving slotting some in between my other reads. I think mystery/thrillers are especially good picks to listen to, and so far I haven't been let down.

Locust Lane is being compared to Little Fires Everywhere, and I can definitely see that. I also thought it had a Beartown vibe to it, because nothing sinister can ever happen in a quiet town, right? It has this overall feeling like something big is looming – some town-shaking discovery that you're waiting for. Of course, the murder happens right away in Locust Lane, but it does feel like there's something coming.

This book effectively had me going back and forth between who I thought was the killer, and I was wrong up until the reveal. I'm not exactly a thriller reader aficionado, but it was fun for me. I enjoyed the rich suburb problems storyline as well, about how far some rich folks will go to keep their reputations in tact.

What I liked most about the audiobook version was the way the narrator was able to make her voice sound so “hoity toity” for the rich mom. That really helped me feel immersed in the story and added something to the narration. She's also really good at sounding like a shifty teenage boy with something to hide

December 16, 2022

Angel White

Locust Lane is supposed to be a thriller, but is more of an extremely slow crime fiction. There really isn't any mystery to it, at least not for me, and not sure where the thrills we're supposed to be. There was a crime. It's obvious who was involved and who was covering it up.

I did enjoy that this has multiple POVs as it's one of my favorite formats to read. I couldn't care less about any of the characters except for Christopher. He is the only one I felt anything for.

As a whole, this was disappointing as it was hard to get through as I was bored most of the time. Had it been more of a mystery with better character development I probably would have enjoyed it more. This clearly was my type of read.

I sincerely appreciate Celadon Books for the review copy. All opinions expressed are my own. Really more of a 2.5

December 26, 2022