The Night Swim by Megan Goldin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
“To tell you the truth, I don’t get how we can almost unanimously agree that murder is wrong, yet when it comes to rape some people still see shades of gray.”
The Night Swim is a timely, slow-burn legal thriller that follows true-crime podcaster Rachel Krall as she covers the rape trial of golden boy and competitive swimmer Scott Blair. Scott is accused of raping a high school girl, and the small town they live in is deeply divided about what is considered a he said/she said case. While Rachell’s covering that story, she begins receiving letters from a woman who believes her sister was murdered in the same town 25 years earlier.
The book moves between the trial itself, Rachel’s podcast coverage, and letters from Hannah explaining what happened the night her sister was murdered. Some of the details were haunting and upsetting, and rape is a huge trigger throughout, but it’s a well-written story that was well-plotted and sensitively dealt with.
The unique format, with alternating narrators and timelines, kept me interested and made this an easy quick read, perfect for a weekend beach read.
Thank you to netgalley for my copy in exchange for an honest review.
