Heart of Glass by Jennifer Hillier
Publication Date: August 25th 2026 by Macmillan Audio
Pages: 368
Audio Book Length: 12hrs 57min
Narrators: Brittany Pressley, Eunice Wong, January LaVoy, Ferdelle Capistrano, Chris Brinkley
Source: Publishers
Rating: ★★★★★
My
Thoughts:
Twenty-five years ago, teenagers Barb, Nicolette, and
Lorelei were best friends. Everything changed when Lorelei was found murdered
after spending an evening with Sam who was later convicted of Lorelei's murder,
along with the murders of four other women. He became known as "The
Carnival Killer." Now, a new true crime series is about to air, featuring
Sam's account of the crimes. While he confesses to the other murders, he
insists he had nothing to do with Lorelei's death.
Not long after Lorelei's murder, Barb and Nicolette had a
falling out. Nicolette left town, reinvented herself as Cole Lennox, eventually
became a reality TV star. Barb was also planning to leave, but when her mother
became ill, she returned home to care for her. Now she writes for the local
newspaper, but also for an online gossip blog roasting reality shows,
particularly the one Nicolette stars in.
Barb's focus shifts when a missing woman is found
murdered and another woman disappears. Barb starts her own investigation,
ultimately helping the police piece things together.
There are three POVs: Barb, Nicolette, and the woman in
the cabin. There are also audio clips from the upcoming true crime series
interviewing Sam.
The POVs feature glimpses into the past, slowly revealing
what happened. I was captivated by all them! You get to know each of the three
women through their perspective and while they weren’t perfect, I was rooting
for all of them!
Heart of Glass was so good with secrets, twists,
and surprises! I figured out a few things along the way, but some reveals were
a surprise. I loved how everything came together in the end!
I listened to the audio version with a full cast featuring
some of my favorite narrators, one for each of the POVs. They expertly breathed
life into each character! I also enjoyed the effects given for the crime-show
interviews. The audio version definitely enhanced my enjoyment!
5 Stars
A serial killer recants his long-ago confession regarding a small-town high school girl―and her then-best friends are forced to confront what really happened that night and what's happening now.
Seaside is a small coastal town, known originally for the local amusement park. But twenty-five years ago, a serial killer dubbed The Carnival Killer confessed to the murder of a local high school girl. Now, he's recanted that confession.
Barb, Nicolette, and Lorelei were best friends - then they met "Sam" at Wonderland, the local amusement park. After hanging out with him there, and accompanying him to the drive-in movie, where the twenty-something handsome drifter made out with Lorelei in the backseat. That night was the last time Lorelei was seen alive, her murdered body surfacing a couple of days later in a local cranberry bog.
Barb's dreams of leaving Seaside and becoming a successful writer never materialized and she is a freelancer for the local newspaper and, secretly, writes anonymously about reality tv stars for a hugely successful gossip web-site called Reality Bitch. Specifically, she writes savagely about a long-running show set in Canada called Trophy Wives.
Nicolette left town shortly after Lorelei's body surfaced, never to return. Ultimately, she married a very rich man, moved to Toronto and rebranded herself as Cole Lennox, one of the stars of Trophy Wives.
With the amusement park about to reopen, revitalizing the dying town of Seaside, the Carnival Killer recants his confession about killing Lorelei, the dead body of young woman washes ashore, and the truth about what happened that night twenty-five years ago - and what is happening now - threatens not only the carefully constructed lives of Barb and Nicolette, but the very fabric of Seaside itself.
