Locust Lane

A Novel

By: Stephen Amidon

Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell

"This is a plot that uncovers many secrets, and Campbell treats them all evenhandedly with no hints that give away the identity of the murderer before the mystery's reveal."—AudioFile

For fans of Mystic River by Dennis Lehane and Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng, Audible Hall of Fame narrator Cassandra Campbell delivers an electrifying performance of Stephen Amidon's Locust Lane, a taut and utterly propulsive story about the search for justice and the fault lines of power and influence in a seemingly idyllic town.

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 at every moment, this is superb storytelling told in terse prose—a dynamic listen that is both intensely gripping and deeply affecting.

A Macmillan Audio production from Celadon Books.

©2023 Stephen Amidon (P)2023 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

"A cool-headed, red-blooded novel of such ice-pick intelligence that you might find yourself wondering, as I did, when you last read a thriller this sophisticated. Like Lehane and Landay—like Harlan Coben, too, and Laura Dave in The Last Thing He Told Me, he detonates surprises with perfect timing."—A.J. Finn, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Woman in the Window

"Amidon’s compulsively readable, richly plotted crime novel is a tour de force that grabs readers’ attention and doesn’t let go until the final page."—Booklist, STARRED REVIEW

The characters, the situations and places were realistic

The ending is not predictable, the relationships between the adult characters were idiosyncratic enough to be realistic. Mr. Amidon, whom I had the pleasure of meeting once, or twice years ago when he lived in western, Massachusetts, completely nailed the meilieu of a leafy and loaded Boston metro west suburb. Can’t wait to order another work from this fine author! 

One of my favorites this year!

So glad I ran across this one. I love that I didn’t know where the story was heading. I’ve been thinking about the story and characters long after I finished this book.

Repetitive and dragged out

Without giving too much away, the story follows along several characters as they navigate a situation that occurred. The story jumps from being told from each character’s perspective. Normally a story like this doesn’t bother me when it jumps between maybe 2or 3 characters buuut this story jumps between multiple characters. Not only does it become repetitive hearing the same part of a story over and over from multiple perspectives but it just seems like it really drags everything out. You really don’t learn much new information, it seems, until the last couple of chapters, which at that point causes the ending to feel rushed.

Great story

the book was very interesting and narrator was great. In my opinion the ending was a little confusing.. Definitely recommend listening.

Surprising

Really good with twists and turns! I highly recommend this book you won’t regret it