Title: What Happened Next
Author: Edwin Hill
Publication Date: April 1, 2026
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Format Read: Kindle e-ARC
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
What Happened Next by Edwin Hill has a synopsis that promises secrets being uncovered by a young man 25 years after his father murdered a man, nearly murdered his mother, and then disappeared into the New Hampshire wilderness, never to be seen again. It delivers.
Charlie Kilgore has grown up in the shadow of these tragic events that occurred when he was just an infant. Although he knows what happened through articles and some conversations with his mother and brother, he doesn’t know it all and admittedly still has questions. So when the radio station he works for begins getting into podcasts, he decides to do one on this juicy story from his own past. He travels back to his small New Hampshire lakeside town and begins asking questions, and the spool of his life begins unraveling faster than he can keep up.
The first question I ask myself when I review a mystery or thriller is, “How quickly did I figure out what happened for myself?” This book fits nicely into my second favorite answer category. I had guessed parts of it, but there were enough twists and red herrings that I wasn’t fully confident in myself.
I was particularly impressed by the character depth. Even the more minor characters felt layered with secrets and motivations that made sense. I watched their relationships begin, evolve, and end, and didn’t feel lost along the way. No one is ever exactly who they seem, and in a novel like this, that fact gets amplified until it’s dangerous. This makes it a lot of fun to read.
The story is told entirely in the first person by Charlie himself. I knew exactly what was happening around him and how he felt about it. I was right there for all of his musings, doubts, and revelations. Charlie and I became close, in a sense. The story is told with a quiet, conversational suspense that lets the darkness creep in instead of announcing itself. The dialogue feels natural, almost offhand, like people talking while not quite saying everything. The author doesn’t rely on dramatics, but delivers the story in a way that is understated but loaded. All the dark things that have happened and will happen are delivered in a matter-of-fact way; that casualness builds a steady sense of unease. The prose isn’t flowery or lyrical, but it is firmly in control, smooth and invisible, quietly moving you forward and slowly tightening its grip. Details are purposeful but used sparingly.
This is the kind of book a person could read in one sitting if they wished. It held my interest throughout. It reminds me somewhat of Lady in the Lake by Laura Lippman and In the Woods by Tana French. If you enjoyed either of these books, I suspect What Happened Next would be a good read to have happen next for you. See what I did there? Ha! I’d also recommend it to anyone who enjoys literary suspense with emotional fallout and just enough murder to keep things interesting.
Nerd Rating: 🤓🤓🤓🤓— secrets that won’t stay buried
Let’s Discuss:
Would you dig into your own family’s darkest secrets… or leave them buried?
Find out more about Edwin Hill and What Happened Next here.
I read a digital copy made available by Thomas & Mercer through NetGalley, and this review reflects my honest opinion.