Ocean State is definitely a book I should’ve picked up a long time ago. It is a classic ‘whydunnit?’ and at a mere 226 pages packs a punch.

There are so many aspects to this story and my attention didn’t waver once. I was so caught up in the Oliviera family who were all flawed in their own ways but intensely loyal to each other. Their dynamic was messy but also felt realistic.

The portrayal of young love and the devastation it can cause was written with beauty but such a dark undertone. The feelings of both Angel and Birdie were palpable. Knowing it was going to end with tragedy, I found myself wanting to scream into the book and will them to see beyond the toxic emotions.

I highly recommend this book and cannot believe I didn’t read it sooner.

Ocean State is a beautifully written, and profoundly compelling novel about sisters, mothers, and daughters.

Set in Ashaway, Rhode Island, this story explores the events that led to the murder of Birdy Alves, through text messages sent back and forth between two teens, Angel and Myles, the thoughts of Carol, Angels’ mother, as well as Birdy.
All perspectives are compelling. This was a heartbreaking, and complex story. Character driven and so well done.
A remarkable and well crafted book that was a very satisfying read.

Thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for a digital ARC in exchange for a honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley for giving me this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I thought this book was really good. It was a page turner thats for sure. I enjoyed how we knew there had been a murder but no idea who it was. The discussion of their sexuality was very sensitive also. Definitely recommend.

Ocean State by Stewart O'Nan is a novel about how a love triangle among teenagers leads to murder and the unravelling of lives.

I enjoyed this book overall but I think perhaps I expected more of a thriller, from that hook line, but it was more about family drama and family dynamics. Which was still a good story and well written. I enjoyed the characters and felt a strong sense of American family life. Some quite dysfunctional people, some which could have been explored in more detail. Overall enjoyable.

A brilliant, atmospheric, why-dunnit, set in the marshland of Florida. Bringing to life the awkwardness of social hierarchies at high school and the competition for popularity and boyfriends - and the confusion caused by misunterpretations.

Even from the first line (“When I was in eighth grade, my sister helped kill another girl.”) this book hooked me completely. It's not exactly a thriller, but it was still twisty and complicated and I really enjoyed trying to get to the bottom of everything.

The writing is not always on point, but I still had a good time with this book.

“When I was in eighth grade, my sister helped kill another girl.”

An arresting start to a tense non-thriller - we know someone’s been killed and we know who did it. But what unfolds is a chilling examination of a teen love triangle gone wrong. It’s an interesting read which explores romantic, jealous love, self-worth and the desperate ecstasy of being a teenager. It looks at the repercussions on the families involved and really gets inside the flawed, human character of some if not all the protagonists.
It’s well written and a quick page turner, but for me, there was something missing - and I’m not sure what! So I didn’t love it but I did like it!
Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC. All views are my own.

I was so surprised by ‘Ocean State’ in the best way.
The story is about the relationships between mothers and daughters and sisters; authored by a male writer. He does a captivating job of writing from the female, teenage perspective and successfully captures all these nuances of the chaos that would be in the mind of such a narrator.
The first line is strong and sets up for maximum intrigue which I found throughout this novel. It sort of crossed a lot of genres for me which I enjoyed. The combination of a coming-of-age mixed with a thriller is one of my favorite styles and this one plays out brilliantly. For me this was a story that definitely met and exceeded my expectations from the synopsis. A definite page turner for me.

Set in 2009, this tells the story of Marie, who’s older sister Angel is accused of a murder.

This book is exploring a love triangle that takes a tragic turn. Told through the eyes of the suspect’s younger sister, it explores poverty in a small town in Rhode Island. The setting and background to this novel is intricately drawn.

This is not a thriller, we know what will happen right from the start of the book and there are no twists or turns but it is utterly engaging and compelling throughout. I flew through it and was hooked from the beginning.

I enjoyed the POV’s the book was told through and particularly Marie. I felt for her and the sad life she was living and how the fall out from this event effects her and the rest of the family.

This is my first of Stewart O’Nan’s novels and I really enjoyed it.

AD - This copy was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

The story focuses on two teenage sisters, Angel and Marie. Angel is beautiful and popular in school, her sister Marie is a good student who hopes to be as popular as her big sister one day. When Angel finds out her boyfriend Myles has been cheating on her with another girl from school she’ll stop at nothing to make sure she doesn’t lose him.

This book is full of teenage angst and jealously. It highlights the effects absent parents can have on a teenagers mental state and how quickly things can spiral out of control. I was expecting a thriller but this story was more focussed on family dynamic and the intricacies and emotions of the people within it rather than the crime that’s committed so if you’re after a gritty thriller this isn’t the book you’re looking for.

I feel like I was waiting for a big reveal that never came. It isn’t one I’m going to be shouting about from the rooftops but it was a quick read that I quite enjoyed.

Thank you to Netgalley, Stewart O’Nan and Atlantic Books UK for my copy of this book.

This was a really interesting read and at just over 200 pages long I flew through it.

In the first line of Ocean State, we learn that a high school student was murdered, and we find out who did it. This hooked me and I was really excited to see how the story developed.

I really enjoyed the writing style and how it focused on the four female characters. The build up to the murder was really intense and I was intrigued to know how the murder occured and what the fall out was. However, the aftermath wasn’t explored as much as I would have liked so after all the build up it felt the ending was rather rushed.

I will definitely read more from O’Nan in the future.

When Marie was in eighth grade, her older sister, Angel, helped kill a girl. It was because she was in love, their mother said, but was that really all there was to it?

3.5⭐️

This was an interesting read, and overall I enjoyed O'Nan's writing style, but ultimately I came away from it not feeling much of anything.
We were given quite a long build up to a murder we know is going to happen, to whom and by whom. The murder, then, and the aftermath, were just skimmed over, almost an afterthought. I would have like to have seen the fallout explored more in-depth for the various characters.
I did enjoy our cast of characters, they were interesting and compelling to follow through the narrative. They were all flawed individuals, which always keeps things interesting. Something that did irk me in terms of characterisation, was the repeated villainization of Carol, Marie and Angel's mother. It didn't feel particularly warranted nor did it add much to the story for me. Did she have a bit of a drinking problem? Maybe. But she was also just a single mom holding down a steady job and looking for a relationship, hardly the world's worst. It just felt a bit misogynistic, and took me out of the story at times.
One thing about the rotating POVs was the intermittent switches to first person narration for Marie. I get that it was to show her telling those parts retroactively, but I feel it would have flowed better if either all of her sections were told from this perspective, or none.

Overall though, this was an interesting look at young love turned violent, strained familial relationships, loyalty... told primarily through the lens of fairly damaged people, in one way or another.

Thank you NetGalley and Atlantic Books for my e-arc of this title, received in exchange for an honest review.

Although he has published several novels, some of which have been turned into films, I had not come across Stewart O’Nan’s work until I picked up ‘Ocean State’. The title makes reference to the smallest US state, Rhode Island, but the novel’s plot is firmly centred on chaotic, all-consuming family life that could play out elsewhere in the world, too.
Single parent Carol Oliveira ekes out a living in this part of New England with her precious elder daughter Angel and sensitive, book-loving younger daughter Marie. The novel begins with Marie’s shocking revelation ‘When I was in eighth grade, my sister helped kill another girl’ foregrounds everything that follows in this novel: erratic parenting, addiction, social inequalities and the more toxic aspects of youth culture. These are all themes to be explored as the reader tries to work out the reasons for and complexities of the love triangle that forms the original plot of this novel.
Not always easy to read (the writing style seemed more accomplished in some passages than others), I would rate this novel 3 out of 5 and will be interested to see its general reception in the UK. Thank you to NetGalley and to the publishers for the free e-book I received in exchange for this honest and unfiltered review.

This book was a solid 3.5 stars for me!
Ocean State opens with an absolute banger: “When I was in eighth grade my sister helped kill another girl. She was in love, my mother said, like it was an excuse.” From then on, I felt it dwindled a little. However, I absolutely adored the characters and the endearing (yet slightly disorienting) frequent switches in perspective. The world-building was excellent- minimal but very vivid, and the pacing was equally well done. Is it the best book I’ve ever read? No. But it was fast-paced and interesting, a good vacation read. I would definitely recommend this mystery/ya/thriller to a friend. Please do note that this book deals with murder, eating disorders, alcoholism, domestic violence and mentions of suicide.

“When I was in eighth grade, my sister helped kill another girl.”

An arresting start to a tense non-thriller - we know someone’s been killed and we know who did it. But what unfolds is a chilling examination of a teen love triangle gone wrong. It’s an interesting read which explores romantic, jealous love, self-worth and the desperate ecstasy of being a teenager. It looks at the repercussions on the families involved and really gets inside the flawed, human character of some if not all the protagonists.
It’s well written and a quick page turner, but for me, there was something missing - and I’m not sure what! So I didn’t love it but I did like it!
Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC. All views are my own.

I had much hopes for this book, I kept seeing it everywhere and I was intrigued by the blurb as well as the opening line.
"When I was in eighth grade my sister helped kill another girl".
The author wanted to build up tension for a grand finale, teasing the reader from the very beginning thinking they would soon find out what happened.
However, we do not get to see what happens until about 70% into the book. And even then, I am still not too clear on how exactly the girl died.

I did like the characters, Marie, the sister, was my favourite. I felt so sorry for her. Even though she didn't do anything, she was left alone fighting a battle that wasn't even hers, even when everyone else left, she carried on.
The mother was a bit of a mystery to be honest. I really disliked her at the beginning but I liked her more towards the end. She actually came through for her daughter.

I was going to give 3* but upgraded to 4 for the last part of the book as there was definitely more juice to it.
But I was expecting more, it felt just a little underwhelming.

A beautifully heartbreaking story about the power of unconditional love between siblings and parents.

There was a lot I liked about Ocean State. Though we're told right from the beginning about a murder, the author brilliantly creates tension that teases and keeps the reader enthralled to actually find out what happened.

Carol and her two daughters, Angel and Marie have moved multiple times - every time another of their Mom's relationships fails. Angel is popular and goes out with Myles. Who is also seeing a girl called Birdy. When the infidelity is revealed, jealous rage takes over Angel and Birdy is lured to see Myles.

However, the eventual hope for the crescendo following the exquisite build up of tension, was not delivered. There was no detail and it felt a bit flat after that.

I felt most sorry for Angel's younger sister Marie who was left alone much of the time, and countered the loneliness by comfort eating and snooping round her sister's bedroom.

Overall I enjoyed the story, but felt it could have been improved with a deeper understanding of Carol, the mother of the two girls.

The book hooked me in with the first line: “When I was in eighth grade my sister helped kill another girl. She was in love, my mother said, like it was an excuse,”

However, ultimately the narrative voice wasn't for me, and I found the story overall hard to get into.