#BlogTour ‘The Night Swim’ by Megan Goldin

After the first season of her true crime podcast became an overnight sensation and set an innocent man free, Rachel Krall is now a household name―and the last hope for thousands of people seeking justice. But she’s used to being recognized for her voice, not her face. Which makes it all the more unsettling when she finds a note on her car windshield, addressed to her, begging for help.

The small town of Neapolis is being torn apart by a devastating rape trial. The town’s golden boy, a swimmer destined for Olympic greatness, has been accused of raping a high school student, the beloved granddaughter of the police chief.

Under pressure to make Season Three a success, Rachel throws herself into interviewing and investigating―but the mysterious letters keep showing up in unexpected places. Someone is following her, and she won’t stop until Rachel finds out what happened to her sister twenty-five years ago. Officially, Jenny Stills tragically drowned, but the letters insists she was murdered―and when Rachel starts asking questions, nobody seems to want to answer. The past and present start to collide as Rachel uncovers startling connections between the two cases that will change the course of the trial and the lives of everyone involved.

Electrifying and propulsive, The Night Swim asks: What is the price of a reputation? Can a small town ever right the wrongs of its past? And what really happened to Jenny?

Many thanks to the awesome Melanie from Mirror Books for inviting me on the blogtour for Megan Goldin’s sophomore novel, ‘The Night Swim’.

Using the podcast format alternating with Rachel’s perspective, and the letters from Jenny’s sister, Hannah, this book has multiple perspectives on the current trial, and a murder which never made it to a courtroom.

Seizing the opportunity to raise awareness of Jenny Stills death, based on Rachel’s success in overturning a conviction, Hannah leaves letters in places where Rachel is staying, stopping off for coffee etc which is not only intensely creepy, but also highlights her desperation in reaching out to Rachel.

The tragedy of Jenny’s life is laid bare as it contrasts with the public, media circus of the case which Rachel is covering. The abduction and rape of a local girl by the son of a well connected townsperson, illustrates that those who report sexual assault, and those who don’t, are treated with disdain, disbelief and results in tarnished reutations at best, death at worst.

Ostensibly ruled a suicide/accident, Hannah is sure that Jenny was murdered. As Rachel explores the way that the townspeople are talking about ‘K’ , the annonymised girl in the case,she sees direct links to Jenny’s story. Both were seen as ‘asking for it’, Jenny for going for ‘the night swim’ of the title, with people basically assuming this young girl going swimming at night asked for, and got, the ‘wrong’ kind of attention, whilst ‘K’, chucked out of a house party for kissing the hosts boyfriend, was left with little option to walk home alone, in the dark, and accepted a lift from someone unknown to her.

Themes os sexual assault, justice perceived to be done and reutations ruined are explored as ‘K’s’ life is torn apart, whilst the boy accused of rape is seen as just taking what was offered to him on a plate. Jenny, coming from a single parent family, constantly looking after her younger sister whilst her mother was working around the clock, is seen as the product of her background, her death a mere accidental footnote to a tragic life.

The ones on trial are the girls-Rachel’s podcast aims to put her audience in the the jury box, and her USP for her season 3 is an ongoing, current trial, rather than a cold case, but as can be seen from her terse interactions with the family of Scott Blair show how difficult it is to remain impartial.

Poverty, social standing and justice are not happy bedfellows as the general public seem torn over whether what Scott did is a crime or not-the girls themselves seem to be held to account in  ways that boys are not, an age old tale that is accurately reflected in Hannah’s impassioned letters. That we are living in the 21st Century and the ‘asking for it’ excuse is still used to excuse the bad behaviour and actions of men, whilst destroying the emotional and physical health of the girls involved speaks to the lack of successfully prosecuted assaults, the numbers of assaults reported to those which make it to trial, let alone the sheer, unestimated number of those who feel there is no point reporting them at all.

The strain of attending a real time trial at the same time as recording a podcast and investigating Jenny Stills is so well conveyed in how Rachel connects with these cases. She recognises the constant threat that is posed to women, the way they become bit parts in the story of their assualts and rapes, and is justifiably angry, as is the reader. That it is known and accepted that women and girls will be castigated for taking ‘the wrong route home’, wearing too short a skirt, having anything to drink is held as rationale for making yourself vulnerable to assault is just unthinkable, and rage inducing.

As you read, you are desperate for Rachel to uncover what happened to Jenny whilst simultaneously being worried for her as whoever is leaving letters knows exactly where she is staying. The invasion of her privacy, no matter how well intended, puts shivers down this reader’s spine.

An engaging and thoughtful mystery, in a very modern framework of a podcast, I found the chapters flowed so easily that it was hard to put down.You wanted to get to the next letter, to bear witness to Jenny’s story, find out what happened next, burn with rage for ‘K’ who is every girl who has ever been taken advantage due to being vulnerable and then ruined. It’s a very interesting read which I would recommend to those who enjoy that slow burn, the building of tension through the pages and a very keen eye on social issues of justice being seen to be done versus real life consequences.

MEGAN GOLDIN worked as a correspondent for Reuters and other media outlets where she covered war, peace, international terrorism and financial meltdowns in the Middle East and Asia. She is now based in Melbourne, Australia where she raises three sons and is a foster mum to Labrador puppies learning to be guide dogs. ‘The Escape Room’ is her debut novel.

Twitter @megangoldin @