The Quarry Girls: A Thriller

The Quarry Girls: A Thriller is a first read by Jess Lourey that I selected as part of a challenge! While I consider myself an eclectic reader, I sadly admit that a book based on a true crime, full of murder and mayhem would not be my usual choice of reading material. If I wanted to be full of anxiety, fear and anger, I could read US NEWS and World Reports. If not for the Kindle challenge to read a book based on true crime I would have missed experiencing the brilliant talent of Jess Lourey. I was totally unprepared for the tsunami of emotions I would feel reading Quarry Girls. In her author notes (pg. 310), Jess Lourey thanks five authors whose words inspire her writing. Jess writes, " [they] can put together a sentence so unexpected and delicious that I go back to taste it again and again." Jess Lourey's writing inspired the same feelings in me. I usually read to escape but with Jess Lourey's Quarry Girls I found myself savoring her words. It was an experience similar to lingering over a magnificent five course meal, allowing the different flavors of the food, the wine and the companionship, to roll over your tongue and incite your mind. A book that excites and involves all 5 of my senses is a new experience for me. As much as I was exhilarated by the suspense of the story, I was facinated by Ms. Lourey's word craft. Quarry Girls is the most highlighted work of fiction I have on my shelves. Jess Lourey through mere words invoked a feeling of childhood nostalgia, taking me back to a time in the 70s I remember to be idellyic and simpler than today. And while I reveled in memories of swimming in the canals around my small Central California town, Jess Lourey's creative words reminded me that I never knew what secrets, plots and political manipulations were occurring at my parents cocktail parties. I thought she might have read my diary but again the opening pages of the book clued me into the fact that miles from California, Jess Lourey shared a similar childhood. The way I instantly related to her characters added to the thrill and chills felt as the story unfolds! Of the 70s for example, Jess character Heather says, " That summer, the summer of 77,everything had edges. The sharpness took my fiends, but it cut away the blinders, too. And once you understand the truth, there's no living any other way." Talk about "killing me softly with words"! Jess Lourey took my memories, my adventures, my bad choices and wove them into poetic work of art. If only I had the talent to paint a picture with words the way, Jess does in this novel. I was mesmerized by this book. I read page after page of this novel, ignoring my messy house and myhis dogs whines for attention, and finished this book in a day. I was so enthralled, determine to figure out whodunit and how things would turn out, I didn't realize that night had fallen! And then I was so upset that I had finished already, I almost started over again; this time determined to take my time and savor every word. Instead I purchased the audio version so I could sit back close my eyes and have the words wash over me as I rock in my favorite chair in front of the fireplace this winter. Thanks so much to the Kindle Challenge for forcing me to choose a book out of my usual readings which led me to Jess Lourey. She will now occupy a place on my "fave author's shelf.

Series Info/Source: This is a stand alone book. I got a copy of this on ebook through Amazon First Reads. Thoughts: This was an interesting read. I am not generally a huge fan of serial killer/thriller types of books. I was intrigued by the Minnesota setting here and I really did end up enjoying that Minnesota setting. There is a lot of background here on the late 1970's in the St. Cloud area, particularly Pantown. I had no idea that so many awful things were happening in that time frame in St. Cloud. I also didn't know the urban myths around the Pantown tunnels. The story follows Heather as she and her two girlfriends get an amazing opportunity for their all girl band to perform at the county fair. This is overshadowed some by the fact that a girl named Beth has recently gone missing. Their first performance at the fair goes awesome and they are pumped for their next until one of their band members, Maureen, goes missing. Heather is smart and she is sure that Beth isn't a runaway and neither is Maureen, so Heather starts digging. What she finds reveals a nasty underside to their idealistic small town. This was a well done story. I enjoyed Heather as a character, although her home life was seriously messed up and got more so as the story continued. It was an interesting look back in time and really drove home how in a lot of ways a "woman's" place in society has improved. However, it also drove home how far we still have to go. It was scary how easily society accepted the disappearance of these girls and how readily trusted figures in society accepted and even participated in what was happening. This was easy to read and hard to put down. It is definitely a page-turner and the story kept me guessing. The conclusion wasn't as surprising as I had hoped, but I did enjoy how the story wrapped up. It ends on a hopeful note and I really admired how Heather and Beth handled everything. My Summary (4/5): Overall I enjoyed learning about the history of the St. Cloud area and enjoyed the mystery behind this story. This was well written, easy to read, and not too scary. Will I pick up more Lourey books in the future? Well, as I said, I am not a huge fan of this genre but if another Lourey book comes up in a Minnesota setting and it sounds intriguing I would definitely consider it. This was an interesting read and very well written.

Ok, so this book has been on my list for awhile. I don’t know why I waited so long. Easily will be the top read of the year for me. I don’t look at too many reviews when reading other books because I don’t want to be jaded by someone else’s opinions. I just look at the overall rating and try not to read about the book - because a blind read is way more fun. I loved the interwoven stories of the book. I loved how until the very end, I was not 100% sure of who the monster really was. To me, this was a true 5 star. I felt like the writer did a really good job of telling each characters story so you felt like you knew them (maybe with the exception of Beth - but I think that was by design maybe). Her writing was truly captivating and this book was hard to put down. While I will say, I did expect the ending in a sense, I never truly knew who did it and kept flipping on myself casting blame in so many directions. That is not typical for me. Usually I figure it out pretty quickly. Hands down, fave book so far in 2026! I know it’s early, but it will be hard to beat!

The author, Jess Loury, introduces the reader, in her author notes, to where and when her fascination with serial killers began - St. Cloud, MN in 1977. I found this an interesting personal note. I like it when author’s do that at either the beginning or at the end of the book. I like getting those insights to the story and the author’s mind and thoughts. The book summary lays out the primary storyline: the disappearance of teenaged girls in the summer of 1977 in St Cloud. The story flips back and forth between two MC’s; Beth and Heather. Beth is a 17yr waitress who was abducted as she was leaving work, late one night, which was revealed in the prologue, so this is not a spoiler. Heather is a 16yr old drummer of an all-girl band who is the primary caregiver for her 12yr old sister and her emotionally and mentally absent, manic-depressive, schizophrenic mother who rarely leaves her bed/bedroom. Heather’s father is a workaholic that spends little time at home. There was a triggering incident for the mother’s condition that isn’t revealed until the second half of the story, however, I won't be revealing that spoiler. It was the comment in the book summary, “she learns that no one in her community is who they seem to be”, that had me suspicious of pretty much everyone from the get-go, especially the male characters, many of whom were drenched in toxic masculinity. By the second half of the story, around the 60% mark, I had settled on two different suspects because I truly believed there were two suspects at work. The end gets pretty scary and intense but, satisfying and fulfilling. A solid 3star rating about the breakdown of a small mid-western town in the 70’s, where the chauvinism and misogyny was so rampant that it nearly silenced one generation of women and set its sights on doing the same to a whole new generation of women/girls. One of the best things I’ve enjoyed about being a GR member (besides the humungous database of book recommendations) is following fellow members where I have discovered some really great books. On that note, I want to thank fellow GR member, Thomas, for introducing me to NetGalley. I also want to thank NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for sending me this eARC. @NetGalley @Thomas&Mercer @QuarryGirls

It felt like a slow start for me, but one I knew. That was my world, just a couple years older than Heather in 1979. Family secrets. Decades from Me Too. Free flying summer days. Awkward awkward growing up. Then the action and tension ratchet up, and it is tense! It has a satisfying ending too. Overall about 4.5 stars. Edit: spoiler alert: I still say satisfying ending, but I kept going back to Heather and feeling that, yeah she has her sweet romance, but all the darkness and trauma and secrets will eventually erode her or explode her. People didn’t go for counseling back then (maybe wealthy people).

Loved this book. I read it in a day. Was a Great mystery thriller and I want to read more books like this. Such an easy read.

Years later and I still think of this book and look for this author. Excellent story. Disturbing. Resonates.

This is the second novel I have read by Jess Lourey. I have lived in Minnesota my whole life and so I really enjoy her novels being sent in my home state. This historical fiction novel is set in 1977. Being born in 1973 in Northern Minnesota I was excited to read this thriller. Although this book is a work of fiction, there is a lot of historical accuracies in the novel as well. In a small community in northern St. Cloud is a neighborhood called Pantown. Which was built by its founder who had a dream of a connected community that all worked at his company. All the houses were connected by a tunnel system from their basement that led to the factory entrance. Although I have never lived in St. Cloud, I have been there many, many times. I could not believe I had never heard about these tunnels…. The story is about three teenage girls who meet the saddest of tragedy. There are many suspects and so many awful acts being committed.. The author does a great job painting a picture of Saint Cloud in the 70s. Wow! Talk about nostalgia. From the music, and the community atmosphere, I felt like I was a child again… We learn about the protagonist Heather, her friends, Brenda and Maureen, as well as their unique backstories. The author does an amazing job of writing about each character characters skeletons in the closet. Leaving them there dangling making you wonder how they will connect with the story. This is a fast read, and one that I would recommend to anyone that enjoys historical fiction, (especially if you have lived in Minnesota), suspense, and or thriller novels.