Promos call it “I Know What You Did Last Summer meets the French countryside.” For me, it was more like…maybe The Big Chill meets Ghost Story? (showing my age here). In any case, it sounded intriguing and potentially a good story, so I was pleased to have the opportunity to read Lexie Elliott’s The French Girl, thanks to Berkley Publishing and NetGalley.

The narrator, Kate Channing, is a young woman who rose from her less-than-aristocratic background to attend Oxford, where she met a group of completely aristocratic friends. On a vacation together, they stayed at a farmhouse in the French countryside where they met a young Frenchwoman who disappeared, apparently on the last day they were in France. Ten years later, a body has been found on the property and an investigation into the disappearance is underway, complete with dashing French police detective, a guessing game as to who was responsible, and lots of interpersonal connections among the group (except, alas, for poor Theo, killed in Afghanistan, which might make him a convenient person on whom to pin blame). The group gathers together after a decade, and there have been enough changes that it seems likely someone will get thrown under the bus…but who?

I loved Kate’s dark humor and her strength and loyalty. The mystery is partly who did the deed, but also how well do you know your friends? I like musteries and interpersonal relationships involving strong female characters. I’m not a big fan of supernatural/ghost/whatever you call it stories, and I didn’t really care strongly about any of the characters. I also prefer seeing justice done…but that’s another story. It seemed unlikely that Kate’s business could survive her seemingly lax work ethic/hectic social life, but maybe I just didn’t relate to London millenials, living the life…

Overall, it was entertaining, well written, and a good “beach read.” Not sure I will remember it in six months, but I would definitely read more by Lexie Elliott. Four stars.