Erinna
For such a short read this could certainly have been even shorter! There were lots of reviews saying they couldn't put the book down so that coupled with enjoying the last book from this author I read so much, I was likely expecting a bit much from this book. But even with that being said this was a major flop for me.
The character development was wholly lacking, the actions of the mice in the cat and mouse game were overly naive (especially for one of them being a crime junkie). And about a third to half of this book is just the back and forth internal dialogue of the main character who lets every opportunity for escape pass her by with indecisiveness.
The plot became a bit unrealistic to me and pretty much all of the “twists” were highly predictable.
I didn't hate it but I also wouldn't recommend it.
RUN RUN RUN to read this book!! This might be an all time favorite of mine and knowing it's loosely based on a real story makes it that much more crazy.
This book jumps right into the thick of the story on the very first page and I was absolutely glued until the very last page. The way it started, the characters, the shifting perspectives, the very real fear felt while these horrid events unfolded, the length of the book giving it the suspense and build and character development it needed while remaining short enough to never have dull chapters. Everything was done so incredibly well!
I've mentioned being glued to books in a lot of other reviews but this was a whole different level of desperation to get through the chapters as the story unfolded.
I cannot recommend this read enough and will be looking into other books by this author as soon as this review is posted!
I was absolutely GLUED to this series of short books!! The story takes off basically right from page one and barely lets down through out each of the 5 books (besides a bit of a lull from book 3).
The writing wasn't exceptional, some parts were far fetched and unrealistic, others felt unnecessary and even silly (the main male character who doesn't even have enough time to get more than a few hours of sleep a night certainly didn't need to have abs, which were mentioned multiple times, to fit the desirable character he was). But even with those flaws I absolutely LOVED this series.
It was such a quick and easy read. It was gripping and suspenseful almost all the way through each book and you learn to adore these highly flawed characters. It is also told from multiple perspectives which is always a favorite for me.
Without taking everything too seriously I HIGHLY recommend this series! What a fun story that absolutely picked back up my excitement for reading again.
Oh and last note, I absolutely hate the cover art and titles of these books (if I didn't already say it enough under the other books' reviews). What a disservice to the books, if that's stopping you like it was for me for a while, push through, it's worth it!
The title and cover art of this book does it zero justice!! I almost didn't read it because of them but a friend recommended it so I powered through and actually really enjoyed it! It's also more on the thriller/ mystery side than romance side to me which I enjoyed (but wasn't anticipating because of the trash cover).
I've never read a short book series like this but I have to say I'm pretty invested. This was a short read and took off pretty quickly making it a super engaging and easy read. Starting the next book as soon as I finish this review to see where this goes!
This was likely my favorite read of this year!!! What a journey! The character development is phenomenal, the multiple perspectives keep you gripped and guessing and most of all this story didn't at all go in the direction I thought it would in the absolute best way!
These writers do an amazing job drawing you through the beautiful, raw, and sometimes ugly stories of each character all while leading you through solving the mystery of what happened to Lily.
Can't recommend this read enough!
3.5 - 4 ⭐️
Suspenseful, fairly unpredictable, quick, enjoyable read! The last couple of books I read I really had to push myself to get through, so this book was exactly what I needed!! It takes off quickly and keeps you gripped/ not wanting to put it down making it a very quick read.
Was it game changing? No. But it was thoroughly enjoyable and I could not put it down. There were parts that were a bit predictable but it was accompanied by other things that I didn't see coming at all. I also LOVE a multiple first person perspective book where you piece the story together based on these different perspectives.
The more McFadden books I read, the more I feel she's like the Colleen Hoover of psychological thrillers. Her books are enjoyable, gripping and easy to fly through. Although they're probably not going to be my all time favorites or game changing books, they get me excited about reading and leave me wanting to read everything she publishes.
Definitely recommend giving this a read!
3.5 ⭐️
Holy thought provoking! This book likely would have been a 4 star if I didn't put it down and come back to it (I didn't feel as invested after).
This book was ridiculously thought provoking! My head was spinning in the background with what-ifs and intriguing concept throughout this whole read. There were also a couple of surprises that got me in the feels by the end. Weirdly enough I was also drawing some parallels with the book and our political climate right now.
I didn't find it hugely gripping (but again I put the book down and I don't think that helped). Although the story and its points about life were really beautiful!
I'll be off listening to Que Sera Sera and thinking about life for the next couple of days
I really wanted to like this book but unfortunately it felt like a chore to finish. The story itself is good and I love how the author was able to paint such a clear picture of the disparity in privilege between races and between physically impaired and not individuals during this time. I also love the way the author wrote about each person and their layers of challenge even for those who seemingly had all the privilege. It showed the complexity of human nature and experience, and gave insight and understanding to individuals that otherwise could have simply been labeled as “bad” people. This was really wonderfully done.
With that being said, the HUGE drawback in the experience of this book is the shear number of characters, subplots and jumping around that made it incredibly challenging to keep everything straight. I can see the importance of introducing so many different characters with different backgrounds as a window into perspective, it just unfortunately also comes with the drawback of a more challenging read. I was constantly looking up the characters online and trying to keep them straight (many online resources noted over 100 characters throughout the book). I even found myself reading chapter summaries online to make sure I didn't miss anything while trying to keep up with all of the intermingling subplots.
All in all the story and its beautifully written perspectives was great, I personally just didn't find it enjoyable to keep up with.
3.5 ⭐️ I'm new to the romantic/ spicy genre and overall I enjoyed this book. There were parts that dragged a little bit (could have been a shorter book imo) and I found some of the romance to be a little too cheesy, but overall a good amount of surprises thrown in and overall a fun, romantic story.
Probably wouldn't recommend reading it on a plane like I did
4.5 ⭐️ : Holly suspense!!
This was one of my favorite reads so far this year! I was absolutely gripped from almost page one and could not get through the pages fast enough! The strong suspense I felt a few times throughout the book was parallel to some scary movies I've watched where I'm quite literally at the edge of my seat, trying to sprint through the pages to find relief in the unfolding of events.
There were a few twists and turns that made the narrator quite unreliable, and had me second guessing so many of my theories throughout this read. There were moments I thought I had it nailed down (I didn't) and others where I felt it could literally be anyone and anything.
4.5 stars only because the middle of the book slowed down quite a bit before picking back up again and because the truth was divulged by a character to the main character at the end, she didn't figure anything out it was just told to her which was a bit anticlimactic.
Either way RUN to this book, such an enjoyable read!!
Very informational and I appreciate the self reflection queues and resources after each myth to dig further. Definitely worth a read to touch on an array of subjects/ myths. Although I feel like it was a little shallow, like she covered so many myths and hit briefly on each which got a bit redundant at the end and left me feeling I never dove in enough for full enlightenment on any of the myths. Still insightful and helpful, just a little surface level.
I've also listened to her podcast and loved her personality and witty humor but for some reason none of that came through in this book, it was a bit dull.
Again overall worth the read and very informational, just a little bit shallow and dry.
What a shame. I really enjoyed the first two books, and this one was a bust for me. It took over two hundred pages of what felt like literally nothing happening (I know she was setting the scene but this was excessive) to then throw some answers into the end that weren't really that surprising.
The main character and her husband's inability to have a straightforward conversation was really frustrating to read through, especially when their relationship was founded in trust and authenticity in the first two books. As the story starts to unravel around page 260, elements are, strangely enough, very thoroughly explained without actually being straightforward answers and never gets confirmed by the end. I'm left making assumptions for the story line to make more sense in my head.
To some degree this book also felt like a second book repeat of the police being involved and needing to do whatever necessary to not get caught even when all of the evidence is quite incriminating. It looses realism here for me, I just can't see this playing out in real life.
Finally, with 60% of the book focussed on setting the scene, the last 40% of getting answers just felt thrown on top of each other. There are a few missing pieces so we get another perspective, then another missing piece so throw in another perspective to tie it in and none in a surprising, never saw this coming way.
In all fairness I didn't have high hopes for this book, I think it's really challenging to write multiple sequels and have them maintain the same level of shock factor, I was just hoping the author would prove me wrong.
Maybe worth the read if you're invested in the original two books just to see the characters years later but certainly wouldn't recommend it as a first read to anyone.
Absolutely harrowing. I started this book a couple of years ago and had to put it down because it was too horrific for me, but I finally picked it back up. It's wild to me that someone can come across so many horrible men in a lifetime. Her story made me so angry and deeply sad for her coping with years of atrocities that no one should have to endure.
Certainly a great but heartbreaking read if you can stomach it!
I was absolutely GLUED to this book! The story was dark and creepy and tense for the majority of the read and the strangeness of the characters had me questioning reality. I loved how the author jumped between 3rd person to Netflix production interviews to the podcast medium, introducing characters and information at specific times that I wasn't quite sure of their fit and left me feeling like I couldn't get through the book fast enough to find out.
This tense, eerie feeling ran right through the end with some twists that I wasn't expecting but am still questioning after finishing the read. I will be thinking about this book for a while.
The only reason I didn't give it a 5 star is because I did feel it was missing a little bit of closure for me. Although maybe she set it up for a sequel? I'd run to get that next book if she was!
I wanted to like this book so badly. It won multiple awards and has decent over all reviews, but it just completely missed the mark for me.
The main character was so frustrating that I found reading this book annoying and hard to continue. A large premise of the book was never wrapped up, and gave no answers or closure, and the closure on the main case felt almost like the author had to hit a deadline and just pulled together a story that “worked”.
Almost didn't finish reading this but was 80% through so said screw it and honestly could have done without.