Come with Me
Ratings45
Average rating4
This is a mystery, this is a horror, this is a tragedy. Malfi writes a book that has those small-town creepy vibes but includes those classic mystery feels and the heartbreak of loss. It took me a while to get used to the second-person narration because, as avid a reader as I am, I rarely see this. Malfi does it well, though, so stick with the bizarre taste it leaves in your mouth and indulge in something a little different and very haunting.
this was fine but I think the length killed my enjoyment. loved the small town atmosphere and snooping around but it dragged a bit and when the reveal came I was just like okay
4 Stars
Woah it was a dark, spooky, grief filled mystery. It was so intense and atmospheric. It was a good time, I needed to know what was going to happen next.
Not a Thriller but a mystery. Mild spooky vibes. Grief filled. A couple slow parts but overall a really good story.
Unfortunately, this book started out really strong and then sort of petered out. As the top reviewer stated, this really does start off as a 5-star read. It then kind of drags on with an OK ending and followed by a truly dreadful epilogue.
I thoroughly enjoyed Malfi's writing style although sometimes his flowery writing was a little excessive. The story itself is a bit bloated and not a lot happens for stretches. I felt like playing a video game where I'm out on a fetch quest that leads to another and another. And speaking of dragging, the final chapter drags on and on and on. It felt so unnecessary and long.
My three star review is a bit complicated in this instance. I'm not saying it's mediocre, and I don't want to discourage people from reading it. I think people can take away different things. It's definitely worth the read, just not mind-blowing. And there is much left for discussion and interpretation.
DO.NOT.OPEN.THE.DOOR
Creepy, atmospheric mystery that wiggles it's toes in the supernatural puddle. I loved the prose, it will appeal to fans of John Connolly. I didn't really care that much for the ending. When you find out who the killer is, and let me tell you this, Alison, it wasn't who I thought it was. There is this summery of what transpired, a history of the killer, the killer did this, they moved here, they found her this way etc etc. I didn't feel I needed to know that, it would have been better left unknown. The actual ending, I can deal with that, it was a little bit strange but what would life be without a little strangeness.
I will read more from this author, I like him very much.
Stunning is the first word that comes to mind when I think about this book. The main character is interesting and endearing and the way he talks about and experience grief feels so real you can tell that the author is no stranger to grief.
I did not see the ending coming although maybe I should have but I was just too busy enjoying the book to think about how it would end.
It was my first time reading a one of Malfi's books and it will not be the last.
For the aces/sex repulsed in the room: there's one sex scene that features some “kink” going too far the scene isn't too descriptive on the sex bits, it didn't gross me out but it's there and a relatively important part of the story, you can't real skim it without missing some potentially important details.
With mysteries, I always feel like the conclusion is never as good as I build up in my mind. At first it's kind of fascinating, to see what's going on and building up the pressure. But then we learn the solution to it all and... eh?
Same here, especially because the story is in this weird inbetween situation where I think it's supposed to be rooted in reality, but for no apparent reason we are given these random hints at things maybe being supernatural. Which... they aren't? I think. It's never properly developed, It's never handled well, so it feels very tacked on.
Aaron's wife, Allison, gets killed in a shooting at a mall. She was a journalist, but don't imagine some hot shot person, she did these feel good local stories and such. But after her death, Aaron discovers her having a secret life where she was doing something that seemed to be way over the normal things for her.
One thing about the book that will be a hit or miss is the fact Aaron describes things about Allison is second person. Now, personally I don't like that much, especially because both him and her came off as... well, a couple of kinda insufferable quirky ass hipsters.
Allison give off this mysterious sad tough girl vibe, while Aaron is basically a whimp who thinks of her as way above him. Neither is likeable. I understand I am supposed to feel for these people, which is hard when they come off so unlikeable.
The writing itself is like that as well. Sometimes it's over the top.
The mystery... You can't really solve it yourself. No matter how much you think, you won't be able to piece it together, because there isn't enough information ahead of the reveal. In that sense, it failed.
It's not very special either. Not the victims, the method, the reasoning. It's so mundane, if you can say that about a serial killer, hah. I just expected something more grandiose.
It's a quick and easy read, but I wouldn't specifically seek this one out.
Book Title: Come with Me
Age when read: 19-20 y/o
Written: 29 days after finishing this book
Review:
I didn't really have any favorite characters because everyone felt equally distant to me and I cared more about the mystery. However, the characters felt real as they were regular people and mostly quite boring to be frank. An exception would be Aaron's opposing thoughts acting like two personalities as I feel his inner conflict moved the story. The story kept me guessing in the way that I had no suspects at all; realizing that I just missed the clues. This is a good thing as the reveal makes sense, so I don't feel tricked. My favorite part of this book is when Aaron becomes suspicious of another character who is trying to solve the mystery of the story. The fear that Aaron felt is very well-written and the reader can feel it too. The ending surprised me, but it was really fun. I should've seen it coming. The beginning of the story gripped me and the ending was pretty good. I gave this book 4 stars because while it was good, it was not mind-blowing.
this such a well crafted story. it's certainly not horror, but i was so obsessed with the writing in this. it wasn't something life changing but i think it was just a well told, well executed story.
Precise rating: 4.5 ⭐
I love when I buy books on impulse and they turn out to be fantastic. This one is one of those books.
In the beginning of part 4 I was a little bit unsure whether I liked the direction it seemed to be going, but pretty quickly it turned out that I didn't have to worry about it at all. Malfi's skill to write unique characters is at least on level 9000 and the ending is phenomenal!
I love how Malfi included paranormal elements in such a subtle way that it was unclear until the end whether any of that spooky stuff was happening at all.