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3.59 AVERAGE
3.59 AVERAGE
This is a quick read about murder, betrayal & the consequences of keeping secrets from those you love.
Jack & Sarah have been married for 20 years & enjoy a comfortable life. When Jack's Aunt Julia ends up in hospital, they go back to his home town for the first time in years. Julia raised Jack & his sister after their parents were killed in a car accident. Or so Sarah thinks. Turns out Jack has been keeping a few secrets.
The results of Julia's injuries put the family in a tailspin & cause Sarah to question everything she thought she knew. Then things get weird(er). Strange emails & run-ins with odd people lead Sarah to realize if she wants the truth, she'll have to dig into Jack's past & solve the mystery surrounding his parents' death.
This is a light suspense story full of family drama. Sarah is the central character & we meet the rest of the cast through her. We also spend a lot of time in her head & it's a busy place. One thing that struck me as odd is her relationship with Jack. Dialogue between them is very polite & superficial, making you wonder at times if they've actually been living under the same roof for 2 decades. As the story progresses & old secrets are exposed, more than once I thought really? this never came up in pillow talk or after a bottle of wine?
The small town setting is done well. It's the type of place where everyone not only knows your business but your grandparents' business, too. Several locals add colour to the story & come across as more fully realized than the 2 main characters. Things amp up for the last quarter as the suspense angle kicks in & you may be surprised when all is revealed.
All in all, an easy read that fits snugly onto my "ok" shelf.
Jack & Sarah have been married for 20 years & enjoy a comfortable life. When Jack's Aunt Julia ends up in hospital, they go back to his home town for the first time in years. Julia raised Jack & his sister after their parents were killed in a car accident. Or so Sarah thinks. Turns out Jack has been keeping a few secrets.
The results of Julia's injuries put the family in a tailspin & cause Sarah to question everything she thought she knew. Then things get weird(er). Strange emails & run-ins with odd people lead Sarah to realize if she wants the truth, she'll have to dig into Jack's past & solve the mystery surrounding his parents' death.
This is a light suspense story full of family drama. Sarah is the central character & we meet the rest of the cast through her. We also spend a lot of time in her head & it's a busy place. One thing that struck me as odd is her relationship with Jack. Dialogue between them is very polite & superficial, making you wonder at times if they've actually been living under the same roof for 2 decades. As the story progresses & old secrets are exposed, more than once I thought really? this never came up in pillow talk or after a bottle of wine?
The small town setting is done well. It's the type of place where everyone not only knows your business but your grandparents' business, too. Several locals add colour to the story & come across as more fully realized than the 2 main characters. Things amp up for the last quarter as the suspense angle kicks in & you may be surprised when all is revealed.
All in all, an easy read that fits snugly onto my "ok" shelf.
I'd say 4.5/5
While I had guessed the killer earlier on, it was a good read to go through the motions of excluding the others. I will admit that while the husband/wife duo and second guessing of trust was at first expected and realistic, it grew a tad bit excessive, almost like the wife WANTED him to be untrustworthy, which was frustrating.
While I had guessed the killer earlier on, it was a good read to go through the motions of excluding the others. I will admit that while the husband/wife duo and second guessing of trust was at first expected and realistic, it grew a tad bit excessive, almost like the wife WANTED him to be untrustworthy, which was frustrating.
YEAH!! I adore all of Gudenkauf's books, but lately I haven't been able to get into her last two as much as her first couple novels which I thought were totally exhilarating. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy everything that she has put out, but I felt like the story lines were declining a little... anyway.. Missing Pieces totally changes that. Gudenkauf is back on her A-game and this one closely competes with Weight of Silence. A gripping, can't put it down, read it on my phone until 2am-kind of book. There's a reason I always pre-order :)
If you are a fan of Gillian Flynn, you're missing out by not picking up Gudenkauf. Enticingly twisted!
If you are a fan of Gillian Flynn, you're missing out by not picking up Gudenkauf. Enticingly twisted!
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you to NetGalley and MIRA for this free readers edition. In exchange I am providing an honest review.
Heather Gudenkauf's books have been on my to-read list for a long time and after finally reading one, Missing Pieces, I'll be making sure I read her other titles. I really enjoyed this story.
Sarah has accompanied her husband of twenty years, Jack, back to his hometown when news of a family emergency comes early one morning. Jack has avoided his hometown since he left it and Sarah hasn't ever met any of his family. Arriving in Penny Gate, Iowa Sarah watches her husband transform from the man she's been married to for all these years into one she barely recognizes. Mystery surrounds his childhood in Penny Gate and his return. Everyone in the family is on edge and Sarah discovers she doesn't know anything about her husband and his life prior to meeting and marrying him 20 years ago. But the longer they are there and the more the family emergency reveals the more missing pieces of Jack's life Sarah figures out. But not everyone wants Sarah to find all the missing pieces to the mystery of Jack's family and Sarah finds herself in danger.
One of the reasons Gudenkauf has caught my attention is because she seems to write stories that explore the dynamics - healthy and otherwise - of relationships with a little mystery thrown in. I confess - I'm a sucker for those kind of stories even if they are slightly unrealistic. I know there's no way that real life holds the kind of deception and mystery authors like Gudenkauf write about but it sure makes for a good read.
Heather Gudenkauf's books have been on my to-read list for a long time and after finally reading one, Missing Pieces, I'll be making sure I read her other titles. I really enjoyed this story.
Sarah has accompanied her husband of twenty years, Jack, back to his hometown when news of a family emergency comes early one morning. Jack has avoided his hometown since he left it and Sarah hasn't ever met any of his family. Arriving in Penny Gate, Iowa Sarah watches her husband transform from the man she's been married to for all these years into one she barely recognizes. Mystery surrounds his childhood in Penny Gate and his return. Everyone in the family is on edge and Sarah discovers she doesn't know anything about her husband and his life prior to meeting and marrying him 20 years ago. But the longer they are there and the more the family emergency reveals the more missing pieces of Jack's life Sarah figures out. But not everyone wants Sarah to find all the missing pieces to the mystery of Jack's family and Sarah finds herself in danger.
One of the reasons Gudenkauf has caught my attention is because she seems to write stories that explore the dynamics - healthy and otherwise - of relationships with a little mystery thrown in. I confess - I'm a sucker for those kind of stories even if they are slightly unrealistic. I know there's no way that real life holds the kind of deception and mystery authors like Gudenkauf write about but it sure makes for a good read.
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
1.5 stars. Something didn’t sit well with me right from the start. There were continuity errors that wrecked the flow of the book, and some of the word choices were very odd. It was short and that’s the best thing to say about it.
Sarah goes to her husband, Jack's hometown after his elderly aunt has a bad fall. Once there, Sarah learns that Jack has lied to her and kept many secrets about his past. She isn't sure if she can trust her husband anymore and is determined to find out the entire truth. Someone doesn't like the digging that Sarah has been doing though...
The story is told completely from Sarah's POV, with the exception of the prologue. I think that it could have been slightly more interesting if it alternated between Sarah and another character.
The story is told completely from Sarah's POV, with the exception of the prologue. I think that it could have been slightly more interesting if it alternated between Sarah and another character.
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
This book was fine. Not great, not terrible, just fine.