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3.85 AVERAGE
3.85 AVERAGE
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This book is more of a romantic suspense than a domestic thriller.
Set against the backdrop of Portland, Maine, this novel intertwines elements of romantic suspense with tech-driven intrigue. It’s a story surrounding corporate espionage, cybersecurity threats, and police corruption.
Although the plot felt somewhat slow and predictable to me, the concept of a tech-centric suspense was both innovative and frighteningly realistic. However, the characters’ actions especially toward the end felt a bit over-the-top.
The highlight of the book for me was the portrayal of Ariel’s relationship with her son. The author captures Ariel’s commitment to being a good mother and her frantic efforts to keep her son safe as the stakes rise. Yet, the lack of genuine danger to Ariel’s safety kept the book from being a true thriller in my opinion.
If you're a fan of romantic suspense with a tech twist and prefer violence that isn't too graphic, this novel is a good choice.
Set against the backdrop of Portland, Maine, this novel intertwines elements of romantic suspense with tech-driven intrigue. It’s a story surrounding corporate espionage, cybersecurity threats, and police corruption.
Although the plot felt somewhat slow and predictable to me, the concept of a tech-centric suspense was both innovative and frighteningly realistic. However, the characters’ actions especially toward the end felt a bit over-the-top.
The highlight of the book for me was the portrayal of Ariel’s relationship with her son. The author captures Ariel’s commitment to being a good mother and her frantic efforts to keep her son safe as the stakes rise. Yet, the lack of genuine danger to Ariel’s safety kept the book from being a true thriller in my opinion.
If you're a fan of romantic suspense with a tech twist and prefer violence that isn't too graphic, this novel is a good choice.
Content Warnings
Minor: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Stalking, Death of parent, Sexual harassment
This was a really excellent mystery that kept me interested on audiobook these past few weeks on my drives to and from work!
The story centers around a video doorbell company (a la Ring) where the CEO has somewhat recently died of an overdose and his daughter Ariel (our main character) is also reeling from her boyfriend Drew leaving mysteriously and then also dying unexpectedly. But when a mysterious text message arrives on Ariel’s phone, it upends everything she thought she knew. This leads to an adventure where we stumble across privacy violations, drug dealers, and more mayhem than you can shake a stick at.
I really enjoyed listening to this story and seeing how it unfolded. I really loved Ariel and her son Buzz, and I also enjoyed hearing what happened five years ago when she met Drew (and right around the time he went missing). I felt that the story was pretty plausible (and a little Big Brother-esque: you never know who is watching) and there were moments that gave me cold chills.
I also think Bowen nailed what it’s like to parent a 4 year old. Her bus trip with Buzz (I’ll leave it vague) felt very authentic to me and I even cried at one part in that scene. It all felt very real.
I quibble a teensy tiny bit with one plot point that felt a little too “easy,” but in the end, it didn’t take away from my overall enjoyment. I found this book really engaging and interesting and I definitely wanted to know where it was going.
I also loved the ancillary characters - so many of them gave the story a little kick in the pants.
I see Bowen typically writes romance, so I hope this isn’t her last thriller! I’d definitely read another. 4.5 stars.
The story centers around a video doorbell company (a la Ring) where the CEO has somewhat recently died of an overdose and his daughter Ariel (our main character) is also reeling from her boyfriend Drew leaving mysteriously and then also dying unexpectedly. But when a mysterious text message arrives on Ariel’s phone, it upends everything she thought she knew. This leads to an adventure where we stumble across privacy violations, drug dealers, and more mayhem than you can shake a stick at.
I really enjoyed listening to this story and seeing how it unfolded. I really loved Ariel and her son Buzz, and I also enjoyed hearing what happened five years ago when she met Drew (and right around the time he went missing). I felt that the story was pretty plausible (and a little Big Brother-esque: you never know who is watching) and there were moments that gave me cold chills.
I also think Bowen nailed what it’s like to parent a 4 year old. Her bus trip with Buzz (I’ll leave it vague) felt very authentic to me and I even cried at one part in that scene. It all felt very real.
I quibble a teensy tiny bit with one plot point that felt a little too “easy,” but in the end, it didn’t take away from my overall enjoyment. I found this book really engaging and interesting and I definitely wanted to know where it was going.
I also loved the ancillary characters - so many of them gave the story a little kick in the pants.
I see Bowen typically writes romance, so I hope this isn’t her last thriller! I’d definitely read another. 4.5 stars.
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Sexism
Moderate: Murder
dark
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I have read Sarina Bowen's romances, but this is her first foray into suspense thrillers. It was an average Monday morning when Ariel received a text message from the only man she ever loved, asking to meet her. The problem is, that Drew vanished and it has been several years since she learned he died. When he doesn't show, it takes her on a journey to uncover what was happening when he vanished. She is unsure who is lying to her and she will do anything to keep herself and her son safe.
This book kept me on my toes and I was unsure who to trust. Sarina Bowen pulled me in with the characters and the need to figure out what happened. What I loved about this, is that the author nabbed my attention with the mystery, but kept me going with the story of Ariel and Drew's romance. My heart broke for her and her son, and I started to feel some of the panic and worry she was feeling.
This book had my attention the full way through, and I kept turning the pages as we unravelled everything that was happening. If you like a great story with mystery and intrigue, this is it!
This book kept me on my toes and I was unsure who to trust. Sarina Bowen pulled me in with the characters and the need to figure out what happened. What I loved about this, is that the author nabbed my attention with the mystery, but kept me going with the story of Ariel and Drew's romance. My heart broke for her and her son, and I started to feel some of the panic and worry she was feeling.
This book had my attention the full way through, and I kept turning the pages as we unravelled everything that was happening. If you like a great story with mystery and intrigue, this is it!
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you to Edelweiss, Harper Paperbacks, & HarperCollins for the opportunity to read and review this book before it's publication date! This in no way affected my review, opinions are my own.
Review: First things first, this seems to be a super unpopular opinion. Second things second, if you liked Laura Dave's The Last Thing He Told Me, I think you'd enjoy this novel.
Now for my thoughts -> *hides behind hands*
This one is difficult - I think it could have made a really decent movie where you got to see chemistry between Ariel and Drew, but I didn't really feel connected to their romance, and, unfortunately, the majority of the plot hinges on you feeling that theirs was an absolutely impossible and once in a lifetime love.
The ending would also have worked better in a movie, because I think it's easier to suspend disbelief when you're watching a film than when reading (too much time to go "uhhhhh would that happen though? really?" as opposed to just going with the flow!).
The middle was the strongest part for me, and I thoroughly enjoyed Zain's parts in the story
I will say I liked the writing / characterization / dialogue well enough, and I would read another from Sarina Bowen - just hoping the plot & romance feels stronger in the next one.
Overall Rating: ★★★ / 2.88
Rating each element of the book out of 5★
Characters ★★★
Atmosphere ★★★
Writing ★★★
Plot ★★
Intrigue ★★
Logic ★★
Enjoyment ★★
Pacing ★★★
Dialogue ★★★
★ did not like / ★★ it was okay / ★★★ liked it / ★★★★ really liked it / ★★★★★ loved it
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Suicide, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated