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3.47 AVERAGE
3.47 AVERAGE
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
It took me a little while to get intoWoman Last Seen. Sure, Leigh's story is interesting. She's a married mother of two who has kind of been "the other woman" in her completely normal relationship the whole times she's been in it. Thing is, her husband's first wife (and biological mother to their boys) died of cancer. She was a saint that everyone loved and now Leigh doesn't quite fit, no matter what.
Kai lives a totally different kind of life. She's gorgeous and was successful before she got married, but decided to give it all up to cater to her gorgeous, rich husband. She is away a lot taking care of her elderly mother, but she really has given up a lot of her identity for her husband. Still, she seems okay with it.
And that was okay, but I have to tell you that somewhere in the first third of the book, things got really interesting. And from that point forward, I hated putting Women Last Seendown. I can't tell you much, just that this one is a keeper. If you love all thingsThe Woman In the Window, Gone Girl, Girl On a Train>and the thousands of books that followed,Woman Last Seen rises to the top in the category.
Special thanks to Netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an advanced e-galley in exchange for my honest review. This one is available now!
Kai lives a totally different kind of life. She's gorgeous and was successful before she got married, but decided to give it all up to cater to her gorgeous, rich husband. She is away a lot taking care of her elderly mother, but she really has given up a lot of her identity for her husband. Still, she seems okay with it.
And that was okay, but I have to tell you that somewhere in the first third of the book, things got really interesting. And from that point forward, I hated putting Women Last Seendown. I can't tell you much, just that this one is a keeper. If you love all thingsThe Woman In the Window, Gone Girl, Girl On a Train>and the thousands of books that followed,Woman Last Seen rises to the top in the category.
Special thanks to Netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an advanced e-galley in exchange for my honest review. This one is available now!
Woman Last Seen
I was quickly drawn in to this novel and inquisitive about what was going on and who had and was holding Leigh hostage. I did not know who Kai was or why she suddenly jumped in to the story. I literally looked back through what I had already read in case I missed something. It did not take long to find out who she was.
Without giving anything away in the storyline, I questioned the purpose of the plot and realized that it really gives the readers the opportunity to look at life and think about what is important.
I was quickly drawn in to this novel and inquisitive about what was going on and who had and was holding Leigh hostage. I did not know who Kai was or why she suddenly jumped in to the story. I literally looked back through what I had already read in case I missed something. It did not take long to find out who she was.
Without giving anything away in the storyline, I questioned the purpose of the plot and realized that it really gives the readers the opportunity to look at life and think about what is important.
Who doesn't deserve to be happy?
I bought this book because it was the February book club book for the Brenda Novak Book Group (look for it on Facebook) I have found many new-to-me authors through the book group and Adele Parks is one of the authors, and I can't wait to read more of her stories.
I knew from the book group discussions there would be plot twists, although no spoilers were given. I kept waiting...until I knew pretty quickly who 'it' was. Then I didn't, then I did. I think I practically went through the entire character list at one point.
Parks did a wonderful job dishing out just enough bread crumbs, and I love a story told from different POVs where there's no guesswork on who is telling what, where, and when.
If you like a good whodunit/British police drama/psychological suspense/thriller, I recommend this book.
If you're into trigger warnings, I'd list these as possibilities, or these may be why you'd choose this book.
emotional abuse
physical abuse
bondage (not the 'safe word' kind, the real thing)
course language
I bought this book because it was the February book club book for the Brenda Novak Book Group (look for it on Facebook) I have found many new-to-me authors through the book group and Adele Parks is one of the authors, and I can't wait to read more of her stories.
I knew from the book group discussions there would be plot twists, although no spoilers were given. I kept waiting...until I knew pretty quickly who 'it' was. Then I didn't, then I did. I think I practically went through the entire character list at one point.
Parks did a wonderful job dishing out just enough bread crumbs, and I love a story told from different POVs where there's no guesswork on who is telling what, where, and when.
If you like a good whodunit/British police drama/psychological suspense/thriller, I recommend this book.
If you're into trigger warnings, I'd list these as possibilities, or these may be why you'd choose this book.
emotional abuse
physical abuse
bondage (not the 'safe word' kind, the real thing)
course language
This is story had an interesting, fresh premise. The characters are flawed and nuanced. I admire authors who have a new perspective, I just found this story predictable.
3,5⭐️
3,5⭐️
This book was a little too unbelievable for my taste. First of all, I feel like the villain would get caught pretty quickly, but the book ends too soon to address that.
Also, I don’t understand how anyone could hide having two separate lives for 4 years. I suppose people have done so in real life, but I just didn’t believe that the protagonist could really pull it off.
Finally, this book seems very confused about feminism. The investigating detective believes that a female bigamist is feminist because it’s so rare, which is truly a baffling take. Cheating is not feminist! Also, the unfaithful woman still gets punished in the end, so there are definitely some mixed messages there. But also, the villain of the story is motivated by her desperation to get a good man and her jealousy of her best friend for having two. That’s a pretty misogynist trope right there.
I know that fiction doesn’t necessarily reflect the author’s own beliefs, but I do think that her attempts at an edgy hot take on gender relations have gone awry in the very least.
Also, I don’t understand how anyone could hide having two separate lives for 4 years. I suppose people have done so in real life, but I just didn’t believe that the protagonist could really pull it off.
Finally, this book seems very confused about feminism. The investigating detective believes that a female bigamist is feminist because it’s so rare, which is truly a baffling take. Cheating is not feminist! Also, the unfaithful woman still gets punished in the end, so there are definitely some mixed messages there. But also, the villain of the story is motivated by her desperation to get a good man and her jealousy of her best friend for having two. That’s a pretty misogynist trope right there.
I know that fiction doesn’t necessarily reflect the author’s own beliefs, but I do think that her attempts at an edgy hot take on gender relations have gone awry in the very least.
While I guessed all the twists, I still thought it was done well. The problem was in the repetitive nature of the MC’s internal dialogue. I’d say 30% of the book was her repeating herself. The ending was also terrible. I had to check that I didn’t accidentally click out of my kindle because there was no way it ended like that…but it did.
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated