Scan barcode
karreaderwriter's review against another edition
5.0
Imagine getting hired as an actress to star in a horror movie in a remote wooded location. Imagine being the only female with a skeleton crew of men in this remote location with no cell service or transportation. Now imagine you are in this movie reading a book about the movie and the same crazy horror shit starts happening to you.
You still with me?
This frightening book had me on edge the whole time. Creepy cool concept. CRH I don’t know how you come up with this stuff but thanks for the wild ride!
Thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone for an early digital review copy.
You still with me?
This frightening book had me on edge the whole time. Creepy cool concept. CRH I don’t know how you come up with this stuff but thanks for the wild ride!
Thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone for an early digital review copy.
chaoticreader22's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 ⭐️
Look, it was okay - meh. Felt too repetitive and the pacing threw me off. The last part was done well. Spooky vibes were present but it didn’t make up for the lackluster ending.
Look, it was okay - meh. Felt too repetitive and the pacing threw me off. The last part was done well. Spooky vibes were present but it didn’t make up for the lackluster ending.
theseasonedreader's review against another edition
4.0
I love anything by CRH, but this one felt like I spent a long time with Adele. It took me ages to get through (I'm talking over a week so not months anything) but I was totally on board with the unreliable narrator aspect, I'm all about that. I enjoyed the screenplay being woven in and I honestly couldn't tell you which part I enjoyed more. I had an inkling of what was going on and while I don't think this one grabbed me as much as some of her others, I still really enjoyed it!
ariail's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
courtneyreadsbooks13's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
twiinklex's review against another edition
3.0
✨ "If mistakes felt like mistakes in the moment, we wouldn't make them, would we?"
In a nutshell: Good, but also kinda disappointing and I totally get the lacklustre reviews.
I loved the premise and execution, which I thought was quite clever. The whole filmception/bookception messed with my mind and was super fun to read! Add an atmospheric and isolated setting into the mix, and you bet I was super into the story. I also liked some of the book's commentary on pop culture, the movie industry and horror films.
Unfortunately, the third act and reveal was a letdown after all that build-up.
✨ "That's the problem with mysteries... They only exist because you don't have the answers. When you get them... all the mystery gets vaporised... Whenever the explanation comes, whatever it is, it can't live up to those 'What the hell is going on here?' moments at the start."
This quote pretty much sums up Run Time, so props to it for being self-aware at least? I also feel like Adele remained largely unchanged throughout, especially as a character who spent most of the book being scared and manipulated. I so wanted to see her take some control and turn the tables on everyone, but alas.
The book's merits were also bogged down by clunky writing like:
and
Wtf? I mean, technically there's nothing wrong but it's so unnecessary. Sad to say, it took away some of my enjoyment of the book.
I've read two other Catherine Ryan Howard novels and this one would be around 3 to 3.5⭐. I think I like Run Time better more than 56 Days but The Nothing Man is still my favourite.
Thank you to Blackstone Publishing and Netgalley for an ARC of this book.
In a nutshell: Good, but also kinda disappointing and I totally get the lacklustre reviews.
I loved the premise and execution, which I thought was quite clever. The whole filmception/bookception messed with my mind and was super fun to read! Add an atmospheric and isolated setting into the mix, and you bet I was super into the story. I also liked some of the book's commentary on pop culture, the movie industry and horror films.
Unfortunately, the third act and reveal was a letdown after all that build-up.
✨ "That's the problem with mysteries... They only exist because you don't have the answers. When you get them... all the mystery gets vaporised... Whenever the explanation comes, whatever it is, it can't live up to those 'What the hell is going on here?' moments at the start."
This quote pretty much sums up Run Time, so props to it for being self-aware at least? I also feel like Adele remained largely unchanged throughout, especially as a character who spent most of the book being scared and manipulated. I so wanted to see her take some control and turn the tables on everyone, but alas.
The book's merits were also bogged down by clunky writing like:
✨ "The box wasn't a box, but a bright green cooler bag, the kind my weekly meal-prep supplies had been delivered to my apartment in when I was trying to lose weight for a role that I ended up doing at the exact same weight I'd been when I'd auditioned because I didn't have any weight to lose."
and
✨ "...on to the set of Final Draft, the film a man who wasn't really Steve Dade was directing but it wasn't really that film he was making at all."
Wtf? I mean, technically there's nothing wrong but it's so unnecessary. Sad to say, it took away some of my enjoyment of the book.
I've read two other Catherine Ryan Howard novels and this one would be around 3 to 3.5⭐. I think I like Run Time better more than 56 Days but The Nothing Man is still my favourite.
Thank you to Blackstone Publishing and Netgalley for an ARC of this book.
openmypages's review against another edition
3.0
{3.5 stars}
Last year's 56 Days by Catherine Ryan Howard was one of my favorite mystery/thrillers of the year so I was super excited to try another story from her. Run Time gives us a familiar thriller story trope, the horror movie set. Adele is an Irish actress who grew up acting on an Irish soap opera and bungled her transition to movies. So she relocated to LA hoping to restart her career. When she gets an offer to do a small budget, hush-hush movie back in Ireland she jumps on it before she knows all the details... mistake number one. She gets a mysterious text before she arrives warning her off and she plows forward anyway... mistake number two. And the bad choices just pile up from there.
This one goes at quite the frenetic pace and much of it occurs in Adele's anxiety-ridden, over active brain. When she's awake, she's worrying, even before she really needs to be. That was a bit frustrating to read because you're not really sure for a good portion of the book if she's an unreliable narrator. There are lots of clues along the way to what's really going on but it's hard to tell the real clues from Adele's imaginary ones. It does all come together with an answer and while I guessed part of it, the other surprised me a little. Nothing super original here but it's a solid thriller to keep you entertained.
Thanks to Netgalley for advanced access to this novel. All opinions above are my own.
Last year's 56 Days by Catherine Ryan Howard was one of my favorite mystery/thrillers of the year so I was super excited to try another story from her. Run Time gives us a familiar thriller story trope, the horror movie set. Adele is an Irish actress who grew up acting on an Irish soap opera and bungled her transition to movies. So she relocated to LA hoping to restart her career. When she gets an offer to do a small budget, hush-hush movie back in Ireland she jumps on it before she knows all the details... mistake number one. She gets a mysterious text before she arrives warning her off and she plows forward anyway... mistake number two. And the bad choices just pile up from there.
This one goes at quite the frenetic pace and much of it occurs in Adele's anxiety-ridden, over active brain. When she's awake, she's worrying, even before she really needs to be. That was a bit frustrating to read because you're not really sure for a good portion of the book if she's an unreliable narrator. There are lots of clues along the way to what's really going on but it's hard to tell the real clues from Adele's imaginary ones. It does all come together with an answer and while I guessed part of it, the other surprised me a little. Nothing super original here but it's a solid thriller to keep you entertained.
Thanks to Netgalley for advanced access to this novel. All opinions above are my own.
sunshinemilk's review against another edition
3.0
Honestly, thank the heavens for barn owls/irish mothman.
This book could have been so much more atmospheric, and after googling Beara Peninsula I was left begging for more:(
The plot was very unique to me and the story may be a little slow for some folks. I think it certainly could’ve been a little shorter, however I still enjoyed it! I felt myself rushing to get to the end though - not because I was anxious but because it dragged on a bit. All *me* problems, really.
Still better than most Riley Sager novels:)
This book could have been so much more atmospheric, and after googling Beara Peninsula I was left begging for more:(
The plot was very unique to me and the story may be a little slow for some folks. I think it certainly could’ve been a little shorter, however I still enjoyed it! I felt myself rushing to get to the end though - not because I was anxious but because it dragged on a bit. All *me* problems, really.
Still better than most Riley Sager novels:)
rmtinsl13's review against another edition
4.0
4. I find books like this incredibly hard to rate. I devoured it. I felt like I could see everything coming. There were still parts to the reveal that I didn’t see coming and worked. I don’t know how strongly I would recommend it to people. I still want to read more by the author. So naturally, I give it my bog-standard rating.
whelar56's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75