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kmaller01's review against another edition
challenging
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying
Moderate: Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Hate crime
snippie99's review against another edition
3.5
This book was interesting but the ending wasn’t a surprise so I couldn’t rate it a 4 star.
aliceelizabeth6's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
collegiate_assessor_kovalyov's review against another edition
4.0
Sorry, I'll need a minute...I'm in shock.
Thank you Penguin Michael Joseph and Netgalley for the ARC of this book; I thoroughly enjoyed it. I was especially interested in this book as I had heard good things about the author and had been interested in their work in the past, despite not yet having read any of their stuff.
The beginning is great, it jumps straight in and I was immediately ready to be hooked (which I was). Pretty quickly I started to draw similarities between this book and Lock Every Door by Riley Sager and the Daughter by Michelle Frances - which was my favourite book last year - due to the conspiracy element. I don't want to say too much at risk of giving anything away but I can tell you that this book was nail-bitingly gripping and had me checking over my shoulders.
The characters and relationships were expertly crafted. My heart ached for them all constantly and without going into detail I will say that I cried at the end, and I am no easy crier! I've teared up before but never actually cried until now.
One thing that did annoy me was the behaviour of the main characters. It was sometimes so infuriating I wanted to yell at them, but it was valuable as it effectively conveyed the toll it was having on them. I will say I found the conspiracy a little less believable than some I've read before - I'm not sure exactly what was wrong and it could just be me. This, though, didn't have a massive influence on my rating as I felt the family dynamics and relationship exploration was more in the forefront which I thoroughly enjoyed anyway. I have no knowledge of witness protection but I found it believable and made a lot of sense.
With all of this in mind, I've decided to give this book a 4/4.5 out of 5. It was an excellent read, gripping, thrilling, fun, both heart-aching and heart-warming - just truly great. Read it, I urge you; you will not regret it.
Thank you Penguin Michael Joseph and Netgalley for the ARC of this book; I thoroughly enjoyed it. I was especially interested in this book as I had heard good things about the author and had been interested in their work in the past, despite not yet having read any of their stuff.
The beginning is great, it jumps straight in and I was immediately ready to be hooked (which I was). Pretty quickly I started to draw similarities between this book and Lock Every Door by Riley Sager and the Daughter by Michelle Frances - which was my favourite book last year - due to the conspiracy element. I don't want to say too much at risk of giving anything away but I can tell you that this book was nail-bitingly gripping and had me checking over my shoulders.
The characters and relationships were expertly crafted. My heart ached for them all constantly and without going into detail I will say that I cried at the end, and I am no easy crier! I've teared up before but never actually cried until now.
One thing that did annoy me was the behaviour of the main characters. It was sometimes so infuriating I wanted to yell at them, but it was valuable as it effectively conveyed the toll it was having on them. I will say I found the conspiracy a little less believable than some I've read before - I'm not sure exactly what was wrong and it could just be me. This, though, didn't have a massive influence on my rating as I felt the family dynamics and relationship exploration was more in the forefront which I thoroughly enjoyed anyway. I have no knowledge of witness protection but I found it believable and made a lot of sense.
With all of this in mind, I've decided to give this book a 4/4.5 out of 5. It was an excellent read, gripping, thrilling, fun, both heart-aching and heart-warming - just truly great. Read it, I urge you; you will not regret it.
hollieautumn's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
thebreakfastbookclub's review against another edition
3.0
After loving a Gillian Mcallister book last summer I had really high hopes for this one. It involves a murder, witness protection and going on the run but unfortunately it wasn’t as thrilling as I’d hoped. I did enjoy the ending so I’m glad I pushed through but overall I wasn’t too keen!
jcristiereads's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
sslovesbooks_1's review against another edition
4.0
This was a great gripping and tense read. It is not a subject I have read a lot about but it did lend itself to becoming for me a page turner, I sat up late in the night reading on as from early on I had no idea how this was all going to end.
The story follows Zara a teenager who witnesses a crime and during the trial it is uncovered that she lied about what she saw. This leads to threats made to her and she needs to go into witness protection. Her family are torn apart suddenly and I enjoyed the telling of the story from different character perspectives, this gave me a really strong sense of their actions and feelings about what happened in their lives.
It terrified me the whole thing to be honest, how quickly people's lives can change and how in many situations you feel as if you have no control.
The book moved at a tense and quick pace for me and the final revelation and ending shocked me,
If you love a tense, edge of the seat thriller then this is the book for you.
I loved the cover too.
Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in return for an honest review.
The story follows Zara a teenager who witnesses a crime and during the trial it is uncovered that she lied about what she saw. This leads to threats made to her and she needs to go into witness protection. Her family are torn apart suddenly and I enjoyed the telling of the story from different character perspectives, this gave me a really strong sense of their actions and feelings about what happened in their lives.
It terrified me the whole thing to be honest, how quickly people's lives can change and how in many situations you feel as if you have no control.
The book moved at a tense and quick pace for me and the final revelation and ending shocked me,
If you love a tense, edge of the seat thriller then this is the book for you.
I loved the cover too.
Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in return for an honest review.
conniecapel_'s review against another edition
dark
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
4.0