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3.52 AVERAGE
3.52 AVERAGE
[b:The Search Party|45163259|The Search Party|Simon Lelic|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1596655325l/45163259._SY75_.jpg|69860358] is my second time reading a book by [a:Simon Lelic|3220121|Simon Lelic|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1335398039p2/3220121.jpg] and it had a totally different feel from his previous novel [b:The Liar's Room|40000144|The Liar's Room|Simon Lelic|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1531169361l/40000144._SX50_.jpg|59687054]. I loved that the two felt so different, and while this is a mystery/police procedural, it was also a bit of a character study. I feel like we really got to know DI Fleet who is the police viewpoint in the novel, and I learned more about his character than I was expecting to. The formatting of the book was interesting, and it switches between Fleet's viewpoint as well as Sadie's friends, but their viewpoints are written as them being interviewed by the police which is a fact that isn't actually called out in the book. This was a really unique take, and one that I loved.
The Search Party was also spectacular on audio and had a full cast which is something I always appreciate. Most of the narrators don't seem to have many other books (if any) under their belt, but they still did a great job with the characters they played. Sometimes the accents were hard for me to understand and I had to follow along in a physical copy, but overall I would highly recommend going the audio route if you listen to audiobooks.
I was very satisfied with how suspenseful the book was, and I finished it in one day because I couldn't put it down. The end completely surprised me, and The Search Party went deeper than surface level, which is nice to see in a mystery/thriller. I loved the way Lelic plotted this book and it felt very different from other books I have read. If you're looking for a book to suck you in and hold you until the very end, you should definitely check out The Search Party!
The Search Party was also spectacular on audio and had a full cast which is something I always appreciate. Most of the narrators don't seem to have many other books (if any) under their belt, but they still did a great job with the characters they played. Sometimes the accents were hard for me to understand and I had to follow along in a physical copy, but overall I would highly recommend going the audio route if you listen to audiobooks.
I was very satisfied with how suspenseful the book was, and I finished it in one day because I couldn't put it down. The end completely surprised me, and The Search Party went deeper than surface level, which is nice to see in a mystery/thriller. I loved the way Lelic plotted this book and it felt very different from other books I have read. If you're looking for a book to suck you in and hold you until the very end, you should definitely check out The Search Party!
This book has a great premise and it starts out intriguingly! A group of teenagers are found after being lost in the forest when they went looking for their missing friend. Unfortunately, not the whole group made it out alive. Detective Inspector Fleet returns to his hometown, tasked with finding out what happened. We get his point of view along with the interview snippets with the teenagers. Things are made complicated by the fact that Fleet has a dark past in his hometown, and people are treating him suspiciously.
Unfortunately, I thought the middle of the book dragged and didn't hold my attention. The characters are unreliable narrators, and there is a lot of teenage drama involved. We get a "reveal" towards the end but I felt it didn't work because the reader was never given the full information to piece the clues in the first place. While ultimately still liked the book, I was disappointed that it didn't bring anything new to the genre. I would recommend this to those who are new to crime fiction and those who loves a slow-building mystery in a small town.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for a digital review copy.
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Unfortunately, I thought the middle of the book dragged and didn't hold my attention. The characters are unreliable narrators, and there is a lot of teenage drama involved. We get a "reveal" towards the end but I felt it didn't work because the reader was never given the full information to piece the clues in the first place. While ultimately still liked the book, I was disappointed that it didn't bring anything new to the genre. I would recommend this to those who are new to crime fiction and those who loves a slow-building mystery in a small town.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for a digital review copy.
book blog | twitter | instagram
3.5 stars
I received a copy of this book for the publisher via NetGalley
Better than I thought but not as good as I'd hoped for, The Search Party is a run of the mill thriller with a few creepy overtones and some small twists throughout. It took me a little while to get into the interview style format of the book but after a couple of chapters, it's easy to fall in step with the pace. I'd say it's worth picking up if you're looking for a teen-centred thriller that you can chip away at over a few days.
I received a copy of this book for the publisher via NetGalley
Better than I thought but not as good as I'd hoped for, The Search Party is a run of the mill thriller with a few creepy overtones and some small twists throughout. It took me a little while to get into the interview style format of the book but after a couple of chapters, it's easy to fall in step with the pace. I'd say it's worth picking up if you're looking for a teen-centred thriller that you can chip away at over a few days.
This book is the biggest case of pathetic fallacy I have ever seen in my life.
*I kindly received a copy from netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
This book is... messy I’m not gonna lie. That’s partly down to the genre & the nature of the tale sure but things really don’t click into place until literally the last couple pages. So yeah I guess you could call this ‘twisty’ although none of the twists really left that big of an impact on me - more I kinda guessed them but didn’t really know exactly how they’d pan out.
Plus this book reads really weird - half YA teenager drama & half serious Adult case. And at first I didn’t really notice it because I read both so my brain didn’t register the tone difference but as the story progressed & Fleet’s marriage problems manifested it was pretty striking. There’s even a person shift between the teens reports being in 1st person, whereas Fleet’s in 3rd.
All that aside though I did enjoy this, it was definitely very creepy & atmospheric. And if you read this I really urge you to pay close attention to the imagery in this because (and maybe this is just me geeking out) but there are some of the cleverest metaphors in here & it’s really fascinating to just think on them a bit.
I liked how the teens were represented I felt like they were a good, genuine amount of imperfect although I wish we’d get rid of this ‘golden girl’ cliché, where the person is simply the best of the best, most likeable, most smart, etc etc...
because as a british teen (and this is quite a picky gripe) Sadie getting all 9s is a little much, I feel like this was clearly an adult trying to get to grips with the new system (I know it’s hard) & just giving her the top grades possible because it’s a lot easier & cleaner than going into specifics.
But for those of you who don’t know, a 9 is equivalent to an A** and only the top 5% in the country get a 9 & literally 1% of the country get all 9s. She wasn’t just ‘good at school’ she’d basically be a genius.
*I kindly received a copy from netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
This book is... messy I’m not gonna lie. That’s partly down to the genre & the nature of the tale sure but things really don’t click into place until literally the last couple pages. So yeah I guess you could call this ‘twisty’ although none of the twists really left that big of an impact on me - more I kinda guessed them but didn’t really know exactly how they’d pan out.
Plus this book reads really weird - half YA teenager drama & half serious Adult case. And at first I didn’t really notice it because I read both so my brain didn’t register the tone difference but as the story progressed & Fleet’s marriage problems manifested it was pretty striking. There’s even a person shift between the teens reports being in 1st person, whereas Fleet’s in 3rd.
All that aside though I did enjoy this, it was definitely very creepy & atmospheric. And if you read this I really urge you to pay close attention to the imagery in this because (and maybe this is just me geeking out) but there are some of the cleverest metaphors in here & it’s really fascinating to just think on them a bit.
I liked how the teens were represented I felt like they were a good, genuine amount of imperfect although I wish we’d get rid of this ‘golden girl’ cliché, where the person is simply the best of the best, most likeable, most smart, etc etc...
because as a british teen (and this is quite a picky gripe) Sadie getting all 9s is a little much, I feel like this was clearly an adult trying to get to grips with the new system (I know it’s hard) & just giving her the top grades possible because it’s a lot easier & cleaner than going into specifics.
But for those of you who don’t know, a 9 is equivalent to an A** and only the top 5% in the country get a 9 & literally 1% of the country get all 9s. She wasn’t just ‘good at school’ she’d basically be a genius.
Thank you to Penguin Viking for my gifted copy as part of their blog tour.
I liked this!! I found it an easy read, it had a few twists and turns, some I guessed and some I didn’t. It’s a ‘who done it’ style thriller with a creep setting and characters with motive in droves. It was a little obvious in places but regardless I still found a fun read.
Bookie rating 3.5/5
I liked this!! I found it an easy read, it had a few twists and turns, some I guessed and some I didn’t. It’s a ‘who done it’ style thriller with a creep setting and characters with motive in droves. It was a little obvious in places but regardless I still found a fun read.
Bookie rating 3.5/5
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
sadie’s missing. she has been for a week now and pretty much everyone thinks she’s dead. that she was murdered. and everyone is guessing the same person.
but sadie’s five friends aren’t so sure, so they head into the woods to find her - their own little search party. but all of them have their own secret and not all of them will make it home alive.
THE SEARCH PARTY is one of those solid, middle of the road books. i liked it, but didn’t love it.
the characters were all fine, but also all hate-able, which makes sense since they’re all suspects and all have their own secret.
the way the book was written was probably my biggest hold up. you get chapters from all the characters, including the detective inspector. and i felt like the only chapters i really enjoyed were the DI’s. the friend chapters were one sided - like you were stuck in their head as they responded to police but you never heard the police side.
i liked the twist - i saw like half of it coming, but it took a long time to get to it (like the entire book, right?) there was just a lot of conversation that could’ve been cut out.
i think this would be a good starter thriller/mystery for people - it was never really scary and the end of each chapter kept you hooked.
3/5 stars.
but sadie’s five friends aren’t so sure, so they head into the woods to find her - their own little search party. but all of them have their own secret and not all of them will make it home alive.
THE SEARCH PARTY is one of those solid, middle of the road books. i liked it, but didn’t love it.
the characters were all fine, but also all hate-able, which makes sense since they’re all suspects and all have their own secret.
the way the book was written was probably my biggest hold up. you get chapters from all the characters, including the detective inspector. and i felt like the only chapters i really enjoyed were the DI’s. the friend chapters were one sided - like you were stuck in their head as they responded to police but you never heard the police side.
i liked the twist - i saw like half of it coming, but it took a long time to get to it (like the entire book, right?) there was just a lot of conversation that could’ve been cut out.
i think this would be a good starter thriller/mystery for people - it was never really scary and the end of each chapter kept you hooked.
3/5 stars.
A clever plot, a twisty turny read, interesting characters and the last 20% was brilliant. All that being said I did struggle a bit with this, and I can’t put my finger on why. I actually didn’t care about the characters, they irritated me at the beginning and I felt the book slow, but for the last hour or so it did pick up pace and provided an excellent twist in the end