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paulabrandon's review against another edition
4.0
Cal Weaver, still mourning the death of his teenage son, gives a lift to a young girl after she claims to know his son. Cal has been searching for answers to his son's death, wanting to find the person who supplied him with drugs, so he's always looking to question any teens who know him. As it turns out, the girl is Claire Sanders, daughter of town mayor, Bert Sanders.
After a quick stop so Claire can use the bathroom, when the girl returns, it takes a few minutes to realise it's not the same girl! Claire has done a switcheroo with a friend and snuck off! After Cal exposes their ruse, this other girl gets him to stop the car and she takes off. This all soon comes back to bite Cal on the butt, because Claire goes missing and the other girl is murdered. Oops! Luckily, Cal is a former detective and now a private investigator, so he sets out to find Claire. Of course, his investigation exposes all sorts of dark secrets in the town in which he lives.
A typically compelling, twist-laden offering from Linwood Barclay, who I rate up there with Harlan Coben when it comes to this sort of thriller. I read a couple of reviews that called it a slow-burn, but I found it quite gripping, moving from one plot point to the next with excitement and precision. Cal Weaver is an engaging, sympathetic protagonist with a good sense of humour, and his grief over his son is well-rendered.
But that actually comes with a downside. Having Cal dealing with grief was fine, but his search for the drug dealer who gave his son the drugs, and the unorthodox (well, illegal) way he has gone about it leads to a couple of subplots that just felt superfluous and not really integral to the overall story. At 500 pages, I felt some of that could have been shaved off. Also Despite that, it was a great thriller. Tap this!
After a quick stop so Claire can use the bathroom, when the girl returns, it takes a few minutes to realise it's not the same girl! Claire has done a switcheroo with a friend and snuck off! After Cal exposes their ruse, this other girl gets him to stop the car and she takes off. This all soon comes back to bite Cal on the butt, because Claire goes missing and the other girl is murdered. Oops! Luckily, Cal is a former detective and now a private investigator, so he sets out to find Claire. Of course, his investigation exposes all sorts of dark secrets in the town in which he lives.
A typically compelling, twist-laden offering from Linwood Barclay, who I rate up there with Harlan Coben when it comes to this sort of thriller. I read a couple of reviews that called it a slow-burn, but I found it quite gripping, moving from one plot point to the next with excitement and precision. Cal Weaver is an engaging, sympathetic protagonist with a good sense of humour, and his grief over his son is well-rendered.
But that actually comes with a downside. Having Cal dealing with grief was fine, but his search for the drug dealer who gave his son the drugs, and the unorthodox (well, illegal) way he has gone about it leads to a couple of subplots that just felt superfluous and not really integral to the overall story. At 500 pages, I felt some of that could have been shaved off. Also
Spoiler
gratuitously killing off Cal's wife at the end felt like a bit of a cheap way to heap some more misery on Cal that wasn't strictly necessary.lachimolala981's review against another edition
2.0
Did the audiobook. It's difficult for me to like a book when the dialogue is so unrealistic. I had a hard time relating to any character. Could have been good but unfortunately I think the writer needs some work in the dialogue department.
qu33nofbookz's review against another edition
4.0
A twisty mystery read where nothing is quite what it seems to be and there is always something else connected or around the corner. It's all shades of gray and there is no one bad guy or good guy, everyone is a mix of both. This books keeps you guessing and wanting to keep reading to see what happens next.
Cal Weaver lives in a small quaint town in upper New York that's seemingly perfect except for the fact that his teenaged son has just died recently. Of a drug overdose. Cal has become obsessed with finding the person who supplied his son with drugs. To get answers he offers a ride to one of his son's classmates. From there his life spirals out of control when she goes missing and he tries to find out why. He finds that the little town that was close to perfect is quite rotten underneath and the deeper he digs the closer he might be to finding the answer he's been looking for all along.
Part of the mystery I figured out right away but the reasons why were unexpected. However there is a little bit that stretches the truth like the fact that most of the drug dealers in this supposedly quaint little town are 15-17 years old and the average druggie starts at 12 and none of the parents of the teenage kids in this town seem to care what their kids are doing or know where they are at any time.
Cal Weaver lives in a small quaint town in upper New York that's seemingly perfect except for the fact that his teenaged son has just died recently. Of a drug overdose. Cal has become obsessed with finding the person who supplied his son with drugs. To get answers he offers a ride to one of his son's classmates. From there his life spirals out of control when she goes missing
Spoiler
and her friend dies after they try to pull a trick on himPart of the mystery I figured out right away but the reasons why were unexpected. However there is a little bit that stretches the truth like the fact that most of the drug dealers in this supposedly quaint little town are 15-17 years old and the average druggie starts at 12 and none of the parents of the teenage kids in this town seem to care what their kids are doing or know where they are at any time.
trid1977's review against another edition
3.0
Read this during our drive to the east coast. Both Karen & I figured out the 'bad guy'.
lol88888's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
jen_is_booked's review against another edition
5.0
Another good one!
True to the Barclay way, this book had many twists and turns. To properly review it would be to give too much away. Just know you should read it. I swear you'll get swept up in the mystery of it all.
True to the Barclay way, this book had many twists and turns. To properly review it would be to give too much away. Just know you should read it. I swear you'll get swept up in the mystery of it all.
tfisher78's review against another edition
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? It's complicated
3.5
mmc6661's review against another edition
4.0
I have never read a bad Linwood Barclay novel, he always delivers edge of your seat suspense ! P I Cal Weaver is out to avenge his son Scott's suicide when he happens to pick up a young girl needing a ride on a rainy night. That's where it starts as you take a wild ride along with Weaver into some unexpected twist and turns. Barclay is among the best when it comes to great suspense !
lia_trn's review against another edition
4.0
So much tragedies intertwined with one and another. Such a small town with all its people and hidden secrets. My heart goes to the main character. Such a sweet father, a honest and righteous man. All the things he did and went through for others despite the events happened to his son.