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Finished reading: May 29th 2016
“Even the most blatant assholes seemed to function in a state of grace when confronted with the brutal loss of a loved one. ”
I have been having a lot of back luck with my mystery/thriller reads lately, but I decided to give Heartsick by Chelsea Cain a go anyway since various people have recommended this series to me in the past. And now I've read it I totally agree with them; this is definitely one of my favorite newly discovered whodunit reads! I will definitely be continuing this series soon, because this first book of the Archie Sheridan & Gretchen Lowell series was fast-paced, entertaining and had just the right amount of plot twists and gruesome details. It is true that some of the scenes might not be for those with a weak stomach, but the descriptions are really well done and add to the character development and general plot. My only small point of criticism would be that the main character Archie is quite the stereotype for the typical detective story: he has a really messed up personal life and that seems to be the norm for just about every succesful detective in these kind of series. I'm not saying it's a bad thing and it works rather well in this book, but it is not exactly original either. Still, the rest of the story is definitely good enough to make up for it. Recommended!
Heartsick turned out to be one of the best whodunit reads I’ve read in a while. I will definitely be reading more of this series! While Archie might be a bit of a stereotype and not exactly original, there is no doubt that Gretchen is one of the creepiest and most messed up serial killers I've read about in a long time. Actually, some of the scenes might be a bit gruesome if you have a weak stomach... But they do add something to the story. If you are looking for a good whodunit, definitely consider reading this series.
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Literally my favorite series of all time.
Not bad, I liked the writing style and the character development was good. I think I could have done without Anne's POV. I don't feel like it added much to the story, unless she's going to be a more visible character later in the series. The present storyline of the After School Strangler was average thriller at best. If Gretchen's intelligence and planning are as amazing as we are to believe, I feel like the present storyline could have been fleshed out more and been more intelligently executed on the killers part. I enjoy a good mind fuck, and I was looking forward to it with this book. While there was definitely good lead up, I felt like it never fully flew in that regard. I'm not sure I care enough to continue the series.
Decent for the genre. The characters were damaged but relate-able enough to care about and the plot had enough intrigue to keep me interested. On to the next in this series.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-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
Have to stay awake for a day because I just couldn't put this book down. So awesome!
DNF/ put down for now ~*
friend rec, can’t get into it , will revisit
friend rec, can’t get into it , will revisit
Wasn't as in to it as prior reads. And I wanted to read other books.