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bookyintherain's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Perfect summer thriller. Page-turner for days when you can simply read all day.
anna4ce's review against another edition
2.0
DO NOT RECOMMEND ON AUDIO. Is this a book I would have preferred to read on my own? Meh. Possibly? The audio snippet I heard sounded intriguing and I felt neutral on the narrator's voice. The first few chapters were setting up as a Rear Window scenario, aided by the frequent incorporation of classic thriller film scenes. The plot seemed obvious in that the reader was aware that what the main character believed was, in fact, false but it wasn't inherently obvious who the villian truly was (until about 3/4 or so? I forget when I figured it out). Overall, decent plot but nothing completely original.
But seriously, the narration. At first, I was neutral. Then, as more intense scenes came into play (like a scene with the main character and her family trauma) the narration went into hyper-overacting mode...to the MAX. It was painful to listen to. I understand wanting to convey the emotions of the characters and how deeply it was affecting her, but it was WAY. TOO. MUCH. After that scene, it felt like every single event was blown way out of proportion, vocally. Too high strung. When it was time for the big climactic ending, I almost gave up on the book! It was so drawn out, so intense, so over done. It was awful.
I know the audio really put a big damper on this book for me, but even if I had read it myself I don't think I would have cared for it too much. I'd give this a 1.5/5 on audio, a 2.5/5 reading a hardcopy.
But seriously, the narration. At first, I was neutral. Then, as more intense scenes came into play (like a scene with the main character and her family trauma) the narration went into hyper-overacting mode...to the MAX. It was painful to listen to. I understand wanting to convey the emotions of the characters and how deeply it was affecting her, but it was WAY. TOO. MUCH. After that scene, it felt like every single event was blown way out of proportion, vocally. Too high strung. When it was time for the big climactic ending, I almost gave up on the book! It was so drawn out, so intense, so over done. It was awful.
I know the audio really put a big damper on this book for me, but even if I had read it myself I don't think I would have cared for it too much. I'd give this a 1.5/5 on audio, a 2.5/5 reading a hardcopy.
pilates_mama's review against another edition
slow-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
2.0
aeoliandeductress's review against another edition
3.0
3.5/5
I wanted to like this but a few issues just kept it from higher rankings. Firstly, the use of the old films with little explanation required quite a bit of looking up to get references. That alone would have been fine- character quirk and all- but then the ending being forced into a scenario befitting of an old film ruined it. If she was going to struggle with the roof or just outside in general, why on EARTH would she go for the roof? She at least could scream for help on the ground floor or run for a door- he might not want to attract attention, etc... I hope they fixed that in the film- haven't seen it. I"m also just over the whole "sociopath" twist thing. I feel like every book and movie are now going this route for a mystery. Frankly it feels like an excuse to avoid good character development and plot. This one was much better than some with the deception aspect, but still.
I don't want to insult the author- the writing itself was solid. It may have been that I built this one up as it was recommended or that I've just had too many of the same type of twist in a row.
I wanted to like this but a few issues just kept it from higher rankings. Firstly, the use of the old films with little explanation required quite a bit of looking up to get references. That alone would have been fine- character quirk and all- but then the ending being forced into a scenario befitting of an old film ruined it. If she was going to struggle with the roof or just outside in general, why on EARTH would she go for the roof? She at least could scream for help on the ground floor or run for a door- he might not want to attract attention, etc... I hope they fixed that in the film- haven't seen it. I"m also just over the whole "sociopath" twist thing. I feel like every book and movie are now going this route for a mystery. Frankly it feels like an excuse to avoid good character development and plot. This one was much better than some with the deception aspect, but still.
I don't want to insult the author- the writing itself was solid. It may have been that I built this one up as it was recommended or that I've just had too many of the same type of twist in a row.
aireullll's review against another edition
The MC is written a little to predatory for me. The way she describes a teenage boy, is too much.
emsager190's review against another edition
1.0
This may be a harsh rating, but I had such a hard time finishing this book for a number of reasons. I tried to read this book a few years ago and it didn’t hook me in right away. I gave it a second chance this year and unfortunately it was a huge disappointment.
First of all, I wanna say that I think thrillers are difficult to write well. They usually overlap tropes and recycle plot twists, so it really comes down to the author’s distinct voice and how they decide to tell their story.
With that said, this was the most BORING thriller I have ever read. The first 150ish pages were quite literally the main character wandering around drunk, and that’s about it. The book could have been way shorter, because the actual plot doesn’t start until about halfway in.
On top of this, I didn’t care about a single character. The main character somehow bored and annoyed me at the same time the entire book, and that’s not really something you want when you’re reading a thriller that puts the main character’s life in peril. Like I literally didn’t care: about her husband and her child, about her questioning her own sanity, about. Literally. ANYTHING.
Like I said earlier, many thrillers are recycled plots. But oh my god… This book actually stole the premises of many well-known thriller movies, which made it extremely predictable and unfortunately, unoriginal. One of the movies that seemed most prominent was Hitchcock’s movie “Rear Window”, which, if you look up the premise, is basically this book but better. Almost every single plot twist fell flat because I already knew where the story was going, which, if this were not a boring book to read already, I usually wouldn’t mind. It bothered me so much that the author assumed that if she mentioned a few old films here and there, that would cover for her completely ripping off old films.
Speaking of the author, I found her writing to be obnoxious and distracting to the story. She rewrote the same lines over and over again but it was like she tried to replace words with the nearest thesaurus she found lying around. This book seemed like she just googled “mental illnesses” and copied and pasted the definitions into her half-baked book. I felt like she was not qualified or researched enough to dive into such a complex topic.
I think this thriller is for a younger audience who has never seen or read an intense thriller before, and wants to dip their toe into the genre. I personally found it exhausting and tedious, but maybe it just wasn’t for me.
First of all, I wanna say that I think thrillers are difficult to write well. They usually overlap tropes and recycle plot twists, so it really comes down to the author’s distinct voice and how they decide to tell their story.
With that said, this was the most BORING thriller I have ever read. The first 150ish pages were quite literally the main character wandering around drunk, and that’s about it. The book could have been way shorter, because the actual plot doesn’t start until about halfway in.
On top of this, I didn’t care about a single character. The main character somehow bored and annoyed me at the same time the entire book, and that’s not really something you want when you’re reading a thriller that puts the main character’s life in peril. Like I literally didn’t care: about her husband and her child, about her questioning her own sanity, about. Literally. ANYTHING.
Like I said earlier, many thrillers are recycled plots. But oh my god… This book actually stole the premises of many well-known thriller movies, which made it extremely predictable and unfortunately, unoriginal. One of the movies that seemed most prominent was Hitchcock’s movie “Rear Window”, which, if you look up the premise, is basically this book but better. Almost every single plot twist fell flat because I already knew where the story was going, which, if this were not a boring book to read already, I usually wouldn’t mind. It bothered me so much that the author assumed that if she mentioned a few old films here and there, that would cover for her completely ripping off old films.
Speaking of the author, I found her writing to be obnoxious and distracting to the story. She rewrote the same lines over and over again but it was like she tried to replace words with the nearest thesaurus she found lying around. This book seemed like she just googled “mental illnesses” and copied and pasted the definitions into her half-baked book. I felt like she was not qualified or researched enough to dive into such a complex topic.
I think this thriller is for a younger audience who has never seen or read an intense thriller before, and wants to dip their toe into the genre. I personally found it exhausting and tedious, but maybe it just wasn’t for me.
evim98's review against another edition
3.0
3.5⭐ The first 35% of the book was boring but then it became really interesting.
satellitehabits's review against another edition
3.0
Entertaining and definitely a page turner. Unfortunately I wasn’t too shocked by the “twists” in this thriller. However I did gasp audibly once! Wasn’t my favorite but don’t regret reading it and would recommend to others. ⭐️⭐️⭐️