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emma_ireland's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this book far more than I expected to after the handful of reviews I skimmed through before reading it. A few people have complained about how nasty the characters are to each other, but that was one of the things I found refreshing about it: the characters weren't all good or all bad, with inherently perfect or imperfect lives; sometimes they were just alright people who found each other irritating and sometimes did or said crappy things. You know, like in real life. The plot, on the other hand, was hit and miss. I was completely drawn in to start with, and it kept me hooked for about 80% of the way through. And then...it wasn't so much a disappointing ending as just so incredibly implausible that 1) I couldn't buy any of it as a realistic scenario; and 2) I couldn't buy that Super Detective Waterhouse would work it out (just in the nick of time, natch). I honestly would have given this 5 stars for entertainment value if not for the fact that the last 50 pages or so just had me going OH, COME ON!
kerrynicole72's review against another edition
3.0
I liked the book enough to stay engaged but there were places that just dragged on and on. The ending had an extra twist, but there were story lines left hanging that didn't make a lot of sense. For instance, what was the point of Olivia and Chris Gibbs? Why detail the honeymoon and solitary walks during it? Why has Charlie married Simon? There were too many oddities - I felt the book would've been much stronger and cohesive without these unnecessary diversions.
books_with_tess's review against another edition
Ugh just not in to crime books....and ugh this was too much, just get to the effing point....!! And such a classical twist at the whodunnit. Not original at all. Bored.
wilygecko's review against another edition
3.0
Convuleted tale of a woman who believes her husband is having an affair. This was my first book by this author and was the middle of a series which didn’t help me. Simon and his wife Charlie are also difficult characters. Set in England.
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bookscatsyarn's review against another edition
3.0
What is wrong with me? Why do I keep reading these???
bethnellvaccaro's review against another edition
3.0
Well, I was kind of annoyed with the first half of this book. Simon and Charlie's honeymoon seemed crazy and the main character was hard to like. But, the last half was great and I appreciate how didliking the main character and thinking she was crazy helped the plot.
melissacharitos's review
2.0
Oké..
Zo, zo vergezocht. De initiële verhaallijn gaat al erg ver, maar er wordt nog een ‘dit gaat echt helemaal nergens over’ sausje overheen gedaan (lees: Jackie). Laatste bladzijde bevat een interessante ontwikkeling, maar wat een brei van bullshit daaromheen.
Het boek is aan de dikke kant, maar leest gelukkig wel snel weg door de vele conservaties (al dan niet plaatsvindend in iemands hoofd) en de grote letters en regelafstand.
Personages zijn niet boeiend, de helft voegt zelfs niets toe, en Charlie is ronduit vervelend. Je weet toch met wat voor man je trouwt? Stel je niet aan. Ik kan mij niet identificeren met één van hen. Het ligt er misschien aan dat ik de eerdere delen uit de serie niet gelezen heb, dus de nuances niet begrijp en de geschiedenis niet ken, maar dit boek nodigt eerlijk gezegd niet uit om mij onder te gaan dompelen in de rest.
Zo, zo vergezocht. De initiële verhaallijn gaat al erg ver, maar er wordt nog een ‘dit gaat echt helemaal nergens over’ sausje overheen gedaan (lees: Jackie). Laatste bladzijde bevat een interessante ontwikkeling, maar wat een brei van bullshit daaromheen.
Het boek is aan de dikke kant, maar leest gelukkig wel snel weg door de vele conservaties (al dan niet plaatsvindend in iemands hoofd) en de grote letters en regelafstand.
Personages zijn niet boeiend, de helft voegt zelfs niets toe, en Charlie is ronduit vervelend. Je weet toch met wat voor man je trouwt? Stel je niet aan. Ik kan mij niet identificeren met één van hen. Het ligt er misschien aan dat ik de eerdere delen uit de serie niet gelezen heb, dus de nuances niet begrijp en de geschiedenis niet ken, maar dit boek nodigt eerlijk gezegd niet uit om mij onder te gaan dompelen in de rest.
resareads's review against another edition
3.0
Kit and Connie are living the perfect life…until Connie finds a different address programmed into Kit’s GPS as “home.” Since that day Connie’s life hasn’t been the same. She watches the house in an attempt to see her husband and catch him living a double life, and when the house goes up for sale Connie knows exactly what she has to do, go online and see what it looks like on the inside. Once on the real estate website Connie sees a dead body in the middle of the lounge and starts a crusade to find the dead woman and the killer. The only problem is she’s the only one who saw the dead body and no one believes she’s telling the truth.
This is the first book I’ve read by Sophie Hannah, but after going to one of her book talks and hearing her describe the process that went in to creating this book I expected a little more than what I got. The sub-plot with the detectives was well written and I think I would have appreciated it more if I had read the previous books and known these characters a little better so I’m not going to talk too much about that. The main plot is also done well, the idea of “if I saw this would anyone believe me” is an interesting premise and one that could easily be seen in real life even if the situation here is unique. As a whole these two parts of the novel work well together and advance the plot, unfortunately these aren’t the only plots Hannah brings into the novel.
As a heroine Connie is a little frustrating at times, but she feels like a real person. Even if I didn’t always like her throughout the book, or wished she’d be a little more decisive, I thought she was believable and I was on her side throughout the book. The villain of the book is written just as well, and turns out to be an even more complex character than I’d originally thought, very well planned out on Hannah’s part. The sub plot with the Gilpatricks, however, isn’t nearly as well done and adds very little to the story. The scraps of grocery lists and school work scattered throughout the story don’t even function well as red herrings, they just seem out of place and part of a story that’s never fully developed. I understand what Hannah was getting at, but it doesn’t quite hit the mark and adds a lot of unnecessary confusion to the story rather than misdirection.
Other than the somewhat failed Gilpatrick subplot I through the mystery was done excellently, up until the last chapter, which added a whole new dynamic to the mystery while contradicting a lot of what had already been wrapped up. I’m not sure if it was Hannah’s intent to leave the reader with something to think about, but this final revelation really didn’t fit with the rest of the plot. I normally try to keep my reviews spoiler free so I won’t comment on specifics, but this final piece of evidence bothered me not because it was so improbable, but because it was so out of place, like Hannah felt the need to add just one more sub-plot before she finished.
Now, I did enjoy the book for the most part and I will read more of Hannah’s work in the future. Her plot was complex, at some points unnecessarily so, but she brings an inventiveness and creativity to the mystery that helps it stand out from the standard mystery/crime plots out there. I don’t think her books are for everyone though, and the lover of the classic mystery novel will come away disappointed. You almost need to read this book from a psychological stand point and expect more manipulation than murder.
This is the first book I’ve read by Sophie Hannah, but after going to one of her book talks and hearing her describe the process that went in to creating this book I expected a little more than what I got. The sub-plot with the detectives was well written and I think I would have appreciated it more if I had read the previous books and known these characters a little better so I’m not going to talk too much about that. The main plot is also done well, the idea of “if I saw this would anyone believe me” is an interesting premise and one that could easily be seen in real life even if the situation here is unique. As a whole these two parts of the novel work well together and advance the plot, unfortunately these aren’t the only plots Hannah brings into the novel.
As a heroine Connie is a little frustrating at times, but she feels like a real person. Even if I didn’t always like her throughout the book, or wished she’d be a little more decisive, I thought she was believable and I was on her side throughout the book. The villain of the book is written just as well, and turns out to be an even more complex character than I’d originally thought, very well planned out on Hannah’s part. The sub plot with the Gilpatricks, however, isn’t nearly as well done and adds very little to the story. The scraps of grocery lists and school work scattered throughout the story don’t even function well as red herrings, they just seem out of place and part of a story that’s never fully developed. I understand what Hannah was getting at, but it doesn’t quite hit the mark and adds a lot of unnecessary confusion to the story rather than misdirection.
Other than the somewhat failed Gilpatrick subplot I through the mystery was done excellently, up until the last chapter, which added a whole new dynamic to the mystery while contradicting a lot of what had already been wrapped up. I’m not sure if it was Hannah’s intent to leave the reader with something to think about, but this final revelation really didn’t fit with the rest of the plot. I normally try to keep my reviews spoiler free so I won’t comment on specifics, but this final piece of evidence bothered me not because it was so improbable, but because it was so out of place, like Hannah felt the need to add just one more sub-plot before she finished.
Now, I did enjoy the book for the most part and I will read more of Hannah’s work in the future. Her plot was complex, at some points unnecessarily so, but she brings an inventiveness and creativity to the mystery that helps it stand out from the standard mystery/crime plots out there. I don’t think her books are for everyone though, and the lover of the classic mystery novel will come away disappointed. You almost need to read this book from a psychological stand point and expect more manipulation than murder.
beccabarpel's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Typical Hannah in that the plot and book-specific characters are much more interesting than anything Simon and Charlie are doing. Her villains are always very messed up.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Stalking and Blood
falconerreader's review against another edition
4.0
This type of ridiculously convoluted story and awkward, alienated characters seems to result in love it or hate it reviews. Throw in multiple viewpoints and tantalizingly obscure bits of "police evidence" every so often, and opinions really get sharpened.
I love it. Keep 'em coming, Ms. Hannah!
I love it. Keep 'em coming, Ms. Hannah!