Reviews with content warning for Death - 56 Days

56 Days by Catherine Ryan Howard was a bit convoluted, but oh so worth it. I usually hate non-linear, repetitive timelines, and I fully expected this to be one of the worst offenders after the first few chapters, but I very quickly learned I was going to be proven wrong. I really liked the characters in this book, and felt torn between loving them and hating them (but loving to hate them). I loved the way it switched perspective, and our author really delivered here because I almost never say that. The way details were revealed kept you guessing throughout, and while I would say this is more of a mystery than a thriller, I was intrigued and devoured this in 2 sittings (because silly me I started it at 9PM on a work night). I could have easily read this cover to cover if given enough time and I think if you’re a fan of mysterious but realistic stories, this would be a great fit. I truly liked this book far more than I thought I would, so I tip my hat to @bookofthemonth for bringing this one into my life.

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pookiee's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.25

a mystery in the time of the first COVID-19 lockdown in Ireland sounds interesting, but didn’t end up being so.
it is deeper than the average thriller, at least. the author believes in the reformation of criminals, but what happens in this book didn’t help that point

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aoliv__25's review against another edition

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dark mysterious 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? It's complicated

1.5

TLDR: Concept better than execution.
Quick read with twists you can be ahead on whilst reliving COVID. If you like a genuinely good plot twist, a true thriller, developed characters or artful writing, skip.

Clearly this book divides people. I liked the premise, the Dublin setting and not much else. The writing style is very basic; there's nothing skillful about the prose, which makes it accessible but personally I found it dull. I had no investment in the detective chapters (could have been cut), and very little in the MC's, individually or intertwined. I was praying their characters would go somewhere more complex than I was guessing when the backstory started to be discussed, but unfortunately was correct in my predictions and therefore unshocked by the twists. The different POV's using word-for-word repetition felt tedious and lazy, and it seemed unable to create the desired intimacy effect due to the choice of third person narrative to do it - idk it just felt clunky. With the book feeling about 100 pages too long, the repetition really should have been cut in edits. The tension also felt pretty low throughout. For me, this is crime, not a thriller. Overall, I'd recommend reading the full synopsis rather than the actual book.

I have a particular issue with Ciara's later 'true' first meeting section as it just renders the first one pointless for a cliche "it was all a lie" twist with no real meat to it. The "but I accidentally fell in love" element was also so cringey and could have been removed completely and the book made better

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amris's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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vj_thompson's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

Just when you think you know what’s going on, it just got better and better.

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olivemason's review against another edition

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mysterious tense fast-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? No

4.5

Content Warnings

minimicropup's review

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challenging emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Narration: 👌
Excellent narration and character voicing. Paired with the writing it felt cinematic.

Atmosphere: 🫶
Well-balanced sensory and observational details paired with MC interpretations
-Set in IRL Dublin early 2020. The pandemic isn't centre stage; it's happening around the characters but we do experience the mixture of anxiety, surrealism, and novelty that it brings to their lives. No graphic descriptions of COVID suffering or politics (but the seriousness of it isn't ignored either).

Main POVs: 👌
-An intelligent, competent, but slightly rattled Detective Inspector at the scene of a body found under mysterious conditions in an apartment bathroom
-A slightly overwhelmed 25-yr old web service concierge and recent arrival in Dublin. They have a bit of social anxiety and are living in a small studio apartment when they stumble into a conversation with a person they've noticed from their daily lunch stops
-A 29-yr old architectural technologist also recently arrived in Dublin. They are living in a company-provided apartment and start a conversation with a person they've noticed from their daily lunch stops who seems to share their interest in space tech

Show'n'tell: 👍
Well-balanced with a few hiccups. Like bringing a crayon set to a virtual Teams class. A bit of stuttering and repetition, but it's a cool crayon set and unconventional medium so the 👏 are genuine.

Cred Rating: 👍🕵️ Plausible
True crime type with realistic police investigation and conclusions. The spark that starts everything in motion needed a lot to line up for it to happen and if even one thing was off the story technically wouldn't exist, but that's still realistic.

Reading Journey: 👍
Binge-watching YouTube and Netflix + take-out splurges with your bestie.

Good match if you like:
-Who? How? Why? Murder Mysteries
-Fractured timelines. Each chapter varies from today to ~70 days, ~50 days, ~20 days ago and are arranged non-chronologically.
-Multiple POV of same event narrations (bit repetitive at the time, but by the ending I saw why it was done and it didn't bother me)
-Mixed bag of twists and reveals (one "twist" at ~60-70% mark will probably be more of a reveal to some readers, but there are a few more twists to come and I didn't predict the last one)
-Slight touch of enemies-to-lovers romance
-Sprinkling of revenge trope

Vibes: 😛😷🤫

Format: Library audiobook via Libby

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