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bringmybooks's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Thank you to Edelweiss, Minotaur Books, & Macmillan for the opportunity to read and review this book before it's publication date! This in no way affected my review, opinions are my own.
Review: This book was entirely not what I was expecting, but I don't know if that was a bad thing. *shrugs*
I was invested from the get-go, and I really liked the multiple POVs that we got - I thought it kept you hooked while providing just enough information to keep you guessing. Sort of piggy-backing on what I said above, this thriller was nothing like what I expected so there were a lot of times I was surprised until I understood the direction we were going and then it was a bit easier to see what was coming next.
Overall Rating: ★★★★ / 4.13
Rating each element of the book out of 5★
Characters ★★★
Atmosphere ★★★
Writing ★★★
Plot ★★★★
Intrigue ★★★★
Logic ★★★★
Enjoyment ★★★★
Pacing ★★★★
Dialogue ★★★★
★ did not like / ★★ it was okay / ★★★ liked it / ★★★★ really liked it / ★★★★★ loved it
Moderate: Murder, Kidnapping, Cancer, Gun violence, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Suicide, Death, Child death, Blood, Bullying, Violence, and Car accident
boiler_bookworm's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Murder and Violence
Moderate: Bullying and Suicide
shesflippinpages's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Gun violence, Medical content, Bullying, Kidnapping, Blood, Car accident, Death, Grief, Physical abuse, Violence, Cancer, Child death, Death of parent, Terminal illness, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Suicide, and Torture
clairebonney's review against another edition
3.5
Graphic: Suicide, Blood, Grief, Torture, Fire/Fire injury, Kidnapping, Bullying, Murder, Child death, Cancer, and Car accident
savvyrosereads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Rating: 3/5 stars
Ryan’s girlfriend Ali was kidnapped before his eyes five years ago—but when the vehicle she was abducted in is finally found alongside a coded message, buried secrets might finally come to light.
Let’s start with the good: this one is pretty fast-paced, with a lot of action and drama, and a straightforward writing style that makes you want to keep reading more. I liked most of the characters (including the ones I was probably least supposed to, honestly) and was generally entertained throughout.
That said, while I am positive there is an audience for this book, I don’t think I’m really part of it. I guessed the twists early and, more importantly, didn’t like them—the plot felt predictable and a bit silly, and I didn’t like the way things wrapped up for anyone. For most of the book, I was probably rooting for the villains, which I don’t think was the intention.
Overall, this was a fast read and if it sounds good to you, I’d still recommend it! But sadly not a favorite of my year (or even month) so far.
CW: Torture/murder/death; suicide; bullying; mentions of child abuse/domestic violence
Graphic: Suicide, Torture, Cancer, Death of parent, Murder, Death, Blood, and Bullying
Minor: Child abuse and Domestic abuse
reading_under_covers's review
4.0
Graphic: Murder, Torture, and Bullying
Moderate: Suicide
tiasreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Bullying, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Torture and Suicide
enchantedfiction's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Alison Lane disappeared 5 years ago, and the only person who might know who took her was her boyfriend, Ryan Richardson. But Ryan was knocked unconscious the night of her abduction, and any lead he tried giving to police were dismissed. Still feeling guilty, Ryan finds himself taken back in time when the car Alison had been driving turns up at the bottom of a lake, with two bodies inside. A note was discovered entitled 'if something happens to me' written in Alison's handwriting.
New deputy sheriff, Poppy Mcgee, has returned to her old stomping grounds after being discharged from the military, and it just so happens to be at the same time Alison's case gains new evidence. Can she finally put the case to bed and figure out just what happened to Alison?
In this multi-POV thriller, there are twists and turns that move the story forward and will keep you wanting to know how it all ends.
This was my first Alex Finlay book, and I will say I'm going to look into others! The suspense was held throughout the story as more and more pieces of the events were revealed, and there was one point when the two storylines converged that I just had to know how it ended. Instead of being solidly from the POVs of three of the characters, the end jumped around a bit to be from other perspectives, and I thought that was really interesting. I feel like it fit the story, but it's not something you see happen very often.
I did get a little frustrated with the way some of the POVs would abruptly end and switch, causing all of these cliff-hanger moments that just felt like too much. I understand that it's a thriller, but to end some of the scenes the way they did felt choppy to me. I just wish that certain parts had gone on a little longer before shifting to feel a little more fluid. I also guessed some of the ending, and the way that it was revealed made me think that maybe I was supposed to have guessed it, but it was kind of unclear. If I wasn't supposed to, then I feel like it was kind of obvious. But if I was supposed to be screaming at one of the characters because of a poor decision they made and add to the suspense, then mission accomplished.
With all of that being said, obviously I did still really enjoy this story and would actually consider listening to it again in the future to see if I can pick up any other foreshadowing moments I might have missed the first time around. I feel like thrillers tend to have a lot of subtle hints at things to come, and if you're really invested in the emotion of it and feeling anxious, you might miss them. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys thrillers with multiple POVs, interconnecting storylines, and suspense.
Moderate: Suicide and Violence
Minor: Murder, Kidnapping, Torture, and Gun violence
lousallbookedup's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I listened to this book in less than 36 hours. I was hooked from the beginning. This is a fast pace, easy read with an interesting if not a little unrealistic storyline. The short chapters kept the story action packed. It was a fun time even if I guessed some of the twists.
I enjoyed the multi-POVs and each narrator did an amazing job! Poppy was an exceptionally likable character for me in this books which doesn't happen commonly in mysteries.
Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and Minotaur books for this free ALC!
Moderate: Torture, Suicide, and Murder
theinstabookworm's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I tried to pick this up a few weeks ago, and soft DNFed it when I wasn't in the mood. I wasn't going to come back to it. I DNFed one other book by the author and thought maybe the author just wasn't for me. But, I kept seeing good review after good review pop up on my feed, so I decided to give it another chance.
I thought I had the twist figured out, but I was so wrong in a great way. There are a lot of characters, and I had trouble keeping track of who was who. I wish each character's name was stated at the beginning of their chapter so we could remember whose POV we were in. Also, the epilogue was three chapters long, and it didn't need to be. All of those things slowed the book down for me. Most of the reviews I've been seeing say this is fast-paced, but I found it to be more medium paced. Despite what I've mentioned, I did enjoy this and was intrigued to find out what happened next every time I had to put it down. I'll be going back to the book I DNFed by the author at some point, and I've also added his other books to my list and look forward to picking them up in the future!
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Suicide, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Child death, Dementia, Addiction, Cancer, and Bullying