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paulabrandon's review against another edition
3.0
Melanie Dennison has spent her whole life in hiding, brought up by her aunt and uncle, after her father murdered her mother and subsequently went on the run. Now 17 and pregnant, and not wanting this sort of life for her baby, Melanie decides to return to the home where she grew up, in order to get some answers and finally live a life free of hiding.
We also get the point of view of Melanie's father, in the days leading up to the murder. He threw a big party that night, and we come to learn he was treating it as an end-of-the-world party, having been convinced by another trucker that a conjunction of all the planets would lead to a catastophic event. But is everything as clear cut as it seems.
This was more a 2.5 for me, but it's too well written to give just two stars, and both Melanie and Ramsey were well-drawn characters, that I ultimately ended up wanting to find out what happened to them.
What counts against it is its relentless predictably. The outcome you imagine after just a couple of chapters is exactly what you think it will be. It's clear the author chose his protagonist to be a teenager, because that makes her naivete more believable. Anyone with a bit of life experience would have been able to figure out what was going on.
And there's far, far, far too much information about how Ramsey organises and plans for his end-of-the-world party. It wasn't necessary. That could easily have been excised, or perhaps more done to flesh out how Ramsey wound up being so convinced of this particular conspiracy theory. There's also a flashback to Ramsey's youth that doesn't really achieve much.
Too predictable and lackadaisically paced to work as a thriller, but the decent characterisations and its kind of bittersweet, melancholy mood didn't make me feel as if I had wasted my time in reading it.
We also get the point of view of Melanie's father, in the days leading up to the murder. He threw a big party that night, and we come to learn he was treating it as an end-of-the-world party, having been convinced by another trucker that a conjunction of all the planets would lead to a catastophic event. But is everything as clear cut as it seems.
This was more a 2.5 for me, but it's too well written to give just two stars, and both Melanie and Ramsey were well-drawn characters, that I ultimately ended up wanting to find out what happened to them.
What counts against it is its relentless predictably. The outcome you imagine after just a couple of chapters is exactly what you think it will be. It's clear the author chose his protagonist to be a teenager, because that makes her naivete more believable. Anyone with a bit of life experience would have been able to figure out what was going on.
And there's far, far, far too much information about how Ramsey organises and plans for his end-of-the-world party. It wasn't necessary. That could easily have been excised, or perhaps more done to flesh out how Ramsey wound up being so convinced of this particular conspiracy theory. There's also a flashback to Ramsey's youth that doesn't really achieve much.
Too predictable and lackadaisically paced to work as a thriller, but the decent characterisations and its kind of bittersweet, melancholy mood didn't make me feel as if I had wasted my time in reading it.
paoakalani's review against another edition
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
2.0
emilyyjjean's review against another edition
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? It's complicated
5.0
I wasn’t sure how to is book was going to go when I started it, but I’m pleasantly surprised. This was really good! I did not see the twist coming, and I really appreciate that in thriller/mystery books.
rosemariew's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
babybuzzcut's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-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? Yes
2.5
primahattie2's review against another edition
5.0
I discovered this book on Audible randomly. The blurb interested me, so I got it. I devoured this book.
15 years ago, Ramsey Miller murdered his wife and child after throwing a block party and was never seen again. That is what the public knows. The truth is, is that his daughter, Meg, got away and was taken into Witness Protection where her aunt and uncle have taken over the role as her mom and dad. Now known as Melanie Dennison, Meg Miller, is 17 now and finds herself happily pregnant. She is tired of looking over her shoulder and offing afraid that her father may come and find her. So, she sets off to find him. What she will soon discover will rock her world.
I loved this book so much! It kept me interested throughout the whole book. It reminded me of something I would watch on Dateline!
15 years ago, Ramsey Miller murdered his wife and child after throwing a block party and was never seen again. That is what the public knows. The truth is, is that his daughter, Meg, got away and was taken into Witness Protection where her aunt and uncle have taken over the role as her mom and dad. Now known as Melanie Dennison, Meg Miller, is 17 now and finds herself happily pregnant. She is tired of looking over her shoulder and offing afraid that her father may come and find her. So, she sets off to find him. What she will soon discover will rock her world.
I loved this book so much! It kept me interested throughout the whole book. It reminded me of something I would watch on Dateline!
stephrippy's review against another edition
3.5
Really thought I had it figured out, but that plot twist!! Also she deserved better than Phillip 🙄
_justlillian_'s review against another edition
4.0
Heartbreaking, but with an ending that's not as unpredictable as the reviews featured on the back cover might have you think. Melanie is a bit too flat and static to be the protagonist, as are Philip and other characters I felt were important to the book. A good read that keeps your attention, but nothing especially unique about it for those of us who read plenty of suspenseful novels.