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samanthawade92's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- 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? Yes
3.25
Pretty good thriller overall. She did a good job of building suspense and suspicious with the characters but did find some of the bigger twists pretty implausible.
I’d guessed Sam had to be connected to the original story. I’m kind of surprised that he “ended up with” Gwen given the history. That doesn’t seem very plausible.
I didn’t expect Graham to be the copycat killer and doing Mel’s bidding from prison. I did find it kind of implausible that Mel had this whole network of people at this disposal. Typically serial killers don’t have a network, but instead ten to work alone. Kind of seemed like she wanted to make Mel out to be a loner killer but also a criminal mastermind?
And finally, the ending where Mel had supposedly broken out of prison wasn’t very believable to me. I guess she wanted to end on a cliffhanger but I just didn’t find that very plausible.
Overall fine thriller. Engaging. Some pretty gruesome parts but good overall.
I didn’t expect Graham to be the copycat killer and doing Mel’s bidding from prison. I did find it kind of implausible that Mel had this whole network of people at this disposal. Typically serial killers don’t have a network, but instead ten to work alone. Kind of seemed like she wanted to make Mel out to be a loner killer but also a criminal mastermind?
And finally, the ending where Mel had supposedly broken out of prison wasn’t very believable to me. I guess she wanted to end on a cliffhanger but I just didn’t find that very plausible.
Overall fine thriller. Engaging. Some pretty gruesome parts but good overall.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture
christiegirl11's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
This book started off really slowly and had me wondering how there could possibly be 5 more books in the series. About 60% of the way through, the story ramped up and got super intense. I couldn’t put it down. I’m starting the second one as we speak…
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, Torture, Gun violence, Death, Murder, Stalking, and Violence
nrogers_1030's review against another edition
dark
emotional
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? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Cursing, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Death, Gun violence, Murder, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Torture, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Blood, Body horror, Kidnapping, and Violence
Moderate: Grief, Torture, Bullying, and Confinement
Minor: Classism, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Cannibalism, and Rape
aliteracja's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Torture, Death, and Violence
Moderate: Car accident
sassykassy08's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
LOVED this book and I wish I read it sooner! Reminded me of Karin Slaughter’s writing style and instantly obsessed. The pace, build up, mystery, twists- all fantastic and had me on the edge of my seat. Diving into book #2 immediately!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Kidnapping, Blood, Gun violence, Murder, Violence, and Torture
andra_mihaela_s's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Body horror, Death, Gore, Hate crime, Stalking, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Gaslighting, Grief, Deadnaming, Police brutality, and Emotional abuse
danaslitlist's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
This is a fast paced, rather predictable crime thriller that follows our main character Gwen and her two children as they try to settle down with new aliases in a small town while hiding from their past lives.
I finished this book in an afternoon so when I say this was a quick read, I mean it. I also mean when I say this was very predictable for me, I figured out who the bad guy was as soon as he was introduced to us. However I was still entertained enough to speed read it and that’s mainly because of the main character. Caine is a good writer and the book is well written. It doesn’t feel cheap even if it is predictable
This book also has a bit of a pacing problem where we get stuck in the monotony of the author detailing daily life. It would be a stretch to say that she was trying to show us how tiring that monotony is and I think it was just filler that could’ve been cut out.
The ending also endured an eye roll from me because this does not need to be a series and absolutely relies on the reader distancing themselves from reality to make certain plot points make sense. I won’t be reading any more of the series and I wish the author would’ve stopped while she was ahead.
(Spoilers under the cut explaining the plot point I have an issue with).
My original theory was that Graham was trying to get to something in the safe room and to do so was framing Gwen for murder due to convenience. Instead it’s revealed that he’s just a copy cat obsessed with her husband’s murders…which feels very cookie cutter. Which to me is worse than being predictable. It all ends with the news that said ex husband has escape prison in an attempt to entice the reader to continue the series.
I think the idea of the bad guy being a copycat killer just to impress the original is….dull and in this situation there were so many other reasons why Gwen could’ve been targeted to make the book more thrilling. A lot of reasons are given earlier are given in the book itself. So having Graham just be….a weaker version of her husband was a let down and ultimately removed all tension that had built up.
I mean I get that the husband has people who are helping him and one is helping from the inside the prison supposedly but he’s in a high security prison and on death row…..how the hell did he escape?? It just ridiculous.
At this point I feel like this is take a good concept and turning it into a soap opera crime novel.
If you’re looking for a fast read and a plot that feels reminiscent of an episode of Law and Order or Criminal Minds (though not that dark) I think you’d probably like this one.
I finished this book in an afternoon so when I say this was a quick read, I mean it. I also mean when I say this was very predictable for me, I figured out who the bad guy was as soon as he was introduced to us. However I was still entertained enough to speed read it and that’s mainly because of the main character. Caine is a good writer and the book is well written. It doesn’t feel cheap even if it is predictable
This book also has a bit of a pacing problem where we get stuck in the monotony of the author detailing daily life. It would be a stretch to say that she was trying to show us how tiring that monotony is and I think it was just filler that could’ve been cut out.
The ending also endured an eye roll from me because this does not need to be a series and absolutely relies on the reader distancing themselves from reality to make certain plot points make sense. I won’t be reading any more of the series and I wish the author would’ve stopped while she was ahead.
(Spoilers under the cut explaining the plot point I have an issue with).
My original theory was that Graham was trying to get to something in the safe room and to do so was framing Gwen for murder due to convenience. Instead it’s revealed that he’s just a copy cat obsessed with her husband’s murders…which feels very cookie cutter. Which to me is worse than being predictable. It all ends with the news that said ex husband has escape prison in an attempt to entice the reader to continue the series.
I think the idea of the bad guy being a copycat killer just to impress the original is….dull and in this situation there were so many other reasons why Gwen could’ve been targeted to make the book more thrilling. A lot of reasons are given earlier are given in the book itself. So having Graham just be….a weaker version of her husband was a let down and ultimately removed all tension that had built up.
I mean I get that the husband has people who are helping him and one is helping from the inside the prison supposedly but he’s in a high security prison and on death row…..how the hell did he escape?? It just ridiculous.
At this point I feel like this is take a good concept and turning it into a soap opera crime novel.
If you’re looking for a fast read and a plot that feels reminiscent of an episode of Law and Order or Criminal Minds (though not that dark) I think you’d probably like this one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Stalking, Murder, and Torture
halesbookshelf's review against another edition
dark
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Sexual assault, Kidnapping, Murder, Violence, and Gun violence
dalmavatai's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
This was disappointing - boring and repetitive until the end at which point it kind of devolves into an action movie with a reveal that I didn't predict only because I thought that it would be too obvious. The cliffhanger was kind of interesting though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Stalking, Torture, Violence, Blood, Body horror, Gun violence, and Murder
Moderate: Cannibalism