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3.23 AVERAGE
3.23 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
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:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death
This book has promise. Not sure why I didn’t like it more. Great setting. Great premise. But boring as hell.
This book is HEARTSTOPPING nearly from beginning to end. I have absolutely no doubt that once you have started reading this you will not be able to put it down! I am so surprised by the character development and the way the story comes to life, and will be searching out Jenny Milchmans novels in the future!
Did I like this book? That’s a really good question. For the first half I would’ve said a definitive no so much so that I almost didn’t finish it. But I struggled through and the back half had enough redeeming qualities for me to give this three stars. My largest complaints? First, this book was positioned as a thriller with lots of ominous world building in the first two hundred pages but really nothing thrilling ever happening. Second, this book tried to do to much, 15 pages on Julie’s husband returning guilt ridden that he’d given his baby too much Benadryl the night before she died? Death by a thousand cuts. Lastly the idea of Julie and Mrs Hampstead (at minimum a middle aged if not elderly woman) physically fighting in the water at the end? I don’t buy it. My feelings about this book are (clearly) complicated but maybe it works better for others.
This book was just too slow for me. It takes forever to get to the point and nothing really even happens for the length of it.
Julie Weathers, grieving over the loss of a child and an impending divorce, is looking for a new start. Opportunity comes in the form of a job opening teaching a one room schoolhouse on an island in Maine. Upon arriving, it is almost idyllic—this could be just what she needs in order to move forward in her life; new friends, a wonderful new home. But there is something not quite right about Mercy Island.
The isolation of the island plays a very big part in the plot this book. Insular, holding tight to ‘the old ways’, in many ways Mercy Island was its own character. It helped cultivate the residents about as much as lobstering does. Mercy keeps certain kinds of people. It thrives on the disparity of the haves and the have-nots. This is something that becomes apparent very early on in the book. In a location so self contained, what exactly can you get away with? When you are holding the power, what ways can you get others to twist to get what you want?
Where this book excelled was the author’s description of the environment. It helps paint a picture of the nearness of the island locales. The mounting dread that Julie starts to experience as things start to go amiss began to stress me out. I enjoy that sort of thing in a thriller.
However, as much as I can appreciate a slow burn, this book ended up feeling long. It took me much longer to get through this than I had hoped because at some point along the way it started to drag along. On top of that, when I reached the end it felt abrupt and almost sudden. This left me feeling very middle of the road in the end.
Thank you to Books Forward Friends, NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for a copy in exchange for an honest review.
The isolation of the island plays a very big part in the plot this book. Insular, holding tight to ‘the old ways’, in many ways Mercy Island was its own character. It helped cultivate the residents about as much as lobstering does. Mercy keeps certain kinds of people. It thrives on the disparity of the haves and the have-nots. This is something that becomes apparent very early on in the book. In a location so self contained, what exactly can you get away with? When you are holding the power, what ways can you get others to twist to get what you want?
Where this book excelled was the author’s description of the environment. It helps paint a picture of the nearness of the island locales. The mounting dread that Julie starts to experience as things start to go amiss began to stress me out. I enjoy that sort of thing in a thriller.
However, as much as I can appreciate a slow burn, this book ended up feeling long. It took me much longer to get through this than I had hoped because at some point along the way it started to drag along. On top of that, when I reached the end it felt abrupt and almost sudden. This left me feeling very middle of the road in the end.
Thank you to Books Forward Friends, NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for a copy in exchange for an honest review.
The book had so much potential to wow me, but for a thriller to be this long, I need there to be a lot of captivating action, and this book was much more of a slow thriller that focused heavily on building the setting. Most of the times when something suspenseful or creepy was happening, the author immediately moved onto something else instead of continuing to build up the suspense.
I did really enjoy the ending to this story, but the story really dragged for me in the middle. I don't know if I would have finished this if not for my desire to know what happens at the end. There were some deaths happening left and right towards the end that I'm not sure how I feel about, but I did enjoy the big twist that happened as I didn't see it coming at all. There were so many suspicious elements dropped in the beginning of the book that intrigued me, but it took till almost the end of the book for them to really start playing a part in the story. Also, I think the dog Depot played too large of a role in this story. He added to parts of the mystery and plot, but there were times where I lost interest in hearing about every time Julie was going to feed him or take him on a walk. I liked how the author wrote Julie's character though as she was too blinded by grief to see a lot of red flags in the beginning, but she started putting things together as her time on the island increased and she found another sense of purpose.
I really liked Callum and his relationship with Julie and wish we could have seen more of their interactions in this. Also, I enjoyed trying to figure out Peter and if he was actually troubled or if there was something else going on under the surface.
Overall, I think this is a good book for people who like slow, character-driven thrillers that leave you wondering what's going to happen next at every turn.
*Thanks to Books Forward for a free copy of this book. All opinions are my own*
I did really enjoy the ending to this story, but the story really dragged for me in the middle. I don't know if I would have finished this if not for my desire to know what happens at the end. There were some deaths happening left and right towards the end that I'm not sure how I feel about, but I did enjoy the big twist that happened as I didn't see it coming at all. There were so many suspicious elements dropped in the beginning of the book that intrigued me, but it took till almost the end of the book for them to really start playing a part in the story. Also, I think the dog Depot played too large of a role in this story. He added to parts of the mystery and plot, but there were times where I lost interest in hearing about every time Julie was going to feed him or take him on a walk. I liked how the author wrote Julie's character though as she was too blinded by grief to see a lot of red flags in the beginning, but she started putting things together as her time on the island increased and she found another sense of purpose.
I really liked Callum and his relationship with Julie and wish we could have seen more of their interactions in this. Also, I enjoyed trying to figure out Peter and if he was actually troubled or if there was something else going on under the surface.
Overall, I think this is a good book for people who like slow, character-driven thrillers that leave you wondering what's going to happen next at every turn.
*Thanks to Books Forward for a free copy of this book. All opinions are my own*
What an underwhelming meh book. I felt like I had to work for something to happen. Nothing happened. It's just tons of dialog sprinkled with a coastal landscape. The main character, Julie has definitely been through the ringer but my God she's boring. Every page you're weighed down by words that take you no where. There is little to no suspense. One chapter ends with a (brace yourself) locked door.
Book wasn't for me. 2.5⭐
Book wasn't for me. 2.5⭐
If you want to read a book about a dog’s life, then read this book. Not so much a thriller, as a personal growth fiction. Took me so long to finish this book due to the fact that the majority of the plot was irrelevant and not as thrilling as I wanted. I know more about Depot (her dog) then any other topic from this book alone. Not recommended for thriller fans. Perhaps it would be enjoyable if you were a fiction fan.