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3.69 AVERAGE
3.69 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Thank you, NetGalley, for the advance audio book in exchange for an honest review.
Kendall Beck is an FBI agent living in Denver. She is particularly qualified to understand victims of abuse as the lone survivor of the "Reaper" serial killer. Partly due to that traumatic experience, she thrives on saving others. The story opens with the disappearance of a 5 year old named Emily Williams. The details of the case are gruesome but Kendall is making progress when her roommate, Gwen Tavich, disappears. There is a lot going on in this book!
Gwen is soon discovered dead and Kendall is heartbroken. Denver detective Adam Taylor is investigating the death, soon classified as a homicide, Kendall joins forces with Adam, while still working on Emily William's case. As Kendall digs deeper into both cases, the evidence mounts and the intrigue grows. Then more bodies are discovered - the Reaper is back! As Kendall's past traumas are brought to the forefront, she must get ready to confront her deepest fears.
I was kind of "ehh" about this book. There was a lot going on, almost too much to keep track of. There was so much action, it didn't feel believable. There were an awful lot of coincidences, and things tying together neatly. Life is never really like that - life is messy. I kept losing my focus on the story because I would think that something was not authentic, believable or realistic, and that thought would distract me. There were also many, many characters. I think if there had been fewer characters, they could have been better developed and more impactful. As it was, I could barely remember who anyone was. There was a lot of action, so if you like non-stop activity and drama this may be the book for you. I didn't hate it but I definitely didn't love it.
Kendall Beck is an FBI agent living in Denver. She is particularly qualified to understand victims of abuse as the lone survivor of the "Reaper" serial killer. Partly due to that traumatic experience, she thrives on saving others. The story opens with the disappearance of a 5 year old named Emily Williams. The details of the case are gruesome but Kendall is making progress when her roommate, Gwen Tavich, disappears. There is a lot going on in this book!
Gwen is soon discovered dead and Kendall is heartbroken. Denver detective Adam Taylor is investigating the death, soon classified as a homicide, Kendall joins forces with Adam, while still working on Emily William's case. As Kendall digs deeper into both cases, the evidence mounts and the intrigue grows. Then more bodies are discovered - the Reaper is back! As Kendall's past traumas are brought to the forefront, she must get ready to confront her deepest fears.
I was kind of "ehh" about this book. There was a lot going on, almost too much to keep track of. There was so much action, it didn't feel believable. There were an awful lot of coincidences, and things tying together neatly. Life is never really like that - life is messy. I kept losing my focus on the story because I would think that something was not authentic, believable or realistic, and that thought would distract me. There were also many, many characters. I think if there had been fewer characters, they could have been better developed and more impactful. As it was, I could barely remember who anyone was. There was a lot of action, so if you like non-stop activity and drama this may be the book for you. I didn't hate it but I definitely didn't love it.
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
This is very much a police procedural, but I really enjoyed it! It reminded me of watching Law & Order SVU or something. I could see where people think it was slow, and I can't disagree to be honest. And the ending was super rushed in comparison to how much everything else was dragged out. But I enjoyed the book for what it is!
Ah, police procedurals. There seems to be something of a trope in these things whereby the protagonist-investigator is herself (and I'm not sure if it's usually 'herself' rather than 'himself' or other because of the state of the genre or because I prefer to read female authors who write female leads) a survivor of some terrible attack at some point in the past. I think it's a bit too bad that this particular Traumatic Past was dealt with completely in this book, because it definitely seems like there's setup for future books, but I'm not sure there's much more to wring out of Kendall's past.
As a book, it's mostly solid (took me a while to figure out whodunnit, and how the various cases connected and why), with the occasional wobble to remind you that it's a first book. Occasional clunky information drop:
As usual for the genre, there's the question of romance: will they? won't they? Kendall has a fuckbuddy of sorts, so we know she's attractive and isn't a prude (can't think what other purpose the fuckbuddy provides), plus half the other men in the book are in love with her. But there's nothing going on with Adam, nope nope nope:
Meanwhile, holy moly, this needed proofreading. This isn't all, or even mostly, on the author—the author is responsible for delivering as clean a manuscript as possible, of course, but proofreading is the publisher's responsibility. Hopefully if this goes to a second printing, they'll hire someone to do the job...?
First person POV in the middle of a third-person book:
As a book, it's mostly solid (took me a while to figure out whodunnit, and how the various cases connected and why), with the occasional wobble to remind you that it's a first book. Occasional clunky information drop:
Interesting, he's already comfortable using past tense when talking about a woman he'd just discovered moments earlier was dead. Adam filed the information away for more consideration later. (86)
Kendall pulled up the note app on her phone. She also managed to get the voice recorder started without RaeLyn noticing. Colorado is a one-party consent state, and...it was at least legal to record the conversation without Mrs. Volkov's actual consent. (243)This sort of thing isn't bad information to have, of course, but sometimes it feels like it's inserted in a way that is very much for the reader. (I think the present tense of 'Colorado is' probably has something to do with that...)
As usual for the genre, there's the question of romance: will they? won't they? Kendall has a fuckbuddy of sorts, so we know she's attractive and isn't a prude (can't think what other purpose the fuckbuddy provides), plus half the other men in the book are in love with her. But there's nothing going on with Adam, nope nope nope:
He felt an uncommon bond with Kendall—not romantic or anything. But like they were both cut from the same cloth. Siblings without any relation. (29)
He was a good guy, and she liked him. Not as anything more than a friend. (154)
She was hot, yeah—and it wasn't that Adam hadn't wondered about what she would be like in bed; he was still a guy—but he didn't get warm fuzzy feelings from her. She was definitely in the friend zone, and Adam was okay with that. (197)
"You buying?" she asked, as they headed toward the elevators.Real talk: with the first 'just a friend' comment I thought, okay, cool, this is a book that's going to subvert convention and not make the male and female detective lead hook up eventually. By the end, all these 'WE'RE JUST FRIENDS' comments are making me think the lad(y) doth protest too much. Kendall's past might be wrung out, then, but if there are more books to follow, mark my words, there will be more to this not-a-romance drama.
"I guess, but if you continue to make me buy coffee and meals for you, people are going to think we're dating."
She squished up her nose and squinted. "No one would ever believe we're dating. There is no way I look desperate enough to go out with you, Taylor."
"Well, that's just mean." (224)
Meanwhile, holy moly, this needed proofreading. This isn't all, or even mostly, on the author—the author is responsible for delivering as clean a manuscript as possible, of course, but proofreading is the publisher's responsibility. Hopefully if this goes to a second printing, they'll hire someone to do the job...?
First person POV in the middle of a third-person book:
I shrugged, not willing to get in the middle of their pissing match. (36)Accidental extension of italics:
Any news? the message from Q read. (73)Malapropism (emphasis added):
"Did he elude to any sexual abuse?" (80)Missing word (emphasis added):
Now, Ms. Beck was on the hot seat, and he wanted to see if her story remained the same—rehearsed, even—or changed at all. Any could mean she was covering something up. (85)Malapropism 2.0 (emphasis added):
A curt nod proceeded him walking through French doors into a long living room. (95)Malapropism 3.0 (emphasis added):
Agent Beck was pretty good at diffusing powder keg situations. (98)Inconsistency:
Ringing abruptly woke Adam from the best dream he'd had in months..."I'm not fucking on call!" (63)
While detectives were always on call... (196)Tiny little punctuation thing that drives me bonkers:
"I need more." She said. (212)And so on and so forth. It's hardly the most egregious set of proofreading errors I've ever seen ('Jane Austin' as a favourite author does come to mind), but it does tend to take one out of the story.
The Wrong Woman is a fast paced and intense detective thriller. I thought it was a great debut filled with packed action and compelling characters. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator did a great job. It was easy to get transported into the world of both the victims and the investigators. The ending wrapped up the story nicely but still left room for a potential series.
Thank you to NetGallery and to Dreamscape Audio for giving me a copy for my honest review.
Thank you to NetGallery and to Dreamscape Audio for giving me a copy for my honest review.
Read this if…you like mysteries that have multiple storylines.
FBI Special Agent Kendall Beck is the sole survivor of a notorious serial killer known as “The Reaper.” While on the case investigating the disappearance of a little girl, Kendall’s roommate goes missing. Kendall teams up with another detective to find her friend, but when a body is discovered, Kendall starts to question how much she really knew about her roommate’s life. Meanwhile, it appears the Reaper has returned and he might have a special message just for Kendall.
I really wanted to like this book, but there was just too much going on. There were three major storylines and while they did all connect at the end, I felt like it was forced and didn’t make much sense to me. The little girl’s story was heartbreaking and I was invested in learning what happened to Kendall’s roommate. However, the serial killer plot was barely there and it didn’t add the suspense I was expecting. I am very skeptical about the serial killer’s identity. I see what the author was trying to do with connecting all the storylines, but it just didn’t work for me. The writing was strong otherwise and Kendall was a likable character, so I’m on the fence. Make sure you check out the trigger warnings for this one before reading.
A big thanks to Netgalley, the author, and Dreamscape Media for an ALC in exchange for an honest review!
FBI Special Agent Kendall Beck is the sole survivor of a notorious serial killer known as “The Reaper.” While on the case investigating the disappearance of a little girl, Kendall’s roommate goes missing. Kendall teams up with another detective to find her friend, but when a body is discovered, Kendall starts to question how much she really knew about her roommate’s life. Meanwhile, it appears the Reaper has returned and he might have a special message just for Kendall.
I really wanted to like this book, but there was just too much going on. There were three major storylines and while they did all connect at the end, I felt like it was forced and didn’t make much sense to me. The little girl’s story was heartbreaking and I was invested in learning what happened to Kendall’s roommate. However, the serial killer plot was barely there and it didn’t add the suspense I was expecting. I am very skeptical about the serial killer’s identity. I see what the author was trying to do with connecting all the storylines, but it just didn’t work for me. The writing was strong otherwise and Kendall was a likable character, so I’m on the fence. Make sure you check out the trigger warnings for this one before reading.
A big thanks to Netgalley, the author, and Dreamscape Media for an ALC in exchange for an honest review!
Read this if…you like mysteries that have multiple storylines.
FBI Special Agent Kendall Beck is the sole survivor of a notorious serial killer known as “The Reaper.” While on the case investigating the disappearance of a little girl, Kendall’s roommate goes missing. Kendall teams up with another detective to find her friend, but when a body is discovered, Kendall starts to question how much she really knew about her roommate’s life. Meanwhile, it appears the Reaper has returned and he might have a special message just for Kendall.
I really wanted to like this book, but there was just too much going on. There were three major storylines and while they did all connect at the end, I felt like it had been forced and didn’t make much sense to me. The little girl’s story was heartbreaking and I was invested in learning what happened to Kendall’s roommate. However, the serial killer plot was barely there and it didn’t add the suspense I was expecting. I am very skeptical about the serial killer’s identity. I see what the author was trying to do with connecting all the storylines, but it just didn’t work for me. The writing was strong otherwise and Kendall was a likable character, so I’m on the fence. Make sure you check out the trigger warnings for this one before reading.
FBI Special Agent Kendall Beck is the sole survivor of a notorious serial killer known as “The Reaper.” While on the case investigating the disappearance of a little girl, Kendall’s roommate goes missing. Kendall teams up with another detective to find her friend, but when a body is discovered, Kendall starts to question how much she really knew about her roommate’s life. Meanwhile, it appears the Reaper has returned and he might have a special message just for Kendall.
I really wanted to like this book, but there was just too much going on. There were three major storylines and while they did all connect at the end, I felt like it had been forced and didn’t make much sense to me. The little girl’s story was heartbreaking and I was invested in learning what happened to Kendall’s roommate. However, the serial killer plot was barely there and it didn’t add the suspense I was expecting. I am very skeptical about the serial killer’s identity. I see what the author was trying to do with connecting all the storylines, but it just didn’t work for me. The writing was strong otherwise and Kendall was a likable character, so I’m on the fence. Make sure you check out the trigger warnings for this one before reading.
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
In her debut novel, Leanne Kale Sparks shows what happens when you mess with the Wrong Woman:
FBI Agent Kendall Beck, is on the one of the toughest cases, a missing child case that turns into a child abuse case and Kendall will stop at nothing to bring justice to the victim. But everything is de-railed when Kendall's best friend and roommate goes missing while driving her vehicle. Kendall wants to be part of the investigation but it is out of her jurisdiction, and when Gwen turns up dead, Kendall drops everything, she needs to find the killer as it seems to be connected to Kendall’s past.
I feel like you can tell that this is a debut novel as Kale Sparks tries to take on too much in one book. There are three very different stories/cases presented in this book, all of which could have been their own books. I think this is why the story felt unfocused at times.The book starts out very interesting with the separate cases and you do not know how the investigations are going to intersect or how the investigators are going to work together and it takes around 20% of the book to get there.
I felt like for the most part of the story she did not focus on the child abduction/abuse case, like it was not important enough for her and solely wanted to help/focus on her friend's disappearance. It was like she forgot about her actual job/case to the point that it felt like Kale Sparks forgot about the other case and the direction she wanted to take the story. It is not till the end that she seems to finally remember she had a case she was supposed to work. I think that Kale Sparks just didn't know what type of book she wanted to write, so changed focus many times.
I liked Kendall as a character when you first meet her and she does what I think a lot of people would do with a child abuser but after that point I felt like i she didn't grow as a character or as an investigator.
I think that Kale Sparks has the ability to write and does have great ideas for stories to follow with her characters presented here, but i think there needs to be follow less is more. There does not need to be multiple cases happening at once in order to captivate their audience. A good who-done-it does not need this. However, I look forward to seeing how Kale Sparks matures as an author.
Cheers!!!
FBI Agent Kendall Beck, is on the one of the toughest cases, a missing child case that turns into a child abuse case and Kendall will stop at nothing to bring justice to the victim. But everything is de-railed when Kendall's best friend and roommate goes missing while driving her vehicle. Kendall wants to be part of the investigation but it is out of her jurisdiction, and when Gwen turns up dead, Kendall drops everything, she needs to find the killer as it seems to be connected to Kendall’s past.
I feel like you can tell that this is a debut novel as Kale Sparks tries to take on too much in one book. There are three very different stories/cases presented in this book, all of which could have been their own books. I think this is why the story felt unfocused at times.The book starts out very interesting with the separate cases and you do not know how the investigations are going to intersect or how the investigators are going to work together and it takes around 20% of the book to get there.
I felt like for the most part of the story she did not focus on the child abduction/abuse case, like it was not important enough for her and solely wanted to help/focus on her friend's disappearance. It was like she forgot about her actual job/case to the point that it felt like Kale Sparks forgot about the other case and the direction she wanted to take the story. It is not till the end that she seems to finally remember she had a case she was supposed to work. I think that Kale Sparks just didn't know what type of book she wanted to write, so changed focus many times.
I liked Kendall as a character when you first meet her and she does what I think a lot of people would do with a child abuser but after that point I felt like i she didn't grow as a character or as an investigator.
I think that Kale Sparks has the ability to write and does have great ideas for stories to follow with her characters presented here, but i think there needs to be follow less is more. There does not need to be multiple cases happening at once in order to captivate their audience. A good who-done-it does not need this. However, I look forward to seeing how Kale Sparks matures as an author.
Cheers!!!
This is a debut is mystery/police procedural suspense novel, set in Denver, and featuring FBI Special Agent Kendall Beck and police detective Adam Taylor. The plot revolves around three cases – a serial killer, a missing child, and a missing roommate. I assume this is the first book of a series and it seems like a solid start – there is some good potential for character development. The audiobook was a fine distraction, but really wasn’t memorable – for me, there was little to distinguish it from other books that feature a woman who escaped a killer and became a feisty FBI agent to fight for justice for all who is partnered with an attractive, more evenly-tempered law enforcement male.
Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape media for an advance copy of this audiobook.
Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape media for an advance copy of this audiobook.