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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you @netgalley for the ARC of Only survives by Hannah Mary McKinnon.
This book was a strong 4 stars until about 2/3 of the way through. I love closed door mysteries where what happened is vague and unreliable narrators. This book was delivering on all of that. I also liked how it alternated between the past and the present. I found Madison and Vienna’s back story to be interesting and liked the band aspect of it. Then the book shifts and it went downhill. There was little background into how the current band formed and the characters that were with them in the car accident. The ending felt rushed and the suspense was lost. I would still read more by this author.
The band Bittersweet is on the way to an event when the car crashes in the middle of a snowy forest. Madison and Vienna, the founding members have a long friendship going back to high school. After the accident the members fight for their survival. Madison disappears and eyes are on Vienna with theories on her part in the accident.
This book was a strong 4 stars until about 2/3 of the way through. I love closed door mysteries where what happened is vague and unreliable narrators. This book was delivering on all of that. I also liked how it alternated between the past and the present. I found Madison and Vienna’s back story to be interesting and liked the band aspect of it. Then the book shifts and it went downhill. There was little background into how the current band formed and the characters that were with them in the car accident. The ending felt rushed and the suspense was lost. I would still read more by this author.
The band Bittersweet is on the way to an event when the car crashes in the middle of a snowy forest. Madison and Vienna, the founding members have a long friendship going back to high school. After the accident the members fight for their survival. Madison disappears and eyes are on Vienna with theories on her part in the accident.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I liked it, but didn’t love it. I enjoyed the first half much more than the second half, and I think that this style of thriller just isn’t quite my style (feel free to DM me for more info on that!). I was hoping it would be more locked room mystery than it was as well.
That being said, it was well written, and I will try more by this author
Two twists in this mystery, although the first one made sense. The second one came in the last few chapters and surprised me. Engaging read, though.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
★★ 1/2
Interesting premise that didn't quite meet my expectations.
Vienna Taylor had to grow up fast in less than ideal circumstances. When her beloved grandmother dies, Vienna finally leaves home to move to New York with her best friend from high school, Madison Pierce. We follow Vienna through the trials and tribulations of establishing a life in New York while Madison attends college and parties with her college friends. What Vienna really wants is to make music and finally, she gets a band together that seems like it's going to take off.
Just as the band is finding fans and support within the music industry, an accident on the way to a music event in the Catskills changes everything. Plunging temperatures and a blizzard force the band to take cover in an abandoned cabin in the woods. With no cell signal and several band members badly injured, it doesn't seem like things could get worse - until they do. Vienna's band members start to disappear. Can she find a way out before she is a victim?
I thought that this might be a closed circle mystery, with lots of time spent in the remote cabin where sinister and spooky things are happening. Then I thought that the story was actually about fame and how it can corrupt those that seem utterly incorruptible. Then I thought "ahh hah", it's actually a serial killer story where the big nasty conscience-free baddie is too smart to get caught and continues to kill with impunity.
It is none of those things. I'm hoping that from the description of my experience reading, you understand why I rated this book ★★ 1/2. It had a lot of potential but in my opinion, struggled with it's identity. There were so many good things happening in the story, starting with the band being trapped in a cabin during a snow storm. There was an opportunity to really dig into the isolation, the creepiness of the situation and the fact that one of them is a murderer but that didn't happen. In my opinion, the cut over from the cabin to the next part of the book was awkward and I spent the rest of my reading time trying to figure out what this book wanted to be.
I think the potential in this book is amazing but it didn't quite get there for me.
Thank you to Netgalley, HTP Books MIRA and the author for providing me a copy of the book in exchange for my honest opinion.
Interesting premise that didn't quite meet my expectations.
Vienna Taylor had to grow up fast in less than ideal circumstances. When her beloved grandmother dies, Vienna finally leaves home to move to New York with her best friend from high school, Madison Pierce. We follow Vienna through the trials and tribulations of establishing a life in New York while Madison attends college and parties with her college friends. What Vienna really wants is to make music and finally, she gets a band together that seems like it's going to take off.
Just as the band is finding fans and support within the music industry, an accident on the way to a music event in the Catskills changes everything. Plunging temperatures and a blizzard force the band to take cover in an abandoned cabin in the woods. With no cell signal and several band members badly injured, it doesn't seem like things could get worse - until they do. Vienna's band members start to disappear. Can she find a way out before she is a victim?
I thought that this might be a closed circle mystery, with lots of time spent in the remote cabin where sinister and spooky things are happening. Then I thought that the story was actually about fame and how it can corrupt those that seem utterly incorruptible. Then I thought "ahh hah", it's actually a serial killer story where the big nasty conscience-free baddie is too smart to get caught and continues to kill with impunity.
It is none of those things. I'm hoping that from the description of my experience reading, you understand why I rated this book ★★ 1/2. It had a lot of potential but in my opinion, struggled with it's identity. There were so many good things happening in the story, starting with the band being trapped in a cabin during a snow storm. There was an opportunity to really dig into the isolation, the creepiness of the situation and the fact that one of them is a murderer but that didn't happen. In my opinion, the cut over from the cabin to the next part of the book was awkward and I spent the rest of my reading time trying to figure out what this book wanted to be.
I think the potential in this book is amazing but it didn't quite get there for me.
Thank you to Netgalley, HTP Books MIRA and the author for providing me a copy of the book in exchange for my honest opinion.