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3.5 AVERAGE
3.5 AVERAGE
A slow burn suspense involving a claustrophobic town filled with secrets, debauchery and prejudice!
This town made me so angry - it was filled with bigotry and festering secrets. I was seriously wondering why any one would want to live in this town. It was like a cesspool of corruption, dirt and sleaze. Told in multiple POVs, we unravel what really happened to 17 year old Abigail after she goes missing during a party in the woods. Her best friend, Emma is determined to find out what happened to her. The investigation leads to her uncovering secret after secret in her community. The truths revealed were sad and heartbreaking at times.
I enjoyed the Now and Then timelines but the changes in viewpoints and time jumps were a bit chaotic and hard to keep straight at times. Still, I definitely enjoy when stories unfold like this - making me feel like I am part of the story, versus being told what happened. This was a haunting debut by Anna Bailey and I look forward to more from her in the future.
This town made me so angry - it was filled with bigotry and festering secrets. I was seriously wondering why any one would want to live in this town. It was like a cesspool of corruption, dirt and sleaze. Told in multiple POVs, we unravel what really happened to 17 year old Abigail after she goes missing during a party in the woods. Her best friend, Emma is determined to find out what happened to her. The investigation leads to her uncovering secret after secret in her community. The truths revealed were sad and heartbreaking at times.
I enjoyed the Now and Then timelines but the changes in viewpoints and time jumps were a bit chaotic and hard to keep straight at times. Still, I definitely enjoy when stories unfold like this - making me feel like I am part of the story, versus being told what happened. This was a haunting debut by Anna Bailey and I look forward to more from her in the future.
So many secrets are unearthed when a local girl goes missing in this small town. Emma’s best friend Abi enters the woods one night and is never seen again and Emma feels like she’s the only one asking the questions “what happened to Abi?”.
This book is gritty, dark and depressing. So many horrible things happen in this small town that are swept under the rug or turned a blind eye to. The atmosphere of the book grabs your attention but leaves you with that horrible pit in your stomach feeling while you read. Every character (minus a few) in this book deserves better.
Rating 3.5 stars
This book is gritty, dark and depressing. So many horrible things happen in this small town that are swept under the rug or turned a blind eye to. The atmosphere of the book grabs your attention but leaves you with that horrible pit in your stomach feeling while you read. Every character (minus a few) in this book deserves better.
Rating 3.5 stars
***I received an ARC Kindle edition of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review***
Abigail Blake has gone missing. In the small town of Whistling Ridge everybody knows everybody, but secrets are still kept undercover. So when Abi goes missing, her best friend Emma tries to uncover the truth behind her disappearance. Abi was last seen heading off into the woods with a mystery man after a local bonfire party in the woods. Abi's family is well known in town for domestic abuse, so her disappearance is first written off as a runaway. Later, when an article of her clothing is found, people start to get more serious about her disappearance and delve deeper into the whereabouts of certain people on the night she went missing. Was she kidnapped? Murdered? Or trying to run away from a secret of her own?
I wanted to love this book and some of the people in it. It dealt with some heavy issues: racism, homophobia, abuse, and more I won't mention due to spoilers. The author has a way with words and I loved how she wrote. There were a lot of characters and I sometimes had a hard time keeping them straight, especially with the way the chapters would switch POVS and go back and forth between "Then" and "Now". I think with a little more clarity it would have been a 4 star read for me. Some loose ends needed to be tied up for me.
Abigail Blake has gone missing. In the small town of Whistling Ridge everybody knows everybody, but secrets are still kept undercover. So when Abi goes missing, her best friend Emma tries to uncover the truth behind her disappearance. Abi was last seen heading off into the woods with a mystery man after a local bonfire party in the woods. Abi's family is well known in town for domestic abuse, so her disappearance is first written off as a runaway. Later, when an article of her clothing is found, people start to get more serious about her disappearance and delve deeper into the whereabouts of certain people on the night she went missing. Was she kidnapped? Murdered? Or trying to run away from a secret of her own?
I wanted to love this book and some of the people in it. It dealt with some heavy issues: racism, homophobia, abuse, and more I won't mention due to spoilers. The author has a way with words and I loved how she wrote. There were a lot of characters and I sometimes had a hard time keeping them straight, especially with the way the chapters would switch POVS and go back and forth between "Then" and "Now". I think with a little more clarity it would have been a 4 star read for me. Some loose ends needed to be tied up for me.
Thanks to Atria for the free book.
I would not consider this a thriller, but more of a slow-burn, atmospheric suspense novel, so adjust your expectations when going into this one. The book is about what happened to Abi, but there is so much more here. It is a deep look at small-mindedness, toxic Christianity, racism, and domestic abuse in a small Colorado town. The story slowly builds through then and now sections told from many character's POVs. I liked the format because it kept me engaged and invested in the story. However, I felt like I missed some things because of the allusions, but not outright, discussion of some of the things happening with some of the characters. I did enjoy the juxtaposition between the teens and their parents lines of thinking. I think that the exploration of kids being different from their parents was interesting.
If you enjoy novels that focus on the characters and the repercussions of their actions, then I think you will enjoy this one. If you're looking for a fast paced plot, this is not the book for that.
I would not consider this a thriller, but more of a slow-burn, atmospheric suspense novel, so adjust your expectations when going into this one. The book is about what happened to Abi, but there is so much more here. It is a deep look at small-mindedness, toxic Christianity, racism, and domestic abuse in a small Colorado town. The story slowly builds through then and now sections told from many character's POVs. I liked the format because it kept me engaged and invested in the story. However, I felt like I missed some things because of the allusions, but not outright, discussion of some of the things happening with some of the characters. I did enjoy the juxtaposition between the teens and their parents lines of thinking. I think that the exploration of kids being different from their parents was interesting.
If you enjoy novels that focus on the characters and the repercussions of their actions, then I think you will enjoy this one. If you're looking for a fast paced plot, this is not the book for that.
This was a very atmospheric, tense thriller. I didn’t enjoy the characters but I read the book to find out the conclusion because I was hooked. I didn’t love the conclusion but it kept me reading until the end. It’s very suspenseful and overall, just very sad. My thanks to the publisher for the advance reader in exchange for my honest review.
SUCH an amazing read! I was honestly so gripped by the mystery and wanting to figure out what happened to Abi - I finished the entire book in one day because I just couldn't wait to figure out what happened. I loved the setting in rural Colorado and the characters were all so lifelike and relatable. It felt like any small town in America, and it felt like this could happen anywhere. I was also especially touched by Emma's love for her friend and her persistence in figuring out what happened to Abi. I would definitely recommend this book to all of my friends.
After seventeen-year-old Abigail goes missing from a party in the woods in her small town of Whistling Ridge, Colorado, the police believe she may have run away. However, Abi’s best friend, Emma, is determined to figure out the truth behind her disappearance from this small town full of secrets, lies, and rage.
Whistling Ridge is a vile town, which leaves you questioning how one town could possibly have so many despicable people, but it does make for a plethora of potential suspects in Abi’s disappearance. Many of the residents of the town are hateful humans, demonstrating prejudice, resentment, and violence throughout the novel, but hiding behind their religion and claiming they are just doing what God intended. The story frequently switches between different characters’ points of a view, and a “now” and “then” timeline, so it was difficult to keep track of at times, but I liked all of the different perspectives. Chocked full of drama and secrets, and this book is a solid mystery worth checking out!
Thank you to Atria Books for my gifted copy!
Whistling Ridge is a vile town, which leaves you questioning how one town could possibly have so many despicable people, but it does make for a plethora of potential suspects in Abi’s disappearance. Many of the residents of the town are hateful humans, demonstrating prejudice, resentment, and violence throughout the novel, but hiding behind their religion and claiming they are just doing what God intended. The story frequently switches between different characters’ points of a view, and a “now” and “then” timeline, so it was difficult to keep track of at times, but I liked all of the different perspectives. Chocked full of drama and secrets, and this book is a solid mystery worth checking out!
Thank you to Atria Books for my gifted copy!
First of all thanks to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book
I am going to be sincere and when I picked it up it was mainly because the cover, then I read the synopsis and I liked it and decided to give a try and it surprised me, as I wasn’t expecting how the book turned out to be.
It can ve listed as a thriller although I would put it in more suspense rather than thriller, I love how we get to see different points of view, a thing very much appreciated in this genre. We also get flashbacks from the past from different characters which give the reader a more insight onto the wide cast of characters. The only thing I didn’t like about this was that sometimes I didn’t know who was the narrator of the chapter until some pages in, I think a good idea could be putting the name of the narrator beside the chapter number.
I am going to be sincere and when I picked it up it was mainly because the cover, then I read the synopsis and I liked it and decided to give a try and it surprised me, as I wasn’t expecting how the book turned out to be.
It can ve listed as a thriller although I would put it in more suspense rather than thriller, I love how we get to see different points of view, a thing very much appreciated in this genre. We also get flashbacks from the past from different characters which give the reader a more insight onto the wide cast of characters. The only thing I didn’t like about this was that sometimes I didn’t know who was the narrator of the chapter until some pages in, I think a good idea could be putting the name of the narrator beside the chapter number.
I'm sorry to say I DNF'd this ARC. The writing grated me - especially the use of the present tense. The story felt disjointed, and the plot was so similar to the plots of every other missing girl thriller I've ever read that I quickly lost interest. I also struggled with the intense religious fundamentalism and homophobia.
Thank you Atria and Netgalley for the gifted copy.
Y’all this book…I don’t even know what to say about it. It’s depressing and dark, and there were times I almost DNF’d, but I had to keep reading. It’s slower paced, but I knew there were secrets, I knew twists were coming…and when I got to the ending, I was like ‘wtaf’. The last few chapters made the book very worthwhile. When I finished, I felt kind of icky and relieved and I don’t even know what. I think it takes quite the book to give the reader that kind of emotions. Check out CW/TW though - there’s several.
3.5 Stars
Y’all this book…I don’t even know what to say about it. It’s depressing and dark, and there were times I almost DNF’d, but I had to keep reading. It’s slower paced, but I knew there were secrets, I knew twists were coming…and when I got to the ending, I was like ‘wtaf’. The last few chapters made the book very worthwhile. When I finished, I felt kind of icky and relieved and I don’t even know what. I think it takes quite the book to give the reader that kind of emotions. Check out CW/TW though - there’s several.
3.5 Stars