Reviews

There Was an Old Woman by Hallie Ephron

Only show reviews with written explanations

allyexa's review against another edition

tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No

3.0

This book was easy to get into- an intriguing story with two lovely main characters, and chapters that just breeze along.

But good lord, the gaslighting. This wasn’t so much a mystery with twists, more like me angrily and anxiously waiting for the main characters to figure it all out and do something about it before it was too late. “A Novel of Suspense “ it says on the front cover, and that is true enough, but by the end I was just skimming pages to make sure the bad guys got caught.

1/25/23

bethreadsandnaps's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

Really enjoyed this novel about neighborhood intrigue. One of the main characters Mina is 91 and, known for her acute awareness, is starting to experience memory loss. She forges a rather unlikely friendship with her neighbor's daughter, who was called in to help after her mother was taken to the hospital.

Loved the writing. It was pretty obvious what the mystery was by the time I was 1/4 of the way through; however, I still enjoyed it immensely.

queenbeead's review

Go to review page

tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Predictable

elesamarie's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

I really enjoyed this book and really liked the fact that one of the characters was both good and bad (the owner of the small store).

emmajewish's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

Despite the ordinary title, this book contains an immersive story. The author leaves enough clues to assist the reader in deducing what is really happening, but she doesn't create a limp mystery by haphazardly throwing hints everywhere. Overall, I really enjoyed this read. You weren't confused by too many characters, and the descriptive details added to the feeling of being in the story as well.

johannalm's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

There Was An Old Woman, Hallie Ephron
A pleasant and easy read even though it's billed as a suspense novel. The suspense part is pretty keeps you guessing but, the two main characters are so well drawn that they make the book very likable. Evie comes to clean up her mother's dilapidated home after her mother is rushed to the hospital. Evie struggles with guilt over her relationship with her mom, and also strikes up a friendship with the 91 year old woman, Mina, who lives next door. As one cleans up and tries to figure out what happened to make her mother become so sick so fast, the other tries to fight off needing help and moving from her home as she continues to age. What is really causing the old women in the neighborhood to die so quickly? A well-crafted book.