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A review by zenzi2read
And Now She's Gone by Rachel Howzell Hall
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
With a few small changes, I could see this novel being the first book and the successful private eye series. In someways, that’s what this feels like. We get a great deal of background on our private eye while she attempts to solve a twisty mystery. And someways there’s too much background to serve the mystery justice.
The missing person case isn’t handled with enough care or focus. We’re introduced to our client and then quickly introduced to a large group of secondary characters, interviewees, and associates. All of these people lack enough character development to be engaging. They’re mostly just names and a physical trait. It makes it very difficult to differentiate one character from another or to understand who is important in the greater story.
Great deal time is given to flashbacks of life before becoming a private investigator. I’ve seen other thrillers do this, but normally the story from the past runs in parallel in someway to the story from the present. They’re just worn enough points of similarity to make this feel like anything but a disruption.
I think this PI firm has an interesting focus, and our main characters life deserves a deep dive. I just think that too many threads were started here and given unequal focus. Although the mystery was super twisty, it just felt flimsy.
The missing person case isn’t handled with enough care or focus. We’re introduced to our client and then quickly introduced to a large group of secondary characters, interviewees, and associates. All of these people lack enough character development to be engaging. They’re mostly just names and a physical trait. It makes it very difficult to differentiate one character from another or to understand who is important in the greater story.
Great deal time is given to flashbacks of life before becoming a private investigator. I’ve seen other thrillers do this, but normally the story from the past runs in parallel in someway to the story from the present. They’re just worn enough points of similarity to make this feel like anything but a disruption.
I think this PI firm has an interesting focus, and our main characters life deserves a deep dive. I just think that too many threads were started here and given unequal focus. Although the mystery was super twisty, it just felt flimsy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Miscarriage
Minor: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Cancer, Child death, and Death of parent