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A review by beccajbooks
The Dead Ex by Jane Corry
4.0
In The Dead Ex, we meet Vicki. A forty-something year old, aromatherapist, with a new business and life in Penzance. We learn that she has got epilepsy, something which she is oddly shameful about, and that she also has an interesting past. She was married to David, who has now disappeared, and Vicki becomes the suspect in this confusing, yet captivating story.
The writing style of this book is slightly odd. We jump back and forth between time periods- sometimes this is shown by giving a date at the start of the chapter, sometimes not, which gets a little confusing. You have to get into the mindset of this clumsy, flaky, secretive woman, who is keeping secrets from just about everyone, including the reader. As readers, we do need to be let in on some of the secrets or, unfortunately, we will just get bored and walk away.
If you do manage to hold on, then it gets better--much better! We get more action toward the end of the book. And part 3 is just a revelation!
Vicki is so self-pitying that it is very hard to like her, it is hard to root for her in the book. She doesn't help herself one bit with her interactions with the police, her clients, her solicitor..... Why? I mean, come on love, stop being such a wet blanket!
For the first half of the book it felt like the two stories – Vicki’s and Scarlet’s – were written by completely different people and didn’t belong in the same book. However, as the story progressed, and we saw how they merged and linked, it was much more fluid, and I think I was then less... anxious(?) so I could carry on reading, a bit more relaxed.
As the threads got woven together, I felt more and more like I needed to know what was coming next. Jane Corry writes little cliff hanger endings on her chapters, like nobody's business!
Overall, this was a thrilling, intense, roller-coaster of a book. I would definitely recommend.
www.thebeautifulbookbreak.com
The writing style of this book is slightly odd. We jump back and forth between time periods- sometimes this is shown by giving a date at the start of the chapter, sometimes not, which gets a little confusing. You have to get into the mindset of this clumsy, flaky, secretive woman, who is keeping secrets from just about everyone, including the reader. As readers, we do need to be let in on some of the secrets or, unfortunately, we will just get bored and walk away.
If you do manage to hold on, then it gets better--much better! We get more action toward the end of the book. And part 3 is just a revelation!
Vicki is so self-pitying that it is very hard to like her, it is hard to root for her in the book. She doesn't help herself one bit with her interactions with the police, her clients, her solicitor..... Why? I mean, come on love, stop being such a wet blanket!
For the first half of the book it felt like the two stories – Vicki’s and Scarlet’s – were written by completely different people and didn’t belong in the same book. However, as the story progressed, and we saw how they merged and linked, it was much more fluid, and I think I was then less... anxious(?) so I could carry on reading, a bit more relaxed.
As the threads got woven together, I felt more and more like I needed to know what was coming next. Jane Corry writes little cliff hanger endings on her chapters, like nobody's business!
Overall, this was a thrilling, intense, roller-coaster of a book. I would definitely recommend.
www.thebeautifulbookbreak.com