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A review by judithdcollins
All Who Wander by Joe Clifford
4.0
Joe Clifford's ALL WHO WANDER is a dark and disturbing literary, domestic psychological suspense about a troubled young woman who mysteriously disappears during a snowstorm, never to be found again.
PAST: 1998 Vermont. A brutal snowy night. A young woman, Brooke Mulcahny, escapes her nightmare of a life, crossing the border from Massachusetts to rural Vermont. She is running from danger and her past. She was looking for a motel when, due to the weather, she ran off the road and crashed due to the icy roads and blizzard.
From that night, no one had seen her since. A neighbor man stopped by and offered help. She declined. Some cameras showed she may have gotten into a white van. Was she picked up by the serial killer who lived nearby—one who had killed other women?
The author takes us back to Brooke's childhood. Growing up in a highly dysfunctional home, her mom left without a word when she was young. Her father, Paul, was distant and spent most of his time working and drinking. Emotionally distant, he offered them food and shelter, and that was about it.
Her mother showed back up at their door years later with a baby boy, Bobby, from another man. Their life returned to some sense of normal until she told them she had cancer. Her mom left them again, died, and now left them with a boy. A boy that Brooke thought was weird. He just took up space.
Brooke got into drugs and all sorts of trouble with men as a teen, from the married high school coach to Mike, the drug addict. She was not pleasant to her stepbrother Bobby. She had a best friend, an upstanding, brilliant, friendly Aaron, who adored her, but she was not interested in him as a boyfriend.
She was dating an evil, abusive, bad boy, a drug addict, controlling and jealous, Mike, also from a bad home environment. Brooke dropped out of nursing school and worked at a nursing retirement home.
Then, with a crazy scheme for money, Brooke with a co-worker and Mike, a drug deal goes down badly. Now Brooke's dad has to put up the house as collateral. No one was there as an influence for Bobby. His mom was always on the run before she died, so he never had a stable upbringing.
From past to present, we learn the events leading up to the night Brooke disappeared. It kept you on the edge, waiting to see what happened the night of the accident.
PRESENT: Now, twenty-one years later, Bobby is all grown up and now going by Robert, an esteemed professor at a private Upstate New York University; he has just received a significant NEH grant and married with son Peter. He has undergone years of therapy to cope with his traumatic past. Can he leave his past behind?
Even though Robert does not owe Paul anything, he purchased Paul's home for him and pays his bills in an assisted living facility, which will not last much longer.
He has always wondered what happened to Brooke. Then, a young woman named Lily appears, claiming to be Brooke's daughter. From here on out, his world becomes unraveled as he investigates further.
Robert's life is out of control; he becomes detached. His wife left with his son to visit her parents for a while. Robert is determined to find out what happened to Brooke. Someone breaks into their home and screws up the dog's vocal cords. He does not believe Lily is Brooke's daughter. Something is up, menacing and sinister.
What happened to Brooke?
Atmospheric, gritty, dark, and compelling ALL WHO WANDER is my first book by Joe Clifford, a talented author. His writing is lyrical, with vivid descriptions, delving deep into the evil human conditions.
Honestly, I was hooked from the first page towards the end UNTIL the book turned to weird Stephen Kingish horror! Until this point, this was 5 Stars, and due to this strange turn, I downgraded it to 4 Stars.
When he brought the characters Robert/Bobby, Mike, and Aaron together —what happened next was just creepy! I was unsure of the purpose of this unless the author was exploring how people change. The good can turn evil, and the evil can turn good, doing a complete 180 and Robert going rogue! Do past sins define you? All the characters were deeply flawed—nature vs. nurture.
I enjoyed the author's lyrical, beautiful writing. The storyline was powerful, thought-provoking, and intriguing until it turned weird and twisted with an ending that was not satisfying. However, I look forward to seeing what comes next from the author.
There are themes of drug use, addiction, violence, abusive relationships, alcoholism, trauma, inner demons, step-siblings, and abuse.
Thanks to Swell Media and NetGalley for a gifted ARC for an honest opinion.
Blog review posted @
JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: Sept 5, 2023
My Rating: 4 Stars
Sept 2023 Must-Read Books
PAST: 1998 Vermont. A brutal snowy night. A young woman, Brooke Mulcahny, escapes her nightmare of a life, crossing the border from Massachusetts to rural Vermont. She is running from danger and her past. She was looking for a motel when, due to the weather, she ran off the road and crashed due to the icy roads and blizzard.
From that night, no one had seen her since. A neighbor man stopped by and offered help. She declined. Some cameras showed she may have gotten into a white van. Was she picked up by the serial killer who lived nearby—one who had killed other women?
The author takes us back to Brooke's childhood. Growing up in a highly dysfunctional home, her mom left without a word when she was young. Her father, Paul, was distant and spent most of his time working and drinking. Emotionally distant, he offered them food and shelter, and that was about it.
Her mother showed back up at their door years later with a baby boy, Bobby, from another man. Their life returned to some sense of normal until she told them she had cancer. Her mom left them again, died, and now left them with a boy. A boy that Brooke thought was weird. He just took up space.
Brooke got into drugs and all sorts of trouble with men as a teen, from the married high school coach to Mike, the drug addict. She was not pleasant to her stepbrother Bobby. She had a best friend, an upstanding, brilliant, friendly Aaron, who adored her, but she was not interested in him as a boyfriend.
She was dating an evil, abusive, bad boy, a drug addict, controlling and jealous, Mike, also from a bad home environment. Brooke dropped out of nursing school and worked at a nursing retirement home.
Then, with a crazy scheme for money, Brooke with a co-worker and Mike, a drug deal goes down badly. Now Brooke's dad has to put up the house as collateral. No one was there as an influence for Bobby. His mom was always on the run before she died, so he never had a stable upbringing.
From past to present, we learn the events leading up to the night Brooke disappeared. It kept you on the edge, waiting to see what happened the night of the accident.
PRESENT: Now, twenty-one years later, Bobby is all grown up and now going by Robert, an esteemed professor at a private Upstate New York University; he has just received a significant NEH grant and married with son Peter. He has undergone years of therapy to cope with his traumatic past. Can he leave his past behind?
Even though Robert does not owe Paul anything, he purchased Paul's home for him and pays his bills in an assisted living facility, which will not last much longer.
He has always wondered what happened to Brooke. Then, a young woman named Lily appears, claiming to be Brooke's daughter. From here on out, his world becomes unraveled as he investigates further.
Robert's life is out of control; he becomes detached. His wife left with his son to visit her parents for a while. Robert is determined to find out what happened to Brooke. Someone breaks into their home and screws up the dog's vocal cords. He does not believe Lily is Brooke's daughter. Something is up, menacing and sinister.
What happened to Brooke?
Atmospheric, gritty, dark, and compelling ALL WHO WANDER is my first book by Joe Clifford, a talented author. His writing is lyrical, with vivid descriptions, delving deep into the evil human conditions.
Honestly, I was hooked from the first page towards the end UNTIL the book turned to weird Stephen Kingish horror! Until this point, this was 5 Stars, and due to this strange turn, I downgraded it to 4 Stars.
When he brought the characters Robert/Bobby, Mike, and Aaron together —what happened next was just creepy! I was unsure of the purpose of this unless the author was exploring how people change. The good can turn evil, and the evil can turn good, doing a complete 180 and Robert going rogue! Do past sins define you? All the characters were deeply flawed—nature vs. nurture.
I enjoyed the author's lyrical, beautiful writing. The storyline was powerful, thought-provoking, and intriguing until it turned weird and twisted with an ending that was not satisfying. However, I look forward to seeing what comes next from the author.
There are themes of drug use, addiction, violence, abusive relationships, alcoholism, trauma, inner demons, step-siblings, and abuse.
Thanks to Swell Media and NetGalley for a gifted ARC for an honest opinion.
Blog review posted @
JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: Sept 5, 2023
My Rating: 4 Stars
Sept 2023 Must-Read Books