A review by astoriareader
The Kind Worth Saving by Peter Swanson

slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

3.0


SYNOPSIS: 
  • The Kind Worth Saving (TKWS) is Book 2 in series. The first book is called The Kind Worth Killing (TKWK).
  • The plot is extremely similar to TKWK, as it centers around people coming together to plot “the perfect” murders. 

MY THOUGHTS
  • I typically love Peter Swanson’s work. Whenever I see he has stuff coming out, I’m excited to read it!
  • ***If you haven’t read TKWK, you should read it first, as TKWS has major spoilers for TKWK.**
  • I had read TKWK when it came out several years ago, and I reread it before reading TKWS. I really enjoyed TKWK. I wish TKWS wasn’t written as a sequel to TKWK, as it retroactively ruins the ending of TKWS.
  • To me, it seems TKWK was Swanson’s most successful book, and TKWS feels like an easy attempt to cash in on that success. The books are structured the same way, the mystery/killings are same motif, the multiple POVs are same, and the book is even divided in same ways (i.e., parts). Very dejavú, but in a purposeful way. It’s like the formula worked, and so, this one was done in mirror image of the first. Needless to say, it isn’t original.
  • TKWK came out in 2015, so it’s another reason this “sequel” feels off to me. For one, TKWK wasn’t written as a series book. It had an ending that worked. Second, TKWS came out 8 years after TKWK? That seems weird to wait that long to do a sequel.
  • As for TKWS, I really didn’t like seeing Lily and Kimball in this sequel. Their friendship is.. odd? Since it has been years since TKWK came out, TKWS gives the impression Swanson forgot how he wrote Lily and Kimball in the prior book, especially Lily.


TL;DR: ⭐️⭐️⭐️2.5 stars rounded up to 3. Read TKWK first, as TKWS contains major spoilers for TKWK.
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