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A review by tessa_talks_books
Point Last Seen by Christina Dodd
4.0
What's it about (in a nutshell):
Point Last Seen by Christina Dood is a thriller about a woman who washes up in Gothic, CA, the man who rescues her, and how the past influences the present.
Initial Expectations (before beginning the book):
This is my second book by Christina Dodd, and I absolutely loved the first book I read by her – Wrong Alibi. Wrong Alibi was full of lies and deceptions, so that's my first thought regarding my expectations for this book. The cover has a woman walking along the coast, and I see a rocky area in the distance, making me think of the west coast of the US. So, the cover seems to be telling me a bit about the setting, but I'm not sure what it's telling me about the plot. The blurb on the back compares the novel to some much-loved thriller writers of mine, which makes me expect a lot of twists and turns and a fast pace, and the description confirms this expectation. So, all-in-all, I hope for a delightfully intense thrill ride.
Actual Reading Experience:
My actual reading experience was a mixed bag of thoughts and feelings. Some things I absolutely loved and other aspects brought up strong reactions in me that fell much to the other side of the spectrum.
First, I adored Gothic, CA, and its quirky inhabitants with the traumatic baggage they carry. Are the characters a bit over-the-top? Sure they are but if you look at any town – really look – I bet you'll find a whole host of people who are as quirky if not more so. Gothic is on the coast, which is my favorite setting – making it the place I'd love to live in. It's coastal and holds a psychic festival – enough said in my thinking
The story is told in 3rd person focused POV and Adam is the character focused on through most of the novel. Since the character is very reserved and private, I found I was not being pulled into his world – I stayed firmly on the outside looking in. Some things that were challenging for me with this narration style and the person it's done through is that the romance focused more on what Elle's physical attributes were causing in Adam's pants. I find this a very uncomfortable and unromantic aspect to focus on. But there really wasn't a lot of that going on. Also, at times Adam and Elle's dialogue read very awkwardly to me, and I'm not sure exactly why that was. But it read in a way that reminded me of a bad actor delivering lines in a play.
Lastly, I loved the twists, turns, and shocking revelations that occurred in the last 25% of the story. Just when I thought the story was done, another twist would happen, and another thread became instantly fascinating. It's that last 25% that held most of the thrills that I expected based on the author comparisons and the blurb, and they did not disappoint me in the least. The pace fluctuated but stayed relatively fast throughout the entire story. Of course, for that last 25%, the pages were flipping rapidly, which I loved.
Characters:
The characters are all unique and intriguing, especially the town inhabitants. They are also reasonably well-developed, and you learn a great deal about backstories, which helps you understand them. Still, I'm not sure I got to the point where I could predict their actions in any given situation.
The villain of the story is a bit too cartoonish for my taste. I imagine him as the type to tie a woman to the train tracks and twirl his mustache while laughing maniacally as he waits for the train to run her over.
To Read or Not to Read:
If you like a highly suspenseful story with so many secrets, your head will spin. Point Last Seen is one you won't want to miss!
Point Last Seen by Christina Dood is a thriller about a woman who washes up in Gothic, CA, the man who rescues her, and how the past influences the present.
Initial Expectations (before beginning the book):
This is my second book by Christina Dodd, and I absolutely loved the first book I read by her – Wrong Alibi. Wrong Alibi was full of lies and deceptions, so that's my first thought regarding my expectations for this book. The cover has a woman walking along the coast, and I see a rocky area in the distance, making me think of the west coast of the US. So, the cover seems to be telling me a bit about the setting, but I'm not sure what it's telling me about the plot. The blurb on the back compares the novel to some much-loved thriller writers of mine, which makes me expect a lot of twists and turns and a fast pace, and the description confirms this expectation. So, all-in-all, I hope for a delightfully intense thrill ride.
Actual Reading Experience:
My actual reading experience was a mixed bag of thoughts and feelings. Some things I absolutely loved and other aspects brought up strong reactions in me that fell much to the other side of the spectrum.
First, I adored Gothic, CA, and its quirky inhabitants with the traumatic baggage they carry. Are the characters a bit over-the-top? Sure they are but if you look at any town – really look – I bet you'll find a whole host of people who are as quirky if not more so. Gothic is on the coast, which is my favorite setting – making it the place I'd love to live in. It's coastal and holds a psychic festival – enough said in my thinking
The story is told in 3rd person focused POV and Adam is the character focused on through most of the novel. Since the character is very reserved and private, I found I was not being pulled into his world – I stayed firmly on the outside looking in. Some things that were challenging for me with this narration style and the person it's done through is that the romance focused more on what Elle's physical attributes were causing in Adam's pants. I find this a very uncomfortable and unromantic aspect to focus on. But there really wasn't a lot of that going on. Also, at times Adam and Elle's dialogue read very awkwardly to me, and I'm not sure exactly why that was. But it read in a way that reminded me of a bad actor delivering lines in a play.
Lastly, I loved the twists, turns, and shocking revelations that occurred in the last 25% of the story. Just when I thought the story was done, another twist would happen, and another thread became instantly fascinating. It's that last 25% that held most of the thrills that I expected based on the author comparisons and the blurb, and they did not disappoint me in the least. The pace fluctuated but stayed relatively fast throughout the entire story. Of course, for that last 25%, the pages were flipping rapidly, which I loved.
Characters:
The characters are all unique and intriguing, especially the town inhabitants. They are also reasonably well-developed, and you learn a great deal about backstories, which helps you understand them. Still, I'm not sure I got to the point where I could predict their actions in any given situation.
The villain of the story is a bit too cartoonish for my taste. I imagine him as the type to tie a woman to the train tracks and twirl his mustache while laughing maniacally as he waits for the train to run her over.
To Read or Not to Read:
If you like a highly suspenseful story with so many secrets, your head will spin. Point Last Seen is one you won't want to miss!