elephantscook 's review for:

Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson

3.0

mysterious medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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This one suffers a bit from marketing whiplash. As a YA thriller, it’d be strong, but as an adult thriller? not so much. Jackson has a tendency to introduce recurring themes and then forget about them, only to bring them back with a sudden BAM before dropping them again. It makes the flow feel a little stop–start. The central mystery, the actual “scene of the book,” was interesting enough, and I didn’t dislike the story. But everything else around it just wasn’t gripping. Even though it’s a mystery, I wasn’t that fussed about solving it, and I found myself not rushing back to pick it up. Not bad, but not unputdownable either.