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A review by tessa_talks_books
Never Coming Home by Hannah Mary McKinnon
5.0
What’s it about (in a nutshell):
Never Coming Home by Hannah Mary McKinnon is a psychological thriller about Lucas Forester and what happened to him after he had his wealthy wife killed by an anonymous hitman he found on the dark web.
Initial Expectations (before beginning the book):
The cover looks like maybe a person waiting for someone, and the figure may be a woman. The quote on the cover promises a “highly entertaining, bone-chilling must-read.” I love the sound of that! The blurb tells of a husband who successfully puts a hit out on his wife, who sounds like the worst of the wealthy top 1%. But then the husband becomes prey to someone. My guess before I started: the wife learned what the husband was doing, paid off the hitman, and faked her own death.
Actual Reading Experience:
That ending! I have no words! Just - that ending! It is shocking and satisfying in a weird dark way and shocking and darkly funny, and did I mention it is shocking? It is jaw on the floor shocking. I’m currently working around my jaw because even though I finished this book a few days ago, it is still on the floor. Was I right in my prediction? You know that I will never tell you. You just have to read it for yourself.
The story is told in first-person narration through Lucas – yes, the man who had his wife killed to get around an iron-clad prenup and inherit her money. Yes, that one. He is a murderer and an excellent narrator, oddly enough. He is witty with a dark sense of humor that actually has me laughing out loud at various points. And I really loved when he addressed the reader directly. It is easy to see why Michelle would marry him even though he is not a man of means by any stretch of the imagination. He is instantly likable even to me, the reader, and I went into the story knowing he is a murderer.
The pace is fast, primarily. It does get bogged down a bit when Lucas ruminates about his past, but as weird things begin happening to him, the pace picks up and just continues to pick up speed until that ending! Did I mention how shocking that ending is?
Characters:
Lucas is the only character developed with loads of fun nuances, layers, scars, and worts. He is telling the story, so all other characters are seen through his eyes. Based on his telling, I’m not sure that he knows them all very well or even cares. But that means that the reader also doesn’t get to know them well, which was really okay with me.
Reminds Me Of:
I can’t say that this story reminds me of any other books. Still, I have read two other books by this author, and I had similar reactions. “Shocking” and “wow” are words I use multiple times when talking about Sister Dear and You Will Remember Me. But, I think this story amped it up even more by having the murderer narrate in such a likable manner, plus the breadth and scope of that ending. I’ve never read anything like that before, not even in McKinnon’s other books.
To Read or Not to Read:
If you love jaw-dropping thrillers with loads of dark wit and humor, Never Coming Home should be on the top of your to-be-read pile.
Never Coming Home by Hannah Mary McKinnon is a psychological thriller about Lucas Forester and what happened to him after he had his wealthy wife killed by an anonymous hitman he found on the dark web.
Initial Expectations (before beginning the book):
The cover looks like maybe a person waiting for someone, and the figure may be a woman. The quote on the cover promises a “highly entertaining, bone-chilling must-read.” I love the sound of that! The blurb tells of a husband who successfully puts a hit out on his wife, who sounds like the worst of the wealthy top 1%. But then the husband becomes prey to someone. My guess before I started: the wife learned what the husband was doing, paid off the hitman, and faked her own death.
Actual Reading Experience:
That ending! I have no words! Just - that ending! It is shocking and satisfying in a weird dark way and shocking and darkly funny, and did I mention it is shocking? It is jaw on the floor shocking. I’m currently working around my jaw because even though I finished this book a few days ago, it is still on the floor. Was I right in my prediction? You know that I will never tell you. You just have to read it for yourself.
The story is told in first-person narration through Lucas – yes, the man who had his wife killed to get around an iron-clad prenup and inherit her money. Yes, that one. He is a murderer and an excellent narrator, oddly enough. He is witty with a dark sense of humor that actually has me laughing out loud at various points. And I really loved when he addressed the reader directly. It is easy to see why Michelle would marry him even though he is not a man of means by any stretch of the imagination. He is instantly likable even to me, the reader, and I went into the story knowing he is a murderer.
The pace is fast, primarily. It does get bogged down a bit when Lucas ruminates about his past, but as weird things begin happening to him, the pace picks up and just continues to pick up speed until that ending! Did I mention how shocking that ending is?
Characters:
Lucas is the only character developed with loads of fun nuances, layers, scars, and worts. He is telling the story, so all other characters are seen through his eyes. Based on his telling, I’m not sure that he knows them all very well or even cares. But that means that the reader also doesn’t get to know them well, which was really okay with me.
Reminds Me Of:
I can’t say that this story reminds me of any other books. Still, I have read two other books by this author, and I had similar reactions. “Shocking” and “wow” are words I use multiple times when talking about Sister Dear and You Will Remember Me. But, I think this story amped it up even more by having the murderer narrate in such a likable manner, plus the breadth and scope of that ending. I’ve never read anything like that before, not even in McKinnon’s other books.
To Read or Not to Read:
If you love jaw-dropping thrillers with loads of dark wit and humor, Never Coming Home should be on the top of your to-be-read pile.