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readingtilthebreakofdawn 's review for:
The Locked Ward
by Sarah Pekkanen
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
"The most dangerous place to be in the world is between my father and something he wants."
The Locked Ward by Sarah Pekkanen is a thriller that may at once seem simple, but is complex in the fact that we have a lot of history to unravel to understand each character and how they got to where they are.
Told from 2 POVs (Georgia and Mandy), two previously unknowing twins are brought together by a murder. The murder of Georgia's sister Annabelle. A murder that Georgia has be convicted of. She has plead insanity and is locked up in an insane asylum, but needs help if she wants to ever see the light of day. And with a bit of investigating, she has found that she had a twin when she was adopted and all she can hope for is that her sister, her twin, a virtual stranger will come to her aid and uncover what truly happened to Annabelle.
Mandy's parents have passed away and she has taken over the family bar. When Georgia requests to see her, she flips Mandy's world upside down. Mandy doesn't know what to believe so she does a little investigating herself and finds that Georgia was telling the truth that they are twins separated at birth. Feeling an obligation by blood, Mandy sets out to help Georgia and hopefully get her released. Because she couldn't have really killed her own sister, could she??
With alternating chapters between Mandy on the outside and inside the asylum from Georgia and shorter chapters, we get a sense of urgency with the pacing. You need to follow each breadcrumb to figure out the truth in order to save a life. I liked how Pekkanen also had the added element of twin connections between the 2 characters while still having Mandy question Georgia and motives. But it was the piecing together of the past and how everyone was connected that truly brought me in. There was some unnecessary characters/side stories thrown in to lead us off the trail, but at the end of the day, it was all about family and the relationships they made.
Lastly, I have to give major props to January LaVoy, the narrator of the audiobook. Oddly enough, I listened to 2 back to back LaVoy audiobooks and she is truly outstanding. 2 characters, 2. completely different accents with different emotions throughout. I already liked the book and the twists that Sarah Pekkanen brought, but LaVoy made the story even better with her portrayals of Mandy and Georgia. Unique and well done.
Overall, an entertaining read with characters that you want to believe, but also have an inkling that you shouldn't. Enjoyed the storytelling and the twist at the end. I missed the mark with my guess this time, and for that, it gets an extra half star. ;)
The Locked Ward by Sarah Pekkanen is a thriller that may at once seem simple, but is complex in the fact that we have a lot of history to unravel to understand each character and how they got to where they are.
Told from 2 POVs (Georgia and Mandy), two previously unknowing twins are brought together by a murder. The murder of Georgia's sister Annabelle. A murder that Georgia has be convicted of. She has plead insanity and is locked up in an insane asylum, but needs help if she wants to ever see the light of day. And with a bit of investigating, she has found that she had a twin when she was adopted and all she can hope for is that her sister, her twin, a virtual stranger will come to her aid and uncover what truly happened to Annabelle.
Mandy's parents have passed away and she has taken over the family bar. When Georgia requests to see her, she flips Mandy's world upside down. Mandy doesn't know what to believe so she does a little investigating herself and finds that Georgia was telling the truth that they are twins separated at birth. Feeling an obligation by blood, Mandy sets out to help Georgia and hopefully get her released. Because she couldn't have really killed her own sister, could she??
With alternating chapters between Mandy on the outside and inside the asylum from Georgia and shorter chapters, we get a sense of urgency with the pacing. You need to follow each breadcrumb to figure out the truth in order to save a life. I liked how Pekkanen also had the added element of twin connections between the 2 characters while still having Mandy question Georgia and motives. But it was the piecing together of the past and how everyone was connected that truly brought me in. There was some unnecessary characters/side stories thrown in to lead us off the trail, but at the end of the day, it was all about family and the relationships they made.
Lastly, I have to give major props to January LaVoy, the narrator of the audiobook. Oddly enough, I listened to 2 back to back LaVoy audiobooks and she is truly outstanding. 2 characters, 2. completely different accents with different emotions throughout. I already liked the book and the twists that Sarah Pekkanen brought, but LaVoy made the story even better with her portrayals of Mandy and Georgia. Unique and well done.
Overall, an entertaining read with characters that you want to believe, but also have an inkling that you shouldn't. Enjoyed the storytelling and the twist at the end. I missed the mark with my guess this time, and for that, it gets an extra half star. ;)