A review by zlolosy
The Vanishing Season by Dot Hutchison

dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

I loved the first book of the series - but afterwards it just went downhill, sadly. “The vanishing season” is the worst. I struggle to call it a thriller or something like that because the crime itself is in the background of the story like 85% of the time. the killer is identified within 5 pages, and his motive is okay.. nothing compared to the gardener, obviously. while this book did make me cry and laugh - i don’t read thrillers to laugh at jokes from teenagers or cry because i can relate to the talk of abuse. Too many characters added to the main team, which are all so detailed they nearly all become  “main characters”, it was hard to keep track. I learned to love the small line between soft and humorous bickering and crime/ the fbi work but this felt too focused on everything BUT the crime. Still love the characters though.