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A review by nicolem_young
Six Wicked Reasons by Jo Spain
3.0
Book/Story: ⭐⭐⭐.5
Book Cover: ⭐⭐
TRIGGER(S): ALCOHOLISM, DRUG ABUSE, MENTAL HEALTH, DEATH OF A PARENT, MURDER, SUICIDE, MISCARRIAGE, DEATH/MURDER OF ANIMAL
POV: Multiple, Third Person
Series/Standalone: Standalone
Part of a series: No
Safe or Dark: Dark (see trigger warnings)
Nine people board a yacht, and only eight people get off.
It's 2018, and someone in the Lattimer family wants revenge for the events that happened in 2008.
This book really has my thoughts all jumbled, and I’m having a hard time organizing them. So, I’m going to turn to my trusty list. It hasn’t let me down before. Still, I apologize if this makes zero sense.
Overview
The six Lattimer siblings, Ellen, James, Kate, Adam, Ryan, and Clio, are all once again under the same roof. Ellen never left the family home, and four claimed to have returned to be reunited with Adam after he magically turned up after disappearing for ten years and being presumed dead. However, each of them had their own agendas for returning to Spanish Cove, Wexford, Ireland, from where they were scattered around the globe.
All of his brothers and sisters had a bone to pick with Adam, especially Clio, the baby of the family. She holds Adam solely responsible for the death of their mom, Kathleen, swearing that she never got over the heartbreak of her son going missing and his assumed death.
Although Frazer Lattimer seems overly joyed to see all his kids, his true motive for holding the reunion is eventually revealed to us, and, to be honest, that’s what probably sent him tumbling into the sea. Or was it?
Overall, Frazer was a horrid human being and, more importantly, an awful husband and father. It wasn’t a good look, Fraz. It wasn’t a good look at all. Then tension slowly builds as the Lattimer offspring share their own personal accounts of all the horrible things he has done to his family over the years. He was directly connected to each of his children’s lifelong suffering in one way or another. Each of his children had disappointed him in some way, and they each had a reason to want him dead.Shit, the man made me want to toss him overboard. Ugh.
Likes
1) This book has short chapters (my favorite), which made it easy to say “just one more chapter” before getting some shut-eye. That made it a quick read.
2) The writing was engaging without being overly complex. We aren’t given an informantion dump of the family dynamics and the events unfolding. Instead, each of the siblings pieces together the events for us. We don’t solve the mystery along with the detective; we learn about it from the Lattimers themselves. That was something different for me. It was fun.
3) Jo Spain does a great job keeping you guessing who the bad guy was. She really thought up both likeable (although scarce) and unlikeable characters who were all shady in their own way. Each of the characters has a secret, and we just have to sit back, enjoy the ride, and wait for it to be revealed.
4) I love how we get the point of view of all six Lattimer siblings, plus the bonus points of view of Rob Downes, the young detective assigned to investigate family patriarch Frazer Lattimer’s boating accident, and very close family friend Danny McHugh. We are given just enough information to try and figure out what has occurred, and just the right amount is withheld to keep us wanting to find out more.
5) The claustrophobic, nobody-can-leave atmosphere was reminiscent of Agatha Christie, one of my all-time favorite authors.
6) The twist was amazing, and that ending was just wow! Very well done.
Dislikes
1) The timeline jumped around A LOT. Even though this was well done, it made it very confusing to follow at times.
2) There were quite a few characters to try to keep track of. Although I liked getting a look into each of their points of view, it was a bit hard to keep them straight. Their personal stories often got mixed up. One or two of the siblings were so similar that they could have been used interchangeably.
3) There was more than one instance of anti-white race-baiting. Much of it very early on in the story. I thought it was done intentionally to flesh out a character or drive the plot, but that wasn’t the case. There was no need for it. There wasn’t any reason it should have been in the story.
4) Adam had been gone for ten years. TEN! His family thought he was dead. He just shows up out of the blue, and not a single one of his siblings has any hard-hitting questions for him. I dunno, like, “What thefuck dude?” or “Where the fuck have you been?” They're all just celebrating his return and almost acting as if the past ten years had never happened. I believe James asked Adam why he left, and Adam gave him some mundane answers. It's accepted, and the subject is just sort of dropped. If that were my sibling, I would be infuriated and demand to know where they had been and what had happened to them once my relief and happiness over their return had subsided.
5) Although this was a quick read, The first half of the book moved rather slowly. It dragged on until everything finally came to a head.
I guess at the end of the day, I don’t really know how I felt about this book. It wasn’t good or bad. I feel good about giving it a solid three and a half stars.
TLDR: I HAD LIKES AND DISLIKES! IF YOU ARE THINKING ABOUT READING IT, I THINK YOU MIGHT ENJOY IT!
Book Cover: ⭐⭐
TRIGGER(S): ALCOHOLISM, DRUG ABUSE, MENTAL HEALTH, DEATH OF A PARENT, MURDER, SUICIDE, MISCARRIAGE, DEATH/MURDER OF ANIMAL
POV: Multiple, Third Person
Series/Standalone: Standalone
Part of a series: No
Safe or Dark: Dark (see trigger warnings)
Nine people board a yacht, and only eight people get off.
It's 2018, and someone in the Lattimer family wants revenge for the events that happened in 2008.
This book really has my thoughts all jumbled, and I’m having a hard time organizing them. So, I’m going to turn to my trusty list. It hasn’t let me down before. Still, I apologize if this makes zero sense.
Overview
The six Lattimer siblings, Ellen, James, Kate, Adam, Ryan, and Clio, are all once again under the same roof. Ellen never left the family home, and four claimed to have returned to be reunited with Adam after he magically turned up after disappearing for ten years and being presumed dead. However, each of them had their own agendas for returning to Spanish Cove, Wexford, Ireland, from where they were scattered around the globe.
All of his brothers and sisters had a bone to pick with Adam, especially Clio, the baby of the family. She holds Adam solely responsible for the death of their mom, Kathleen, swearing that she never got over the heartbreak of her son going missing and his assumed death.
Although Frazer Lattimer seems overly joyed to see all his kids, his true motive for holding the reunion is eventually revealed to us, and, to be honest, that’s what probably sent him tumbling into the sea. Or was it?
Overall, Frazer was a horrid human being and, more importantly, an awful husband and father. It wasn’t a good look, Fraz. It wasn’t a good look at all. Then tension slowly builds as the Lattimer offspring share their own personal accounts of all the horrible things he has done to his family over the years. He was directly connected to each of his children’s lifelong suffering in one way or another. Each of his children had disappointed him in some way, and they each had a reason to want him dead.
Likes
1) This book has short chapters (my favorite), which made it easy to say “just one more chapter” before getting some shut-eye. That made it a quick read.
2) The writing was engaging without being overly complex. We aren’t given an informantion dump of the family dynamics and the events unfolding. Instead, each of the siblings pieces together the events for us. We don’t solve the mystery along with the detective; we learn about it from the Lattimers themselves. That was something different for me. It was fun.
3) Jo Spain does a great job keeping you guessing who the bad guy was. She really thought up both likeable (although scarce) and unlikeable characters who were all shady in their own way. Each of the characters has a secret, and we just have to sit back, enjoy the ride, and wait for it to be revealed.
4) I love how we get the point of view of all six Lattimer siblings, plus the bonus points of view of Rob Downes, the young detective assigned to investigate family patriarch Frazer Lattimer’s boating accident, and very close family friend Danny McHugh. We are given just enough information to try and figure out what has occurred, and just the right amount is withheld to keep us wanting to find out more.
5) The claustrophobic, nobody-can-leave atmosphere was reminiscent of Agatha Christie, one of my all-time favorite authors.
6) The twist was amazing, and that ending was just wow! Very well done.
Dislikes
1) The timeline jumped around A LOT. Even though this was well done, it made it very confusing to follow at times.
2) There were quite a few characters to try to keep track of. Although I liked getting a look into each of their points of view, it was a bit hard to keep them straight. Their personal stories often got mixed up. One or two of the siblings were so similar that they could have been used interchangeably.
3) There was more than one instance of anti-white race-baiting. Much of it very early on in the story. I thought it was done intentionally to flesh out a character or drive the plot, but that wasn’t the case. There was no need for it. There wasn’t any reason it should have been in the story.
4) Adam had been gone for ten years. TEN! His family thought he was dead. He just shows up out of the blue, and not a single one of his siblings has any hard-hitting questions for him. I dunno, like, “What the
5) Although this was a quick read, The first half of the book moved rather slowly. It dragged on until everything finally came to a head.
Spoiler
It’s stories like these that make me grateful. I only have one brother, because if one of us is doing something shady, the other one is in on it too.I guess at the end of the day, I don’t really know how I felt about this book. It wasn’t good or bad. I feel good about giving it a solid three and a half stars.
TLDR: I HAD LIKES AND DISLIKES! IF YOU ARE THINKING ABOUT READING IT, I THINK YOU MIGHT ENJOY IT!