Reviews

Wake by Shelley Burr

claudia_is_reading's review against another edition

4.0

This book has a mystery in it, a cold case that has haunted the protagonists for almost two decades. And it's a good mystery, no doubt about it.

But the main theme here is grief. Grief and the petrifying effect of guilt.

It's a very well-told story, as hard as the place in which it happens, atmospheric and beautiful in an almost barren way.

I liked, a lot, the inclusion of the forums in every chapter, showing how intrusive and indifferent to the pain of other people can be, using tragedy to their amusement and with no thought about how what they say can affect the lives of the victims and their families.

An extra note for the narration: it's fantastic!

I have the next audiobook in this series, and I can't wait to listen to it :D

paulabrandon's review against another edition

2.0

Lane Holland heads to the country town of Nannine in New South Wales to try to solve the disappearance of Evie McCreery, who disappeared 20 years ago. Her twin sister, Mina, still lives in the town, determined to fulfil her late mother's wish of solving the disappearance. Lane is a private investigator who has had a few success stories solving cold cases. Sure, he's in it for the money, but also driven by a much darker motivation related to his own past.

Another day, another outback noir. (Murder happens in the suburbs of Australia too!) Another day, another glacially-paced thriller. Unlike a lot of books in this genre, I can't say I got a great feel for the location. It seemed more like the author was trying to latch on to a trendy thriller trope than truly motivated by setting a mystery in a country town. The characters were well-drawn for the most part, but the behaviour of Lane and his sister Lynnie began to drive me nuts as the book progressed. (

Spoiler

For fuck's sake, put your big-boy and big-girl pants on, do a victim impact statement, and if you're so worried about your father-who's interested in children not adults-at least get protective conditions put in place for when he's on parole. Or get a restraining order. IT'S NOT THAT COMPLICATED. Talk about making things unnecessarily hard for yourselves! It was infuriating!

)

The mystery was very low stakes and the plot was content to simply plod along from one suspect to the next then eliminating them before coming to its, frankly, utterly ridiculous resolution. That escalated quickly!!!

It was not terrible. It took me a long time to read because its pacing wasn't punchy enough to have me eager to return to it, but drew me in bit by bit the more it progressed. But there is nothing here to wow you in what is becoming another crowded thriller subgenre.

It is also sunk by an ambiguous ending. Authors: stop pulling this shit. It's cheap and unsatisfying. Don't make me spend $30 doing your fucking job. It's your story - unless you plan on a sequel, wrap things up!

izzycoughlin's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

hannigrace's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

disjointedenvy's review against another edition

I thought with all the brillaint and loved reviews. Being a thriller and crime junkie that I thought would love this book.
Unfortunately, I feel like I have been reading this book forever. I wasn't enjoying my reading. For me. I just felt like this book dragged on and on. I really wanted to know how it was going to play out but after finding myself falling asleep and not truly engaging with the novel. I myself have just given up and DNF.
Maybe one day I might go back and try again. I really wanted to love this book, but after 15 days which is forever for me.
As I average a book in roughly 3.5 to 4 days, This was becoming a tedious task and I found myself avoiding the book.
I am disappointed

bjmassey's review against another edition

adventurous emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

claire1044's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

stephanierachel's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

nataliaa_x's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

i hate the ending it was soo dissapointing 

blessedjess's review against another edition

4.0

Another great mystery set in Australia! If you’re looking for a lot of action you’re not going to find it with this book. But if you’re looking for a whodunnit with some twists that leave you wondering which characters are truly trustworthy then this one is for you. I appreciated the well developed main characters and how as levels of their pasts are revealed they both became more intriguing. While it felt a little rushed to the conclusion, it was still an enjoyable mystery and I look forward to the author’s next one! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for and advanced copy for an honest review.