Scan barcode
noahjhammond's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
2.0
I’m really disappointed because I was hooked in the beginning but it honestly fell really flat for me.
alysson's review
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture
lalawoman416's review against another edition
2.0
This could have been such a good book. Ten years ago, three women endured unspeakable horrors at the hands of a sadistic, possibly homicidal, psychology professor. After three years of captivity, one woman manages to escape and get help for the other two. Fast forward ten years and the man who held them captive is up for parole and that brings all sorts of turmoil to the surface.
And so, that is where the book loses me. Instead of sticking with the emotional turmoil and peeks at the horrors of the past, this book instead delves into cults, S&M clubs, Stockholm Syndrome, and just generally loses its focus. The author just tried to pack too much "action" into the book where it was completely unnecessary. This could have been a great psychological thriller. Instead it devolved into a cheap thrills, meandering, listless book.
And so, that is where the book loses me. Instead of sticking with the emotional turmoil and peeks at the horrors of the past, this book instead delves into cults, S&M clubs, Stockholm Syndrome, and just generally loses its focus. The author just tried to pack too much "action" into the book where it was completely unnecessary. This could have been a great psychological thriller. Instead it devolved into a cheap thrills, meandering, listless book.
of_green_gables's review against another edition
4.0
This book was so good..I couldn't put it down. Very haunting, with a lot of twists.
gellyreads's review
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-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
4.0
This is not the thriller mystery that I was expecting and I also am still digesting the last minute twists. On one hand, the fact that she was currying favor with him for months and told the info about the brother being treated like a twist gave me the ick, enough to knock it down a star. But I genuinely didn’t think there was another twist in this book and then Jennifer was alive the whole time and was the true honeypot to survive and I couldn’t believe it. The tacked on, she will continue to do crime feels a little weird to me? Like? Unless she’s taking down this entire cult/syndicate/network, do we really want a series of this?
vegantrav's review against another edition
4.0
Macabre. Brutal. Creepy. Crazy. Disturbing.
This novel will, in places, turn your stomach, make you flinch.
But still you will read on.
The Never List is two mysteries in one. As it opens, we find Sarah, Tracy, and Christine living lives as normal as possible granted that, ten years earlier, they had been living as prisoners in Jack Derber's basement, prisoners that Jack tortured and abused as he pleased.
Jack, however, is now up for parole. He's been a model prisoner, and he was never convicted of homicide, so there's a real possibility that he could be released.
And so two mysteries are unraveled: the first is how the three young women finally escaped Jack's homemade dungeon; the second is the mystery surrounding Jack's current schemes, especially as concerns his relationships with Sylvia, a woman he married while in prison, and a mysterious cult leader named Noah. The mysteries are inter-related, and they unfold through the first-person narration of Sarah.
There are some great twists and surprises in this novel, one of which most readers will probably sense is coming but not find out for sure until the very end. The author's ability to hold the readers in suspense as our heroine grows ever closer to the truth is masterful.
We also watch some of the things that Sarah does with utter amazement: no one could be this stupid, I said to myself on several occasions, nonplussed by the imbecilic decisions that she made. But, of course, Sarah is an extremely psychologically scarred woman, driven by pain and rage and regret and revenge, and so she does not always reason in a completely logical fashion. So, while her stupidity on occasion is nearly incredible, her foolish actions serve to build more and more tension and to captivate the readers all the more.
For a first novel, Koethi Zan has done very, very well.
This novel will, in places, turn your stomach, make you flinch.
But still you will read on.
The Never List is two mysteries in one. As it opens, we find Sarah, Tracy, and Christine living lives as normal as possible granted that, ten years earlier, they had been living as prisoners in Jack Derber's basement, prisoners that Jack tortured and abused as he pleased.
Jack, however, is now up for parole. He's been a model prisoner, and he was never convicted of homicide, so there's a real possibility that he could be released.
And so two mysteries are unraveled: the first is how the three young women finally escaped Jack's homemade dungeon; the second is the mystery surrounding Jack's current schemes, especially as concerns his relationships with Sylvia, a woman he married while in prison, and a mysterious cult leader named Noah. The mysteries are inter-related, and they unfold through the first-person narration of Sarah.
There are some great twists and surprises in this novel, one of which most readers will probably sense is coming but not find out for sure until the very end. The author's ability to hold the readers in suspense as our heroine grows ever closer to the truth is masterful.
We also watch some of the things that Sarah does with utter amazement: no one could be this stupid, I said to myself on several occasions, nonplussed by the imbecilic decisions that she made. But, of course, Sarah is an extremely psychologically scarred woman, driven by pain and rage and regret and revenge, and so she does not always reason in a completely logical fashion. So, while her stupidity on occasion is nearly incredible, her foolish actions serve to build more and more tension and to captivate the readers all the more.
For a first novel, Koethi Zan has done very, very well.
cami19's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
loveistheprotest's review
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0