taydaliese's review against another edition
3.0
Meh. I in general liked the premise and the characters because they had flaws and a sense of depth, but the ending was predictable, I do like the red herrings though. I also maybe just didn't pay attention enough, but I hate it when books use characters once or twice then expect you to remember who they are as pretty minor characters. I appreciate callbacks as a villain, but they barely ever mention the son and his weird friend but used them at weird times, I felt.
An okay read, especially for someone who hasn't read a million mysteries before, but I didn't think it was anything spectacular.
An okay read, especially for someone who hasn't read a million mysteries before, but I didn't think it was anything spectacular.
nessaf's review against another edition
4.0
I read this book in a day because I wanted to see what happened and it was a quick read. There were a few too many odd coincidences and in some ways, the ending was a bit too neat and tidy but I enjoyed the different character views (would have been nice to get Bronté’s view too) and I liked the character of the oldest daughter.
karenchase's review against another edition
5.0
It's always a little bittersweet finishing a book, especially a good one. And this is my first five-star read of the year. I wish I could remember where I heard about it it, but I suppose it doesn't matter. I can't say much about the intricate plot without spoiling it, so pardon the vague description that follows. The titular character is Bronte Bloom, the 10 year old daughter of a tiger mom, and the girl bears the enormous weight of her mother's expectations on her shoulders with increasing difficulty. One day, she just disappears, and the family (tiger mother, frustrated but impotent doctor father, father's daughter from a previous relationship, mother's son from same) starts to unravel. Throughout the story the narrative perspective shifts between various key characters, including the detective who is assigned to investigate Bronte's disappearance, and the transitions are very smooth, almost not noticeable, which is very hard to pull off. Eventually the disappearance leads into a murder investigation, and although the author drops several broad hints about the identity and motive of the killer, and I was pretty sure I had it pegged, it turned out I was wrong, and the conclusion comes a bit out of left field. It is this skillful weaving of the narrative, the distinct and well developed characters and the impulsively readable prose that allow me to give this one the full five stars.
meloches's review against another edition
5.0
The Trophy Child, the newest release by Paula Daly, was not your typical mystery story. Part police procedural, part psychological drama and part suspense, I devoured this one in the course of a few sittings.
Karen, a “super mum”, likes to push her children. But how far is too far? With an extracurricular activity around every corner and Karen’s family falling apart, she hones in on youngest daughter Bronte. By the time, DI Joanne Aspinall becomes involved with the family, they are in shambles: their oldest daughter is dealing with her own issues and things appear to be heading to a breaking point. But Karen would know when to stop pushing…wouldn’t she?
When the novel opens, things are very unclear. We know something bad must have happened, but are unaware of what the actual incidents were. Daly does an amazing job at providing just enough to pull you in but enough intrigue to keep you consistently guessing.
The characterization in this novel is divine. Daly does a splendid job at creating characters at opposite ends of the spectrum and juxtaposing them in such a way to create a slew of emotions. I hated Karen. I loved Verity. I was suspicious of Noel but admired Joanne. These ups and downs had me feeling like I was going through intense mood swings; I was angry, I was upset, I was elated, I was shocked. Daly took me on quite the ride.
Twists and turns around every corner, this one was impossible to predict! Daly uses a plethora of red herrings and had me thinking all sorts of things throughout my reading. She also does not follow any traditional plot structure or story mapping; instead, she combines multiple story arcs and character backgrounds and weaves them all together to create a completely original story. I was so impressed. Each section of the novel felt completely different.
My first experience with a Paula Daly novel and it won’t be my last! I loved it. 5/5 stars from me.
Karen, a “super mum”, likes to push her children. But how far is too far? With an extracurricular activity around every corner and Karen’s family falling apart, she hones in on youngest daughter Bronte. By the time, DI Joanne Aspinall becomes involved with the family, they are in shambles: their oldest daughter is dealing with her own issues and things appear to be heading to a breaking point. But Karen would know when to stop pushing…wouldn’t she?
When the novel opens, things are very unclear. We know something bad must have happened, but are unaware of what the actual incidents were. Daly does an amazing job at providing just enough to pull you in but enough intrigue to keep you consistently guessing.
The characterization in this novel is divine. Daly does a splendid job at creating characters at opposite ends of the spectrum and juxtaposing them in such a way to create a slew of emotions. I hated Karen. I loved Verity. I was suspicious of Noel but admired Joanne. These ups and downs had me feeling like I was going through intense mood swings; I was angry, I was upset, I was elated, I was shocked. Daly took me on quite the ride.
Twists and turns around every corner, this one was impossible to predict! Daly uses a plethora of red herrings and had me thinking all sorts of things throughout my reading. She also does not follow any traditional plot structure or story mapping; instead, she combines multiple story arcs and character backgrounds and weaves them all together to create a completely original story. I was so impressed. Each section of the novel felt completely different.
My first experience with a Paula Daly novel and it won’t be my last! I loved it. 5/5 stars from me.
ncrabb's review against another edition
5.0
Verity Bloom is a high-school girl with a more uncertain future than usual. She impulsively attempted to strangle her tiger mother nagging stepmom one day, and the action nearly got her removed from the expensive private school her physician dad was paying for. Now Verity must submit to a drug test weekly and must endure counseling from a local therapist if she is to stay in the school.
Noel and Karen Bloom are on their second marriage. In addition to Verity, who is Noel's daughter by a first marriage, Karen has a son, Ewan, also from her first marriage. The two jointly are the parents of 10-year-old Bronte. Fearful that she will fail as a mother with Bronte as she did with Ewan, Karen has so structured the child's life as to turn it into a regimented hell. While Bronte doesn't complain, the stress of all that tiger mother over-structuring manifests itself in a disabling hand condition that means she can't easily grip things.
On a rare afternoon when Bronte doesn't have something to do, she and Verity go to a nearby park. Verity leaves the little girl alone long enough to visit a nearby care facility and help her disabled biological mother smoke a joint. By the time she comes back to the park, Bronte is gone.
Joanne Aspinall is a detective sergeant who caught the case to figure out what happened to Bronte. When she arrives at the house, she realizes that the man she slept with after a few drinks at a bar six days earlier is Noel Bloom. I've rarely encountered characters in a book that brought out such an immediate visceral dislike in me. So professionally written are these characters that I frequently had to remind myself that they are fictional. Karen Bloom literally ties my guts in knots. Part of that is because of Emma Fenney's beyond-remarkable narration. You almost get the impression that somewhere at some point in her life, Fenney knew someone a lot like Karen Bloom. I hope not for her sake. But that's how well she narrates this. If you have the choice, and if you're not averse to audiobooks, you should seriously consider the audio version of this just for the sake of the narration. I think I would have had real difficulty were I the recording engineer trying to keep Fenney's levels consistent. She really gets into the Karen Bloom part--right down to the almost-screaming stuff.
While the police are questioning a friend of Ewan's, a young man with a learning disability who is frequently at the house, the door opens and Bronte strides in, refusing to tell anyone about her disappearance.
Then another member of the family goes missing, and things get decidedly fascinating from there. If you love those onion-layered thrillers that peel back the truth as you go, this book will entrance you. Daly crafts characters amazingly well, and there’s no way you’re going to see that ending. And if you do, you should take a hard look at getting your clairvoyance license.
Noel and Karen Bloom are on their second marriage. In addition to Verity, who is Noel's daughter by a first marriage, Karen has a son, Ewan, also from her first marriage. The two jointly are the parents of 10-year-old Bronte. Fearful that she will fail as a mother with Bronte as she did with Ewan, Karen has so structured the child's life as to turn it into a regimented hell. While Bronte doesn't complain, the stress of all that tiger mother over-structuring manifests itself in a disabling hand condition that means she can't easily grip things.
On a rare afternoon when Bronte doesn't have something to do, she and Verity go to a nearby park. Verity leaves the little girl alone long enough to visit a nearby care facility and help her disabled biological mother smoke a joint. By the time she comes back to the park, Bronte is gone.
Joanne Aspinall is a detective sergeant who caught the case to figure out what happened to Bronte. When she arrives at the house, she realizes that the man she slept with after a few drinks at a bar six days earlier is Noel Bloom. I've rarely encountered characters in a book that brought out such an immediate visceral dislike in me. So professionally written are these characters that I frequently had to remind myself that they are fictional. Karen Bloom literally ties my guts in knots. Part of that is because of Emma Fenney's beyond-remarkable narration. You almost get the impression that somewhere at some point in her life, Fenney knew someone a lot like Karen Bloom. I hope not for her sake. But that's how well she narrates this. If you have the choice, and if you're not averse to audiobooks, you should seriously consider the audio version of this just for the sake of the narration. I think I would have had real difficulty were I the recording engineer trying to keep Fenney's levels consistent. She really gets into the Karen Bloom part--right down to the almost-screaming stuff.
While the police are questioning a friend of Ewan's, a young man with a learning disability who is frequently at the house, the door opens and Bronte strides in, refusing to tell anyone about her disappearance.
Then another member of the family goes missing, and things get decidedly fascinating from there. If you love those onion-layered thrillers that peel back the truth as you go, this book will entrance you. Daly crafts characters amazingly well, and there’s no way you’re going to see that ending. And if you do, you should take a hard look at getting your clairvoyance license.
rebeccaella05's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
kitsune's review against another edition
4.0
This was a pretty good book, although I feel like the ending was a little bit rushed. I also felt it should have ended differently - I just didn't really believe that this guy did it!
amos0924's review against another edition
4.0
I've read so many detective novels that at times I've assumed I'd be a great one. However, I'd encounter horrible people (much like Karen, one of the main characters in this book) I'm not sure if I'd want to solve any crimes committed against them. Paula Daly has written 3 books that are pitch perfect in their dialogue, characters and level of suspense. This is another one she has hit out of the park.
sci_mom's review against another edition
4.0
I was torn on whether to give this book 3 or 4 stars. I decided to go with 4 because I really like it until about the last 25%. The ending was abrupt and too neatly packaged. I won't do any spoilers, but it bothered me that the detective didn't keep unraveling the thread and find the twist herself. She was too sharp to not catch that bit. Also, that epilogue...too far. It was unnecessary. Otherwise, though, I did really enjoy the book and would read other stories by this author.
scylla87's review against another edition
2.0
All in all it was a decent read, I certainly got through it fast enough, but the description in the dust jacket did not give me an accurate idea of what kind of book this actually was. I was expecting a family drama, and I got that for the first half of the book, or about the first half of the book, but then that plot is quickly discarded for a murder mystery that falls flat. I kept expecting that the two stories would tie together and there would be some rhyme and reason to what felt like two different stories, but the explanation for who killed Karen and why just doesn’t fit well with the rest of the story. When it seemed that the culprit was Ewan’s father, I was intrigued. Was it going to turn out that Karen and fled an abusive relationship, barely getting out with her life and her child’s intact. Had said abusive ex found her out during her appearance on the news during Bronte’s disappearance? Had he tracked her down and killed her? No. No, that’s not what happened at all. The ex did track her down after her little rant to the cameras, and he did call repeatedly, making vaguely threatening phone calls. And Karen did wonder if she should mention him to Noel. And he did disappear from his job suddenly not long after the phone calls. It all added up to what may have been a fairly predictable ending. I certainly assumed that was where it was going, and I am not the best at guessing the culprit in murder mysteries. But see, predictable is not always bad. Something could have been done with that storyline. For one thing, it would have created a little sympathy for Karen, something that was sorely lacking within the course of the novel. It also would have connected the two stories in a way that made some sort of sense. Bronte “disappears”, Karen appears on the news, jealous and abusive ex sees her after all this time, ex tracks her down and eventually kills her. Instead what we get is some out of nowhere plot twist where Verity’s disabled mother with MS, who can barely speak, gets her screw up nephew to kill Karen to set her cheating ex-husband and daughter free from this overzealous tiger mom. I certainly didn’t see it coming, that’s for sure. But not in the good way. It wasn’t one of those “ooh I should have known” moments that you get at the end of a good thriller. The end just kind of falls flat.
Honestly, I would have much preferred this stay a family drama. I felt like there was enough plot there to sustain a 340 page novel. Have part one stay the way it is: set up the family dynamic, have Bronte go missing and then return unharmed. Then part two could deal with the aftermath. Have Karen actually have to deal with the fact that her daughter ran away because of her parenting. Have Noel grow a backbone and stand up to his wife. Have Verity explain that the reason she had attacked her step mother in the first place was to protect her sister. That was the story I thought I was getting. That is the story I would have preferred to read.
But if I had to read a murder mystery, I would have rather had it be one where the ending didn’t just check all the boxes and fit together nicely, but fit together in a way that made sense with the rest of the story.
Honestly, I would have much preferred this stay a family drama. I felt like there was enough plot there to sustain a 340 page novel. Have part one stay the way it is: set up the family dynamic, have Bronte go missing and then return unharmed. Then part two could deal with the aftermath. Have Karen actually have to deal with the fact that her daughter ran away because of her parenting. Have Noel grow a backbone and stand up to his wife. Have Verity explain that the reason she had attacked her step mother in the first place was to protect her sister. That was the story I thought I was getting. That is the story I would have preferred to read.
But if I had to read a murder mystery, I would have rather had it be one where the ending didn’t just check all the boxes and fit together nicely, but fit together in a way that made sense with the rest of the story.