Reviews

Close to Home by Lisa Jackson

pmcatee's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense

4.5

bootlessdora's review against another edition

3.0

I really wish I could give 2.5s, like I enjoyed it but it was meh. You get into the mystery but it doesn't quite resolve in a satisfying way.

brownikins's review against another edition

dark fast-paced

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

0.5

I have tried Lisa Jackson before and didn’t like the writing style. Decided to give it another try and honestly I wish I hadn’t wasted my time. This book had too much going on

(unrealistic family drama, kidnapping/human trafficking, child clairvoyant, ghost(s), stalking, teen love story reinvigorated as adults, incest, murder, fundamentalist/anti government Idahoans, sick mom with dementia and inheritance issues)

and was just not well written enough to explain or explore all of that. The teenagers were written as if the author has never met or interacted with one before. The mother/daughter relationship was just disrespectful for no reason. The love story was rushed and tied up with a pretty convenient bow (“we’re taking it slow but moved in together  immediately and are talking about marriage and having babies together”). The ghost plot line was a waste. The one bright spot in this novel was the rescue “alert” dog — she was perfect and did an admirable job saving this family. Which is more than you can say for any of the human members of the family, the town police, or even any adult living or working in this fictional town. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Incest, Kidnapping, Trafficking, and Rape

lori_loves_reading's review against another edition

3.0

I had a love/hate thing going on with this book. Story was good but a bit disjointed and the characters were not well developed and Jade was just plain awful.

sdomke's review against another edition

mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

mccanizales's review against another edition

3.0

I thought this was going to be more of a spooky haunted house story, but that was not the case. The book was very long, almost too much detail and from way too many perspectives. The end came together with a satisfying twist, but overall a decent dragged out story

bxermom's review against another edition

4.0

Love Lisa Jackson. Her books never disappoint.

angelaliem's review against another edition

2.0

Meh. Just not that interesting. I feel like this was written to be a movie, not a book.

reading_brooks's review against another edition

emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

alli14's review against another edition

3.0

I felt like this book had a lot of potential but fell a bit short. I enjoyed that the perspective switched back and forth but it almost jumped between too many characters and there were so many plots that just ended and seemed unnecessary. I wish the author would have dug deeper into fewer scenarios. It took forever to get to the climax and then just dropped and I was left with a lot of unanswered questions.