suchallie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
otherwise an excellent read, I devoured this in 3 days. some of the red herrings are obvious in the writing but that I can forgive. The ending I cannot.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Suicide, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Dementia, Infertility, Stalking, Pedophilia, and Miscarriage
Moderate: Child abuse, Alcohol, Infidelity, Drug use, Gaslighting, Blood, and Kidnapping
amanda_reads13's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This book flips between 2 timelines. The past when January is killed and the present when Margot come back to town. Everyone is a suspect and you never really know who to believe. Was it the brother? The mother? A random man?
This was an interesting take on a cold case story, but read very much like JonBenet Ramsey's case.
It had some good twists and turns, but that ending was such a bummer. So anti-climatic. It was a non-ending. I thought I was missing a chapter.
Graphic: Infidelity, Grief, Child death, and Gun violence
Moderate: Miscarriage, Kidnapping, Pedophilia, and Stalking
slad's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
Spoiler
ending felt like too many twists that didn’t all add up or feel complete. Ending was too graphic for me. No loveable charactersSpoiler
Graphic: Gore, Infertility, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexual assault, Suicide, Body horror, Child death, Death, Dementia, Grief, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Child abuse, Adult/minor relationship, and Miscarriage
atalea's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Graphic: Child death, Grief, and Dementia
Moderate: Kidnapping, Alcohol, Sexual violence, Murder, Death, Infidelity, and Suicide
Minor: Abortion, Death of parent, Infertility, Animal cruelty, Miscarriage, and Panic attacks/disorders
daithy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
It's well written... this would have got 5 stars, but leaving it open ended bothers me. I really hope there's a sequel!
Graphic: Blood, Child death, Dementia, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Stalking, and Suicide
xkeyla17's review against another edition
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Sexual content, Kidnapping, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Stalking, and Physical abuse
regans's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.25
Graphic: Child death, Murder, Stalking, and Kidnapping
rainbowbean's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Writing:
I have been a long time fan of Ashley's storytelling via her podcasts and while most of those stories are not written by her (sans the fictional podcast) I was curious to see if it translated well to a fictional work, it did-ish.
The story itself was generally interesting and had the tone of her storytelling that makes you want to keep listening/reading. I approached reading this knowing it was a debut novel and likely would read as such and... it did. Nothing really new to see here, average writing, which is ok for this story.
I did like the style of jumping between the 2 POV's/timelines. It was clear and cleanly done.
World Building:
Well done building the feel of the town and world which I think was fairly easy as it's the literal world we live in and the Author grew up in.
Inconsistencies:
I had nothing that was glaring or bothersome in terms of inconsistencies.
Trope Talk:
No bothersome tropes here. So grateful we did not get a needless romance between a gone off to the big city reporter and the small town cop she knew from grade school!
Plot:
The plot was solid yet less than original. It felt like almost too much Jon Benet Ramsey case with a hint of other cases mixed in. The story was still interesting and while I wanted to read it, it was comfortablely predictable.
Plot Twists:
No spoilers but the "twist" was good, although unsurprising.
Character Development:
We learn much about the characters over the course of the book but I wouldn't say they "develop" into anything other than regular people who's background we learn more about. There's no real strong unexpected character change.
Main Character:
Likeable, smart, slightly damaged typical small town gal leaves home and returns to solve a murder that just happens to happen her first day back. Margot is otherwise largely forgettable.
Representation:
Could have been more but also it's a small town in a flyover state. Potato White.
Pace:
Consistently paced this story keeps flowing with very little dip.
EDITING FEEDBACK:
I was disappointed in the poor editing of word/description choice. The absolutely excessive use of " xyz emotion flickered across a face" "her gaze flicked over his face", "her eyes slid to his", "she hitched a shoulder", "she clapped a hand to her face after xyz injury" was so distracting and amateurish. This definitely could have been fixed with a better editor. If I read the word "flicked or flicker" one more time…ugh.
Ending:
I'm not going to spoil it but while we get answers to two items there is a very sudden unnecessary end that may translate well in a tv show cliffhanger but as a book left me irritated for a standalone novel.
Overall:
A solid 3 ⭐. While I have criticism I liked the book overall and I'd read more from Ashley assuming future works are more original/stronger plot wise with the editing expected of a publisher of this size. Currently she's a library author for me, as in I'll read it for free but it's unlikely I would buy it even as a paying CJ fan club member. I would still recommend this as a beach/vacation/just for fun read.
(As always to be fair: I am extremely picky about purchasing books for my limited shelf space and choose 4-5 stars from my personal ratings and only if I love it, want my children to read some day, or want to re-read.)
Trigger Warnings:
Death of child, CSE, Murder, Suicide, Dementia
Graphic: Child death, Dementia, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Kidnapping, and Murder
karyan1's review against another edition
- 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
2.0
Graphic: Child death, Death, Dementia, Terminal illness, Kidnapping, Child abuse, Grief, and Murder
Moderate: Blood, Drug use, and Infidelity
mantoothemma's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Child death, Stalking, Suicide, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Kidnapping, Dementia, Stalking, and Gun violence