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arkwen452's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Hm. My thoughts on the Second Stranger are pretty clear: good suspense and thriller build-up. I was invested in picking out clues from the narrative to see if I could figure out who was the "real" Gaines.
I think that is where it ends for me. Because I had made a note while I was reading this book earlier on about how I did not fully find Remi's accounts of everything credible. And that is really the achilles heel with first person narration.
However, I think what Really anchored this opinion about her character and how the story is unraveled to the reader was the fact that at the end she has to run away and get away from her name and her identity. This doesn't really add up to the fact that throughout the entire story, it was her little brother who had trouble with the law and , his in and out of prison which shadows her story. And yeah, it's not her. It was her helping him or trying to get him out of that line of work. In my mind, it doesn't equate to Remi being able to easily dodge the police and change your name and identity just to get away. Yes she has this back on her brother, but in all honesty since no one else knew about it , besides the other criminals, there was no point in her to mass this on the run espionage type persona. When we were first introduced to Remi, she's really honed in on the fact that she's at this age where she doesn't feel accomplish where she feels she hasn't done enough in her life, and I can understand her desire to wanna go and travel that makes complete and total sense to me. But at the same time, I don't see her going on the run and doing this kind of Jason Bourne of changing her identity and her parents as being the results or the correct equivalent of that.
If you are looking for a book to fill some time and has an interesting hook.
I think that is where it ends for me. Because I had made a note while I was reading this book earlier on about how I did not fully find Remi's accounts of everything credible. And that is really the achilles heel with first person narration.
However, I think what Really anchored this opinion about her character and how the story is unraveled to the reader was the fact that at the end
If you are looking for a book to fill some time and has an interesting hook.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
growintogardens's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- 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? No
4.0
I rated 3.5 at first, but I thought they did a good job of creating a tense atmosphere and keeping my attention, so bumped to 4.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Violence, Car accident, and Murder
Minor: Medical content, Grief, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
calamitywindpetal's review
emotional
mysterious
tense
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? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Minor: Alcohol
swalk's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Immediately arresting, this thriller starts when a prisoner escapes during transit from a local prison, in a remote area of Scotland.
This is a classic murder-mystery style plot, written in a contemporary way. It begins with a similar storyline to a famous Agatha Christie book/play. Brilliantly executed and shown from the viewpoint of Remie Yorke, a member of the Mackinnon Hotel staff, with historical links to Porterfell prison. An interesting delve into Remie’s backstory as well as the suspense of being unable to trust anyone around her, makes for a captivating and tense read.
The narrator was excellent, she made it easy to tell between characters and elevated the book with her reading style.
This is a classic murder-mystery style plot, written in a contemporary way. It begins with a similar storyline to a famous Agatha Christie book/play. Brilliantly executed and shown from the viewpoint of Remie Yorke, a member of the Mackinnon Hotel staff, with historical links to Porterfell prison. An interesting delve into Remie’s backstory as well as the suspense of being unable to trust anyone around her, makes for a captivating and tense read.
The narrator was excellent, she made it easy to tell between characters and elevated the book with her reading style.
Content Warnings
Minor: Murder