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A review by doodlebeanz
Just the Nicest Couple by Mary Kubica
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- 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
4.0
I really enjoyed this book! I've seen a lot of bad reviews on Goodreads, but I really really liked it! I read it in 24ish hours, unable to put it down once I started.
I thought the writing was great; some people claim it was clunky and awkward, but I didn't feel that way at all. The way Kubica wrote this book, certain things weren't described. For example, she would write things like "We went for Mexican...", but the next sentence is about Nina and her mother getting home. Some scenes weren't written out, some dialogues were shortened, which some people found annoying and awkward but I liked a lot. I feel in these sorts of books sometimes, over description and too much dialogue takes away from the suspense of it all. Things end up getting lost and muddled and I sometimes become bored if people are having conversations that lead no where, so I did not mind this style of writing at all. I did not find it clunky whatsoever! I preferred it, tbh.
Speaking of suspense, this book DELIVERED! I've been saying how I need to find a recent thriller that actually gives me the creeps and makes me paranoid and wanting to keep the lights on... last night, I had a difficult time sleeping which is not something I should be happy about but it's what I've been looking for in a book! The suspense and the not knowing what the hell was going on and everyone seeming sketchy and looking over their shoulders was so deliciously tense and suspenseful and it stayed with me!
But like in the other 2 Kubica books I've read, there were many plot holes and inconsistencies and added characters that provided nothing. For example, <spoilerRyan. Why the fuck was Ryan added into this story? Why did he send those flowers and why was he randomly at the forest preserve when Christian was there walking his dog? Was he stalking Nina? Was he in love with her? Why did he resign after she came back in the prologue... none of it makes any sense. Him sending her the flowers was glossed over so why was it even added in the first place? He touched her knee in the car, which screams sexual attraction, but then when he followed her home I thought it made sense? He wanted to make sure she got home okay... that doesn't scream stalker to me, I don't know. Very weird and confusing. Also, the woman in the car just idling on the street when Nina went for a walk but then asked for directions? The bottle of cologne that spilled? The dirty muddy footprint? I am assuming the footprint was left by Christian, but it was never explained and it was never described from Christian's POV... I don't know. Doesn't make sense. None of it connects.
The worst part of the book was the ending. Like I've said in my last review of Kubica's 'She's Not Sorry', there is SO much lead up and then there is nearly zero pay off. From phdiva.blog's review of this book [She's Not Sorry], "Kubica is known for launching a bunch of plot threads at the beginning, but fails to tie them together in a way that makes sense and has impact for the reader. Threads began fraying into different directions instead of coming back together."I did not see the mother being the murderer at all until the last chapter when it was revealed, but it just felt like lazy writing. The book was 315 pages long, and at 310, the big twist happens... that doesn't make any sense. There were no signs pointing to the mom, there were no signs that I caught and I am pretty good at catching onto a twist... I want to say that this book was beyond amazing for that, but it just felt sloppy and lazy and like Kubica didn't know how to wrap it up. I thought Lily being the murderer made the most sense, or some crazy turn of events where Nina found them in the woods and she was the one who shot him herself... but a 62 year old woman following her only daughter's husband into the woods (apparently not the first time she followed him either which is wild and never discussed before, not even a hint of it was mentioned) to then shoot him execution style? THAT MAKES NO SENSE!
It was evident that Lily and Jake were having an affair, but what didn't make any sense is that she has a sudden change of heart in telling Christian and then Christian becoming afraid of her for like... 4 paragraphs/half a chapter. He ends up divorcing/separating her after her trial I assume (again, it's never discussed what happened but you can figure that out), which makes sense, but I just wish it was described more.
All in all, I really did enjoy this book minus the few plot holes and things that just didn't make any sense/things that felt rushed. I would recommend it to someone since the plot holes weren't as unforgivable as they were in She's Not Sorry or Local Woman Missing. There are only a few main characters which is a plus, and everything was very straight forward and definitely very suspenseful and kept me turning the pages desperate to know what was going on!
I thought the writing was great; some people claim it was clunky and awkward, but I didn't feel that way at all. The way Kubica wrote this book, certain things weren't described. For example, she would write things like "We went for Mexican...", but the next sentence is about Nina and her mother getting home. Some scenes weren't written out, some dialogues were shortened, which some people found annoying and awkward but I liked a lot. I feel in these sorts of books sometimes, over description and too much dialogue takes away from the suspense of it all. Things end up getting lost and muddled and I sometimes become bored if people are having conversations that lead no where, so I did not mind this style of writing at all. I did not find it clunky whatsoever! I preferred it, tbh.
Speaking of suspense, this book DELIVERED! I've been saying how I need to find a recent thriller that actually gives me the creeps and makes me paranoid and wanting to keep the lights on... last night, I had a difficult time sleeping which is not something I should be happy about but it's what I've been looking for in a book! The suspense and the not knowing what the hell was going on and everyone seeming sketchy and looking over their shoulders was so deliciously tense and suspenseful and it stayed with me!
But like in the other 2 Kubica books I've read, there were many plot holes and inconsistencies and added characters that provided nothing. For example, <spoilerRyan. Why the fuck was Ryan added into this story? Why did he send those flowers and why was he randomly at the forest preserve when Christian was there walking his dog? Was he stalking Nina? Was he in love with her? Why did he resign after she came back in the prologue... none of it makes any sense. Him sending her the flowers was glossed over so why was it even added in the first place? He touched her knee in the car, which screams sexual attraction, but then when he followed her home I thought it made sense? He wanted to make sure she got home okay... that doesn't scream stalker to me, I don't know. Very weird and confusing. Also, the woman in the car just idling on the street when Nina went for a walk but then asked for directions? The bottle of cologne that spilled? The dirty muddy footprint? I am assuming the footprint was left by Christian, but it was never explained and it was never described from Christian's POV... I don't know. Doesn't make sense. None of it connects.
The worst part of the book was the ending. Like I've said in my last review of Kubica's 'She's Not Sorry', there is SO much lead up and then there is nearly zero pay off. From phdiva.blog's review of this book [She's Not Sorry], "Kubica is known for launching a bunch of plot threads at the beginning, but fails to tie them together in a way that makes sense and has impact for the reader. Threads began fraying into different directions instead of coming back together."
It was evident that Lily and Jake were having an affair, but what didn't make any sense is that she has a sudden change of heart in telling Christian and then Christian becoming afraid of her for like... 4 paragraphs/half a chapter. He ends up divorcing/separating her after her trial I assume (again, it's never discussed what happened but you can figure that out), which makes sense, but I just wish it was described more.
All in all, I really did enjoy this book minus the few plot holes and things that just didn't make any sense/things that felt rushed. I would recommend it to someone since the plot holes weren't as unforgivable as they were in She's Not Sorry or Local Woman Missing. There are only a few main characters which is a plus, and everything was very straight forward and definitely very suspenseful and kept me turning the pages desperate to know what was going on!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Infidelity, Terminal illness, Violence, and Stalking