A review by j_squaredd
Nine Lives by Peter Swanson

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

2.0

The plot was interesting enough, but the ending was lackluster. The big reveal was a little nonsensical. The characters weren’t terribly compelling, and there were some really weird bits when it came to characters of color. For example, although it wasn’t relevant to the story or to establishing his character, there were multiple pages recounting how the only black character in the book had only experienced racism once after moving to Maine. It was just weird. The prose was mostly fine, but there were multiple chapters that felt like filler, as if the publisher said the word count wasn’t long enough and Swanson just needed to pad it out. I probably won’t pick up another book from him.
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