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A review by joyceheinen
The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly Jackson
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I’m a big fan of Holly Jackson’s “A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder” series. Her 2023 novel, “Five Survive” was a huge disappointment, but I was still excited to read her 2024 release “The Disappearance of Rachel Price. And even though it took me a while to get into it, I’m glad I read it, because it’s a lot better than “Five Survive’.
The story is told entirely from the perspective of Bel, in third person. She was only 2-years-old when her mom Rachel Price went missing. So it’s obvious she has no recollection of what happened that day. The book is more about the plot and the characters and their development is secondary. However, it is immediately apparent that Bel suffers more from the sudden disappearance of her mother than she wants to admit. Bel feels like she and her father are a team, and their life has always been overshadowed by the disappearance of Rachel. And when she returns, it makes life even more difficult. And listening to Rachel’s story about the happenings, Bel evades questions about her mother’s disappearance.
It's a pretty big book and it took me a while to get into it. It takes some time for the mystery to become interesting. But when it does, it really does it well. Jackson manages to create a twisty, unpredictable mystery. This family has a lot of secrets. Towards the end, it becomes nail-biting exciting. But this is also the point where some plot twists/ plot points are less credible.
“The Reappearance of Rachel Price” is an interesting mystery for the most part. You have to push trough at first, but once you do, you’re in for a treat. I’m glad Jackson delivered again.
The story is told entirely from the perspective of Bel, in third person. She was only 2-years-old when her mom Rachel Price went missing. So it’s obvious she has no recollection of what happened that day. The book is more about the plot and the characters and their development is secondary. However, it is immediately apparent that Bel suffers more from the sudden disappearance of her mother than she wants to admit. Bel feels like she and her father are a team, and their life has always been overshadowed by the disappearance of Rachel. And when she returns, it makes life even more difficult. And listening to Rachel’s story about the happenings, Bel evades questions about her mother’s disappearance.
It's a pretty big book and it took me a while to get into it. It takes some time for the mystery to become interesting. But when it does, it really does it well. Jackson manages to create a twisty, unpredictable mystery. This family has a lot of secrets. Towards the end, it becomes nail-biting exciting. But this is also the point where some plot twists/ plot points are less credible.
“The Reappearance of Rachel Price” is an interesting mystery for the most part. You have to push trough at first, but once you do, you’re in for a treat. I’m glad Jackson delivered again.