A review by holsarmstrong
Dear Child by Romy Hausmann
4.0
This was...for a lack of a better term, chilling. I don't even know where to start because this entire story gave me goosebumps. Although it reminded me a lot of the novel Room by Emma Donoghue, this one did have its own eerie twist on it. And I loved it!
As weird and twisted as it might sound, I am a massive fan of true crime and I have always been fascinated by cases - and kidnappings like this have always piqued my interest. I will honestly read anything with a storyline like this where - usually - a young woman is kidnapped and then escapes which is weird considering it's one of my worst fears.
- This was fast-paced from the get-go. I devoured this entire book last night into the early hours of the morning. I could literally not put it down. I was hooked, a true page-turner.
- I think reading from multiple perspectives in this book really worked. I liked reading from Hannah especially as seeing the view from a sheltered, but slightly disturbed child was interesting to me. I think Jasmin/Lena was a fascinating character. I liked how her chapters were addressed to the original Lena as if she was speaking to her directly.
- The writing was phenomenal and well-executed. I think the plotting was just right and it ended in a place I felt relatively comfortable leaving their stories behind.
I do wish considering we got three different perspectives that we got some perspective from the kidnapper, Johnathon and even of Lena beforehand. I feel like this would have enhanced the book because although I found Matthais' point of view interesting, I found myself less engaged with his chapters. I was much more interested in the goings-on inside the cabin and how outside life worked for them.
Overall, a fantastic, suspenseful mystery/thriller. I would definitely recommend.
As weird and twisted as it might sound, I am a massive fan of true crime and I have always been fascinated by cases - and kidnappings like this have always piqued my interest. I will honestly read anything with a storyline like this where - usually - a young woman is kidnapped and then escapes which is weird considering it's one of my worst fears.
- This was fast-paced from the get-go. I devoured this entire book last night into the early hours of the morning. I could literally not put it down. I was hooked, a true page-turner.
- I think reading from multiple perspectives in this book really worked. I liked reading from Hannah especially as seeing the view from a sheltered, but slightly disturbed child was interesting to me. I think Jasmin/Lena was a fascinating character. I liked how her chapters were addressed to the original Lena as if she was speaking to her directly.
- The writing was phenomenal and well-executed. I think the plotting was just right and it ended in a place I felt relatively comfortable leaving their stories behind.
I do wish considering we got three different perspectives that we got some perspective from the kidnapper, Johnathon and even of Lena beforehand. I feel like this would have enhanced the book because although I found Matthais' point of view interesting, I found myself less engaged with his chapters. I was much more interested in the goings-on inside the cabin and how outside life worked for them.
Overall, a fantastic, suspenseful mystery/thriller. I would definitely recommend.