I have mixed feelings about this book. As a thriller it works well, the pace is fast and it keeps moving without much respite. The reader is left guessing until close to the end and suspecting so many different people. There is an emotional side to the story too, Rose’s past involving both her brother and daughter, her insomnia. She is a desperate character, and her confusion, exhaustion and guilt affect her deeply throughout. This is something I think is handled really well, her past trauma - how it affects every decision, thought and action, and how others see her too. The power of the men who would not believe her, and the other mothers, was convincing and plausible. I felt angry for Rose and desperate to see justice.
I don’t want to unfairly give this book a lower star rating than it deserves, as for a certain type of thriller, this is effective. For me, parts of the plot seemed unbelievable, including some of Rose’s and the other characters decisions. Without giving anything away, I found this distracting as I almost shouted at the pages that they should do something differently - a sometimes obvious answer rather than do it the difficult way. But characters don’t always do the obvious thing, especially under such difficult situations! The fast pace was sometimes a little too relentless, and events felt repetitive at times. Towards the end I found myself checking how many pages were left, and feeling as though there were one or two too many hills to climb. But even these scenes were tense and well written.
Overall, I enjoyed the first half of the book much more than the second half, because of the character dynamics and how well Rose and her trauma were written. She is a character who it was impossible not to empathise with and want to see heal. For readers who like a fast paced thriller with plenty of twists and action, but also an emotional dynamic deeply embedded in the protagonist and those around her, this is a good book to pick up.
I don’t want to unfairly give this book a lower star rating than it deserves, as for a certain type of thriller, this is effective. For me, parts of the plot seemed unbelievable, including some of Rose’s and the other characters decisions. Without giving anything away, I found this distracting as I almost shouted at the pages that they should do something differently - a sometimes obvious answer rather than do it the difficult way. But characters don’t always do the obvious thing, especially under such difficult situations! The fast pace was sometimes a little too relentless, and events felt repetitive at times. Towards the end I found myself checking how many pages were left, and feeling as though there were one or two too many hills to climb. But even these scenes were tense and well written.
Overall, I enjoyed the first half of the book much more than the second half, because of the character dynamics and how well Rose and her trauma were written. She is a character who it was impossible not to empathise with and want to see heal. For readers who like a fast paced thriller with plenty of twists and action, but also an emotional dynamic deeply embedded in the protagonist and those around her, this is a good book to pick up.