I liked it, but I wish I’d loved it the way just about everyone else seems to.
The WW II setting was definitely the best part, but I just wanted more I liked it, but I wish I’d loved it the way just about everyone else seems to.
The WW II setting was definitely the best part, but I just wanted more pain and agony and moral dilemmas and sacrifice and shivery feelings—when you reference ghosts, I’m on full alert for all these things. I noticed a lot of repetitive phrasing throughout the book, and a couple of very late romantic elements felt a bit shoehorned as well; they’re suddenly dropped in and basically then the chapter/book/story ends. Glancing at other reviews (not many friends have read this yet, and those who have have nearly unanimously rated it 5 stars), Idk what magic I’m missing.
Audio Notes: Not his fault, but I found it totally distracting that the male narrator also voiced Greg Daniels (I think) for Welcome to Dunder Mifflin, because I kept thinking about that instead of this story! Pleasant voice, but perhaps a bit understated for this role. January LeVoy did a nice job, particularly with the secondary characters....more
Looking at the sea of low ratings and I don’t know what to tell you, haha. This is exactly the kind of angst porn I love and the fact that th4.5 stars
Looking at the sea of low ratings and I don’t know what to tell you, haha. This is exactly the kind of angst porn I love and the fact that this is entirely from his POV is the icing on the cake....more
This is some real Scooby Doo shit. (view spoiler)[Until you find out about an hour before the end that there actually is a supernatural force. But it’This is some real Scooby Doo shit. (view spoiler)[Until you find out about an hour before the end that there actually is a supernatural force. But it’s a dumb force, so. (hide spoiler)] The end is kind of interesting, but not much else is....more
This book is gothic Victorian catnip, and I am a blissed-out kitty rubbing my entire body ecstatically against it.
I did think for a time this rating This book is gothic Victorian catnip, and I am a blissed-out kitty rubbing my entire body ecstatically against it.
I did think for a time this rating would be even higher, in part because Olivia Vinall’s narration is perfection, but I wasn’t entirely convinced by the resolution, and I thought I would be a little more swept away by the romance. Still, so very enjoyable on audio....more
3.5 stars There’s a lot of raw talent in this author’s writing, and she usually manages to combine visceral thriller aspects with romantic suspense in3.5 stars There’s a lot of raw talent in this author’s writing, and she usually manages to combine visceral thriller aspects with romantic suspense in a way that really appeals to me. While this one started off strong, with yet another terrifically evocative frozen Canadian setting, it started getting pretty convoluted and messy in terms of the mystery, the folklore, and the various past and present relationships. A few POVs and subplots could have been dropped without much impact, and a little more streamlining with the plot and development with the romance would’ve made this much stronger. Still, I really like her settings and general story set-ups, so I’ll be plowing through her other books before long. ...more
The first 75% of the book was terrific--lots of twists and turns, well-paced, interesting character development and relationships, I was eage3.5 stars
The first 75% of the book was terrific--lots of twists and turns, well-paced, interesting character development and relationships, I was eager to return to my audiobook every time I was away from it. I also loved that contrary to most thrillers that save the big reveal for the end, in this book, you find out who kidnapped the baby halfway through the book--so you get to watch everyone scramble and unravel from there on out. I liked it so much that I was mentally composing my 4-star review while I listened.
Towards the end, things get a little messy, however, and there were a few too many convenient connections and red herrings to make it as satisfying as it should have been. The story and plotting was so good, but the impulse to make it "and THEN there's THIS part to make you even MORE surprised!" kind of ruined it. Okay, not ruined it, but it took some of the joy out of it.
I really did like the first three quarters of the book, though. In a year of mostly disappointing thrillers, this is one of the best of the bunch. It's a shame that it got a bit too convoluted towards the end, but I'll still look forward to her next thriller.
I'll come back to finish off this review with audiobook notes later, but floating it for GoodReads Choice Awards since I don't think I ever published this to the feed. It's still among the better of the thrillers published this year--I'm side-eyeing some of those other picks. But what else is new, hah.
An audiobook review copy was provided by the publisher....more
Wendy Darling
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canadian
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