Well, seeing that is took me a month and some change to finish this book, when I usually devour books in a mere 1-3 days, there’s not much more for me to say. Slow, cheesy, meh. Like I said in my review of Maybe Someday, I will finish the trilogy, but only because I like to finish what I start. 

How does Freida McFadden write so many mysteries with so many different plot twists?! I’ve read 6-7 of her books and thought for sure I’d have figured out her style/usual antagonist, but I never get it right. Another quick, suspenseful read. 

I love all things Katherine Center! It’s like we must be BFFs in another life or something. 

This book spoke to my soul. A mom who has lost herself in being a mom?? Read my mail KC! This book gave me permission to feel all the feelings that come with motherhood, like loss of self and loss of relationship and closeness with others, including your spouse. But it also gave me a sense of motivation to take the time to nurse all of those relationships back to health, and that everyone is beautiful.  Quick and lighthearted with deep meaning. 

A twisty, curvy, fast read with an ending I didn’t see coming, which is par for the course when reading anything by Freida McFadden. I was entertained. 

Recently, I’ve been reading via audiobooks and have preferred listening over actually reading physical books. Probably because of the stage of life I’m in, I’m sure I’ll get back to turning the pages soon. All that to say, this was a book I REALLY wish I had read instead of listened to on Libby. The narrator was Shaina Summerville and she was just bad. The characters all sounded angry and it made the book very different than I think I would have read it in my mind. 

It was hard to rate this book because I think it had some great twists and things I was not expecting. It was suspenseful and mysterious, for sure! But the narrator ruined it for me, so much that I couldn’t separate her from the story. Sorry Frieda, just being honest 🫤 

Ok, this is the fourth book I’ve read by Freida McFadden (previously read The Housemaid, Never Lie, & The Inmate) and this one has been my favorite so far! I enjoyed the whole book and didn’t feel like I just needed to get to the end just to figure it out.  I liked being able to solve some of the plot as it progressed, and not in an annoying way. 

The only thing I didn’t like was the narrator. I listened via audiobook on Libby and the quality wasn’t the best. Reminded me of a low budget film. 

I found that this book validated my feelings on life and grief and kept thinking “I really need to convince my mom to read this book.” My dad suddenly died from Covid in Oct 2021 and we have found truth in the statement “you can’t really understand until you’re going thru it yourself.”  Not that I wish this sadness on anyone. 

My mom has really struggled with this huge loss and the ignorant and hurtful comments from others saying “why are you still so sad, it’s been 18 months already!” Or “you have to move on, you’ve wallowed enough.”  This book gives grace and the author clearly understands that grief IS truly different for every single individual.  I will recommend this book to anyone dealing with the loss of a loved one. 

This was one of those books whose rating changed throughout the story.  Most of the book I was feeling like this was def a ⭐️⭐️⭐️ book. I was a little irritated with the way the psychiatrist interacted with her patients. The clinician in me screamed “that is NOT therapeutic conversation!” And some of the storyline just didn’t seem to add up. 

But then I got to chapter 50-something and the whole truth and nothing but the truth came out. This gave me ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ vibes because man, I didn’t see that coming! But it was a little too much too fast for my liking. I listened via audiobook and the last couple chapters happened so quickly, I found myself wishing I had the physical book in front of me so I could go back and confirm which storyline was happening when…. If that makes sense. 

Ultimately I rated the book with 3 stars as that was how I felt for most of the book. But it still feels a little conflicting. Shouldn’t you WANT to read read read to get to the end and figure everything out?? To that respect, I couldn’t put the book down (or stop listening, but you know what I mean). 

It’s worth a read. I’d be interested to hear what others think 🤔

I liked this thriller. Couldn’t put it down. However, I rolled my eyes at Brooke sooooo many times! She’s the perfect character for a murder mystery, like putty in their hands. 

Jodi Picoult so eloquently writes novels with heart wrenching scenarios and allows the reader to be involved in the scenario from several viewpoints. This novel is no different and I love how she beautifully captures the stress of life as a full time caretaker, not just a parent, in addition to the avalanche effect it has on a family and eventually a community.