Author: Zoë Carter
Series: #1 in the Take It To the Grave series (Part 1 of 6)
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Publisher: Harlequin Special Releases (June 1, 2017)
Source: NetGalley
Rating: ☕☕
Synopsis: Sarah Taylor-Cox has the perfect life—a gorgeous husband, a picture—perfect house in the Hamptons and a beautiful baby, Elliot. Now, the invites are being sent out for Elliot's christening, and the Taylor—Coxes are determined the party will be the event of the year.
There's just one chink in Sarah's carefully constructed calm demeanour—her sister, Maisey, will be coming. The sisters used to be close, but now their lives couldn't be more different. Surely though, they will slip back into their old ways, and the party will go off without a hitch…
Then, Sarah's difficult relationship with Maisey is pushed to the back of her mind when she receives a note, one which makes her whole body shake with dread: I know your secret. I'm going to tell.
Part 1 of 6: a riveting new installment in this darkly compelling psychological thriller
My Thoughts: I thought this would be a short, thrilling piece of work, and an introduction to a new to me author, Zoë Carter. Well, two outta 3 ain't bad.
The Good: It was short. Yep, that's about it folks. I'd like to say the writing style appealed to me but it didn't. I'd like to say the intrigue of the storyline captured me but it didn't. I'd like to say the characters spoke to me but....well, actually they did. They said we are all horrible creatures drawn to be completely unlikable to our readers. Not necessarily a good thing when it comes to someone as character driven as myself. However, the plot wasn't without some interest on my part. I thought the opening prologue was interesting, even though nothing in the next 50 pages mentioned it again. I thought the ending was interesting as well, except it came a little to late for me to care what happens next in the story.
The Bad: The book was narrated by both Sarah and Maisey, alternatively. I don't normally mind this but when you're looking at the grand scheme of the book I had in hand, it didn't really work. I had 1/6th of this story. The constant back and forth perspectives made it impossible to really get "into" the story and to feel the tension it was supposed to create. In addition, the characters didn't have the time to grow and feel three dimensional to the reader because we were limited in page space. If the goal was always to release this book as a serial, having the first part as Sarah's voice and the second part, Maisey's, alternating that way, might have worked more in it's favor. Now here is one of my biggest contentions about this book....perhaps, through no fault of the author herself, the first part was offered for free on Amazon, at first. Now it costs $1.99. Each part costs $1.99, with the exception of part 2 right now is on sale for $.99. So, if you managed to get the first part for free and the second part for a buck to get the complete story you, dear reader, will shell out almost $9.00 for a book by an author who now has 2 books under her belt. I'm not trying to undermined all the work Ms. Carter put into her craft but when I can spend only a couple more dollars to get a brand new release by an author who is tried and true with dozens of NT Times #1 best sellers, why would I? I wouldn't.
In a Nutshell: I'm sorry Ms. Carter but I refuse to read any more of this book. Perhaps if it were to be offered as one complete book at a decent price I might reconsider. However, I do see your other book on Amazon is reasonably priced and is a full novel. I will check it out because I don't feel as if I've given you and your writing a reasonable chance.
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