4 stars I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley. On plot, this book would get 5 stars. It’s exciting and had me turning pages well into the wee hours of the morning. The writing was simply okay. There was nothing wrong with the writing, but it was simplistic and did little to draw me in and make me care about the characters. It was akin to reading a newspaper article about a crime spree and feeling terrible for the victims, but not really knowing them. I haven’t read a John Grisham novel in years, but based on memory, I would say this writing is comparable. In my opinion, John Grisham has mediocre writing and fabulous plots. That’s why they make for great movies. This book would make a great movie. Although the plot centers on Anna, we are treated to a preview of John Brookner before she meets him. We know he is bad news, but the depth of his depravity is barely touched until much later. Leon Loy does an admirable job of building suspense, mostly because we know Brookner is going to make an appearance, but we don’t know how or when. Because I had some idea of what he was capable of doing, I was on the edge of my seat for most of the book, prior to the appearance of Brookner in Anna’s life, and even more so after. And like a true movie villain, Brookner seems to be indestructible. Scenery was described in such detail that it was easy to imagine it. The feel of the mid to late seventies was heavily dependent upon the vehicles driven and the music played. There was talk of Vietnam veterans and the innocence of this particular time in history was palpable. The thought of a young woman taking off in her car to “wander” without a map in a time before cell phones is hard to believe. At that time, young people were being warned that hitchhiking was dangerous so the thought that Anna’s parents (okay, maybe not her mom) did not put up more of an argument about her plan was baffling. Faced with some unexpected choices, Anna’s decisions reflected her immaturity and naivete. Her reactions were definitely believable and the descriptions used to convey her indecision were all-too-familiar to me. When you’ve been raised with good parents in a safe community, you have no experience with sociopaths. When approached by one, you have no defense because you will excuse their actions as a misunderstanding and shrug off your misgivings as erroneous. You have no yardstick with which to measure evil. When faced with unimaginable circumstances, you may find yourself rooted to the spot, unable to move or speak as your brain tries to catch up and make sense of what you're seeing. These are the things that happened to Anna. Luckily, because she was intelligent, she adapted quickly and was proactive. She prayed that Travis would rescue her, but she didn’t completely rely on him. Travis was the hero of the book, but Anna was not the damsel in distress. It was near the end, as they were wrapping up loose ends, that the writing began to bother me. At this point, the connection between Travis and Anna was solidified, but their conversations always seemed stilted and superficial, implying there was no need for words because their hearts understood one another. I was relieved they were safe, naturally, but I didn’t feel anything else for them. Although all of the characters in the story were described adequately, the one for whom I felt the most empathy was Kate. She felt real; the others felt like stereotypes. As I mentioned previously, this works well for movies. Imagining this as an action movie, eases the need for a deep connection with the characters. The plot takes precedence, and the plot for this book is remarkable. I’d watch it. December 24, 2020
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September 2022
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