Tag: kidnapping

No Exit by Taylor Adams

No Exit by Taylor Adams

by maddison37055 ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Rating: 5 out of 5.

There is a fabulous, cinematic thriller in No Exit. I had watched the movie several months back without realizing that it was actually a book first – I prefer to read before I watch – but ultimately decided I still wanted to read it even though I knew what would happen. Glad that I did!!

Tearing across the country to get to her dying mother, Darby Thorne ends up stranded in the Rockies, at a random rest stop, in an absolutely incredible snowstorm. Inside, she finds four strangers, and a young girl locked in one of their vans in the parking lot. Unsure of the suspect, but desperate to get the girl to safety before plows and police can arrive in the dead zone, she hatches a plan.

This book reads like a movie. Once I got going, I couldn’t put it down. I knew what was going to happen and I still couldn’t tear my eyes away; it’s amazing in the suspense department and it’s written a quick-paced way that, shockingly, doesn’t skimp on plot or character development.

And speaking of character development: I *love* Darby; she is smart and heroic, quick-thinking and selfless. I thought her character was both brilliant but believable. The supporting characters – the other strangers at the bus stop – were also well-rounded enough that their actions were predictable without being dry. In fact, the book dives even deeper into the characters than I could recall from the movie, and I thought it better served the story. The small cast of people allows for the story, the plot, and the action to unfold in a way that’s not distracting, but makes it the absolute focal point.

I already knew the twists from having seen the movie, but credit where credit is due in its originality, they would’ve surprised the heck out of me had I not already known them. You expect a run-of-the-mill action thriller, but there’s a bit of mystery to this as well. I think anyone walking into it blind would be pleasantly surprised by everything within it.

Highly recommend – it’s not only making me want to rewatch the film, but read more Taylor Adams books (I require more, sir). Happy reading!

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The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena

The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena

by maddison37055 ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

The 52 Book Club 2022 Challenge Prompt: 15. A five-syllable title

Other Possible Prompts: 25. A wealthy character

I’m on a thriller kick lately! I’ve actually been knocking out a lot of my boss’ book recommendations, which included The Couple Next Door. I finally got around to things she told me to read months ago… so without further ado, welcome to your March bonus review. 😉

Anne and Marco Conti make a quick decision one evening to leave their sleeping baby home next door while they attend a neighbors’ dinner party, checking on her routinely until they leave at just after one in the morning. When they return, their six-month-old daughter, Cora, is gone.

The call to the police launches an investigation into her kidnapping that begins to unravel a carefully threaded web of lies, twists, and turns that will keep you guessing until the very, very end.

This is another one of those stories where I’m PETRIFIED that just telling you what the book is about is going to ruin the whole thing. Because it’s like a well of crazy, all the way down.

The perspective of this novel alternates back and forth primarily between Anne, Marcus, and Detective Rasbach, the lead detective on the case – with some other characters interspersed. You’d think, being in the head of just about every character, you may know more about where the story is going…but Lapena keeps it well hidden until she’s ready to reveal each individual detail. Every time something new came to light I gasped a little, thinking that must be where the ~wildness~ ended, and it never was.

One thing that annoyed me from the very beginning about the turn of events is that the detective immediately suspects Anne and Marcus of wrongdoing, and carries out his entire investigation as if they are at fault. He narrates that this is usually the case, that the child is likely already dead, that the parents likely have a hand in it…but it just didn’t sit right with me, even until the very end. It didn’t make me dislike the story, though, and it’s a necessary element of the plot – but it is certainly depressing. It just made me think.

I can’t tell you *which* characters I disliked, because it’ll ruin it for you, but I think the moral judgments of this cast of characters is really intriguing. I think it’s one of the strong points of the novel, similar to Diane Chamberlain’s The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes (keep your eyes peeled for that review at the end of April). Like, some of these characters did some dumb stuff, even borderline horrible stuff, but is it enough to make you hate them? Enough to make you want to see them suffer some consequences? It’s kind of an odd book that might have you changing your mind to the very last page on that front, truthfully.

I’ve decided not to try and fit this one into a prompt for the moment, which is why I only listed possible prompt suggestions. I did finish it in 2022…in fact, I finished it yesterday…but I’ve already filled my two prompt suggestions, so I might only go back and fill it in for 48. Redo one of this year’s prompts but with a different genre if I have to. I’m sticking it on the back burner for now!

I definitely recommend The Couple Next Door, though I apparently don’t have a ton to say about the book! I’m trying to think of some other comments I have, but coming up empty handed. I kind of want to read Not a Happy Family now, and might pick it up at the library next week.

Have an awesome week, peeps!