Just as I'm getting jaded, here comes a thriller the likes of which I haven't seen before.
Jen is up one night waiting for her 18-year-old son to come home. She sees him out the window, but before he can reach their door, a stranger crosses his path and he commits an unthinkable crime right in front of her. She is shocked. How could her beloved child do this? When she wakes up the next day, an even bigger shock awaits her. It's not tomorrow, but yesterday. Is this her chance to figure out what's going on and to stop it from happening in the first place?
First, let's take a moment to admire that premise. It's such a fun take on the mystery/thriller genre and time loops. We follow Jen as she tries to figure out how to save her son, but instead of seeing the investigation unfold in order, we see it in reverse. As she goes backwards in time, we're right there with her as she discovers each clue bit and bit. It's all quite fascinating.
I'm a big fan of time loops (or any sci-fi element really), so I can't resist when they show up. But to set expectations correctly, it's important to note that this story isn't science fiction. The time loop is merely a device to set up the premise and enable the story to be told in a different way. And it totally works. The explanation provided was quick and clever, and it allowed the focus to remain on the mystery where it should be.
There were so many twists and turns in here, it made for a most exciting time. I don't want to talk them up though, since whether or not you'll be surprised will depend on what you've seen before. As for me, I guessed a few things beforehand, but there were still plenty that surprised me and kept me on my toes.
I will say though, I didn't love everything. For one, I found the writing style to be a bit odd, especially in the beginning. There was an excess of punctuation everywhere, particularly commas. This isn't the sort of thing I usually notice, but it was really flagrant.
And, right then, it had felt, suddenly, like spring, even though it began to rain again only minutes later.
If you're wondering how this got through editing, you and me both.
Also, there was a lot of telling and no showing when it came to setting up the main characters. Supposedly Kelly is really witty, and Jen and Kelly banter a lot. We know this because we're told many times, usually right after the characters say something mundane and awkward. Between this and the punctuations, I found it all really distracting. But once the action got going, I was able to block it out and just concentrate on the mystery.
If it weren't for the writing hiccups, this could've easily been 5 stars for me. The more I read, the more impressed I became. This is such a layered and complex story, with lots of clues and parts that all funnel towards one cohesive explanation. I bet now that I know the ending, if I go back and reread it again, I would catch so many things I missed the first time around.
It's not often I come across a book that adds something new to the thriller/mystery genre, and this one sure does. For that alone, it is worth a read.
Readaroo Rating: 4 stars
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