My Five Word TL:DR Review : A Great Play on Tropes

I’ve had a few days to kick back and let my feelings settle on this one and to really have a good think about it.  The reason, the ending felt a little rushed, but, on reflection I found this such a gripping and clever read.  It has three, on the face of it, storylines, but in actual fact they all have something in common and converge to make a tense, edge of seat, conclusion that, although quickly resolved, is all about women taking back control – which I have to say I loved.  So, yeah, I had a really good time with this.

Our central characters are Celia, Allie and Maggie.  Three women, unknown to each other who each wind up in, well, your basic nightmare situation.

Celia wakes up one morning and she can’t remember anything.  Everything around her seems wrong.  She’s living in a house with a daughter who’s name she can’t remember and a husband that she feels no emotion for.  At first, Celia tries to fit in, inside she’s in turmoil thinking she’s having a breakdown and just going with the flow but deep down she doesn’t trust what’s going on around her.  In fairly short order, it becomes apparent that Celia seems to be in some sort of Truman/Stepford Wives situation.  What isn’t clear is why?

Allie is about to have a birthday weekend away with her two best friends.  In fairness the three are a little out of sync and Allie is pinning her hopes on this weekend away to bring them back together.  Of course, we all know that saying about the best laid plans.  Yes, instead of a weekend at the beach with the girls Allie instead finds that her friends boyfriends have interjected themselves into the fun and they’re all about to spend their weekend in a cabin in the woods – and of course Allie is the third wheel.  Similarly to Celia, Allie just feels that something isn’t right almost immediately.  She feels uncomfortable and her instincts are telling her to get out of there.  This is your basic slasher situation.  Wrong Turn, Michael Myers, Cabin in the Woods.  Run Allie. Run.

Maggie’s story is slightly different.  As soon as she wakes up she’s under no delusions.  She’s been abducted, along with nine other women and they’re about to be forced to take part in a deadly game.  The leverage, each of the women are being almost held to ransom by the threat of violence being inflicted on a loved one.  Pretty soon Maggie finds herself in a survival of the fittest type of scenario reminiscent of The Hunger Games or the Maze.

So, what I really liked a about this.

Firstly all three scenarios are written so well.  Individually they are interesting and gripping stories that I enjoyed reading just in themselves, but on top of that I was so intrigued about what was going on and why these women were in this situation.

Secondly.  I really liked all three characters.   These are assertive women who refuse to back down.  They trust their instincts and don’t sit around in situations in which they feel uncomfortable waiting to be rescued by someone else.  They take the initiative.

Thirdly.  I loved the play on horror/thriller/mystery tropes. I mean, all the stories feel like falling into a comfort zone (well that sounds a bit wrong – your basic horror story feeling comfortable!).  You feel like you know what’s going to happen.  You can just feel it, and at the same time it’s kind of frustrating because you’re like ‘nooooo, don’t fall into this trap’ – and that’s what makes it so gripping.

On top of this, there are hints of what’s going on at the start of each chapter.  And this really plays into why the characters are so good.  I can’t really say anything more without being all spoilery.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this.  The individual storylines were all absorbing and really well done.  The characters were easy to like and there’s a great twist on the tropes.  These women are not some sort of ninja kick ass warriors but they use their smarts and refuse to be underestimated.  And, okay, the ending originally felt a little rushed, but on reflection I actually prefer it the way it is.  At first I thought I wanted more but the way the ending turns is spot on really – the worm that turned and refused to be trodden under foot any longer.

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks.  The above is my own opinion.

My rating 4 of 5 stars.