First line: I killed my brother with a penny.
Plot summary: In the summer of 2019, two students from Westmont Preparatory were killed in the abandoned house near the campus. It's rumored they were part of the Man in the Mirror secret society. One of their teachers was accused of their murders. A year later, both a newspaper reporter and a podcaster are digging into their murders, and the suicides that have followed. But the students of Westmont and their advisors are keeping secrets. Then Dr. Lane Phillips, a renown forensic psychologist, and Rory Moore, a cold case savant, get pulled in to help. And all those dark secrets start to come out.
My thoughts: There are a lot of layers to this mystery, with multiple character POVs interspersed with journal entries written by the murderer, and lots of shifts between the past and present. All of which slowed the pacing for me, especially at the beginning. Once I settled into the flow of the story, the pacing picked up. And I found the ending compelling. Though I have to admit, I didn't like this one nearly as much as I did Donlea's previous novel, Some Choose Darkness. Probably because with so many characters, and so much of the storyline taking place in the past, Rory's role isn't as prominent. And she's the character I like the most. But this mystery is still a good read.
My rating: 3.5/5 stars.
Happy Reading!
This does sound complicated to follow! Are the journal entries part of evidence found, or is it more that you're following one of the characters via the journal? Do you know who the murderer is from the journal?
ReplyDeleteYou do not know who the murderer is; and he's reading his entries to a psychologist. Or at least that's what it seems like he's doing. And there are lots of suspects in the story to keep you guessing about who it really is.
DeleteSounds like an interesting storyline though! Too bad you didn't enjoy this one as much as Some Choose Darkness.
ReplyDeleteI just finished a book that had three character POVs and I found it hard to keep them all straight. So this one may be above my pay grade, so to speak.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like Some Choose Darkness is the book to begin with. Too many characters in a book is a mistake. When that happens no character, for example Rory, gets the level of attention she deserves.
ReplyDeleteTrying to make sense of a lot of characters can slow the pace, however, I've enjoyed this author in the past. I'll look up Some Choose Darkness. :)
ReplyDeleteSounds interesting, but I think I'm going to pass on it. Seems like I should read Some Choose Darkness instead. Great review, Lark!
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