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Pretty Little Wife
Pretty Little Wife
Darby Kane | 2021
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Slow to start, but ultimately an intriguing and unique thriller

Lila Ridgefield's husband is missing. A beloved high school teacher, his boss, colleagues, and brother cannot believe that Aaron Payne would just disappear. He's certainly not the type to simply not show up for work one day. As for his wife, Lila is known more for her cold and quiet demeanor (and, let's be honest, her beauty). She's also pretty confused, because the last time she saw Aaron, she was rather convinced she was looking at his dead body. So where's his car she left behind--and the body? Investigator Ginny Davis is called to look into Aaron's disappearance. At first it seems unrelated to that of a missing local student. But the more Ginny digs, the more she starts to wonder. And the more Lila digs, the more she fears her husband is still alive.

"Despite all her careful planning, he was gone. She had to find Aaron before he found her."

Well, this was quite a book. The beginning was a bit slow for me--it took too long to get to the exciting part, and it was repetitive. It felt like bits and pieces were rehashed over and over. I wanted to shake Lila and tell her to get on with it!

But, once everything gets moving, this is quite an exciting thriller. The last fourth of the story especially is incredibly electrifying and, for the most part, keeps you guessing. (I had a decent idea about whodunnit, but it didn't diminish my enjoyment at all.) I loved the concept of a mystery where the woman kills her husband, yet the main story is, surprise: he disappears anyway. The dynamic between cunning Lila, whom you're never sure you can trust, and Ginny, who is a straightforward and honest investigator, is excellent. I enjoy a book with strong female protagonists and these two are excellent.

Overall, even though this dragged for a bit, it's certainly worth a read. For one thing, it's different, which is so refreshing in the thriller genre. It's also dark, intriguing, and surprising. 3.5 stars, rounded to 4 here.

I received a copy of this book from HarperCollins Publishers and Netgalley in return for an unbiased review.
  
When four hikers go missing on a mountain on Thanksgiving Day, Gracie Kinkaid is one of the only people to respond. She and her search partner quickly find one of the hikers, famous actor Rob Christian, but he’s injured. While they wait for help, a snow storm is coming in. What they don’t know is that someone is hunting for them on the mountain – to kill them.

Despite being published by Berkley Prime Crime, this is more a thriller than a cozy, with language and violence to go along with that. The pacing of the plot was uneven, with parts there were page turning and passages that were slow and even predictable. The characters were also not as complex as I would have liked. It wasn’t a bad book, but it also could have been better.

Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2015/01/book-review-zero-degree-murder-by-m-l.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.