Short & Sweet: The Silent Companions and Paper Chains

The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell

This was a weird read, all things considered. By the end it was definitely more violent/gruesome than I had expected (to the point where it seemed rather over-the-top). I don't entirely understand the "reveal" at the end (spoilers, highlight to read: I am assuming that when Sarah cut her finger on one of the companions, the "spirit" of Hetta took her over, and she's the one who murdered everyone else?). I was intrigued by the mystery of what happened in Elsie's past (with her parents), and wish we had gotten more explanation for that as well. I did think that the question of whether or not Elsie is delusional/hallucinating or whether there is something supernatural going on here was handled pretty well towards the end of the story; it did have me flipping back and forth between the two theories! 

I also sometimes found it difficult to take the companions all that seriously in their menace. I mean, we are talking about a bunch of wooden paintings here.

3 shooting stars.

Paper Chains by Nicola Moriarty

This read definitely required some suspension of disbelief -- there are a lot of coincidences and ways things are linked together that err on the side of cheesy. However, I found the flashbacks of Hannah's past very gripping, particularly in how her mental health issues are depicted (spoilers, highlight to read: her postpartum depression felt very real). I could connect with Hannah better than I could with India, although I did sometimes find that Hannah's thoughts, particularly about herself, came across as over-the-top (granted, she was struggling with a lot). I feel like the reader only really gets to know India genuinely right at the end (spoilers: because we find out that she's sort of been trying out a new persona to distance herself from the "sick Lily" version of herself). I did think that India's and Hannah's friendship developed quite quickly and felt sort of forced. The writing style, though, made this a quick read.

3 shooting stars.

Short & Sweet: An Anonymous Girl and The Wife Between Us

An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen

I polished this one off in a day! I was pulled in right from the get-go and then by the end couldn't put it down. A compelling, gripping psychological thriller where you're not sure who to trust and the truth is continually being questioned. I really enjoyed the themes of social psychology and ethics/morality woven throughout. The style of switching between Jessica's and Dr. Shields' perspectives was excellently done; their voices were distinct and Dr. Shields' chapters in particular were written in a clinical, 2nd-person/distant-1st-person that worked really well to convey her unsettling personality. I felt a little mixed about the ending; I thought that one part of it was very fitting in a thematic and storytelling sense, whereas another part kind of took me aback. Spoilers, highlight to read: the fact that Dr. Shields committed suicide by taking Vicodin felt like it made sense from a storytelling perspective. However, I'm not entirely sure how the reader is expected to respond to how Jessica behaves in the last conversation she has with Thomas. She's been the character the reader has been rooting for, so I felt a little upset with having her essentially blackmail Thomas. It certainly drives home the point that no one is 100% "good".

4.5 shooting stars.



The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen

Good, but not as gripping or cleverly plotted as the other book I read by this writing duo, An Anonymous Girl. I guessed at one of the big twists early on, and just generally I'd say this one was fairly predictable. Towards the end it does get pretty hard to put down, though! The villain in this one is so despicable that it is very easy to root for another character (being deliberately vague here so as not to spoil, lol). And there was a reveal right at the end that I didn't see coming! Also, a very weird relationship dynamic that is hinted at but not fully explained left me still with questions... Spoilers, highlight to read: what was up with Maureen? What kind of twisted brother-sister relationship do they have? Creeeeeeeepy...

3.5 shooting stars.

Short & Sweet: The Fever and Alias Grace

The Fever by Megan Abbott

About halfway through this book became pretty hard to put down! As the mysterious events unfold, the writing becomes more and more unsettling, with the style being sort of reminiscent of magical realism at times, making you question what is real and what isn't. I do wish that the ending had explored more of the purported cause of the events (spoiler, highlight to read: I feel like it would have been helpful for there to have been more details about the theory that the symptoms were due to mass psychogenic illness). Things feel like they get wrapped up awfully fast, and not as satisfyingly as they could have been. Nevertheless, Abbott adeptly conveys the mood of panic and paranoia that the community is swept up in as more and more young girls start showing alarming symptoms.                                                                                                                                                                   4 shooting stars. 

                                             

Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood

A fascinating re-imagining of the real-life Kinnear-Montgomery murders. It's a bit slow-moving as Grace begins relating her tale to Dr. Jordan, but soon picks up, and I easily became sucked into the story that Atwood weaves.

4 shooting stars.