Always susceptible to boarding school settings and secret fraternities, I couldn't resist giving this one a try. I'd also read a couple of Charlie Donlea books that I'd enjoyed, and I was prepared for suspense.
Multiple characters and several timelines kept things up in the air for a while. I was uncertain about what was actually going on and a bit concerned about whether or not I was going to like the book.
It wasn't until Rory Moore was introduced and the details nudged a familiarity that I felt more comfortable. Which is weird, because Rory is an uncomfortable character. I read Some Choose Darkness last year, and because I like autistic, obsessive compulsive characters with social anxiety, I even mentioned that I'd like a series with Rory.
I'm glad Donlea decided to use Rory and her partner Lane Phillips again, but I did think the book was overly complicated with the multiple characters and timelines. Rory's role was more curtailed than I would have liked. In a way, there is no main character because the shifting pov's are so frequent.
So...a creepy book about murders and suicides in an isolated elite prep school with several elements I liked (Man in the Mirror initiation into secret club), but a congested plot. Also a serious flaw in credibility that I can't mention because it gives away the killer.
Donlea keeps the reader from settling on a suspect, or rather, keeps the reader switching from one possible suspect to another until close to the end. So many characters, so many possibilities. What the book fails to do is make the most of Rory Moore and Lane Phillips.
If you have a chance, try Some Choose Darkness.
NetGalley/Kensington Books
Mystery/Suspense. July 28, 2020. Print length: 368 pages.
I read Some Choose Darkness earlier this year and liked it quite a bit. I've got this new book and will try to read it soon, keeping in mind the things you mentioned. I, too, like a book with a boarding school setting.
ReplyDelete:) It was one of those books that had a lot of elements I liked, but I did find it more complicated than complex. I liked Some Choose Darkness much better.
DeleteI liked the first Donlea book that I read, but I haven't read either of his latest. I do like a boarding school setting, but I don't always love multiple POVs. But I'm still adding this one to my TBR list. :)
ReplyDeleteI've liked a couple of Donlea's books, and he is staying on my list. I'll look for the next one. I'm wondering if the reporter is going to be a character in the next book.
DeleteI can't resist books with a school setting and secret fraternities too. This book definitely has a lot of stuff going on and all these divert our attention. But I'm glad it was still an intrigue read and given that I've yet to read Some Choose Darkness, I'm hoping to read it at some point as Rory and Lane are both interesting characters. :)
ReplyDeleteI was expecting more of Rory Moore, but I was certainly curious about who the guilty party was and kept changing my favorite suspect!
DeleteI haven't yet read Meldoy's review of this one, but I am intrigued from your description of it. It sounds like it has lot going on. I am having better luck with lighter reads right now, and think I should stick to those for the time being. But this might work for me at a later time.
ReplyDeleteThis is a darker book with some truly creepy stuff going on, so maybe not the right book for you now. I don't mind creepy and like boarding school settings, and this one might be better for the RIP Challenge. :)
DeleteI'm always intrigued by books with boarding schools and secret fraternities. Rory sounds like just the type of character I love to read about. I'll have to look into Some Choose Darkness. :)
ReplyDeleteThe isolation and the age group of boarding schools have so many potential problems, don't they? I find it difficult to resist them. :)
DeleteYour thoughts about over complicated plots are similar to my reaction to books that introduce so many characters in the first thirty pages or so that I lose any idea of who they all are and how they relate to each other. I've come to expect that of certain authors now, though, and start each of their books with a notepad along side so that I jot them all down as they are introduced.
ReplyDeleteIt makes me wonder why authors don't realize that they are shooting themselves in the foot when they do this kind of thing.
Some authors do it so well that I barely even notice, others leave me confused. Multiple characters, multiple viewpoints, short chapters skipping around and leaving too much open to conjecture can be frustrating and impair the coherence of the narrative. I like the "shooting themselves in the foot" comparison. :)
DeleteWell that's a bummer that the character you were most excited about was not used as much. I would like to check out this author though.
ReplyDeleteDo check out Charlie Donlea. I've liked some better than others, but the ones I like, I like a lot. :)
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