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Passing Through
Olsten Ryder is a successful, affluent and ambitious businessman, his collectable doll manufacturing company being amongst the most niche in the world. But when he is accused of the murder of Celeste Harrington, a young and beautiful member of his own social circle, his friends and colleagues are left astounded when he disappears from police custody, leaving no trace that he'd ever existed.
Over the years that pass after Olsten's disappearance, his former colleagues and friends remain in contact and they are all invited to the twenty-first birthday party of Amitola, the adopted daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Defoe, successful architects and friends of James Lambert, who just happens to be Olsten Ryder's solicitor.
Everyone is delighted to meet together again, and even more so when Amitola's engagement is announced at her party. What could possibly happen to threaten such a happy occasion and does Olsten Ryder's mysterious disappearance have anything to do with the events that come to pass?
Passing Through is Jacqueline Dixon's debut novel, a dark and thought provoking murder mystery with more than a touch of speculative fiction and a bit of fantasy thrown into the mix for good measure. An absorbing and enthralling read.
Over the years that pass after Olsten's disappearance, his former colleagues and friends remain in contact and they are all invited to the twenty-first birthday party of Amitola, the adopted daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Defoe, successful architects and friends of James Lambert, who just happens to be Olsten Ryder's solicitor.
Everyone is delighted to meet together again, and even more so when Amitola's engagement is announced at her party. What could possibly happen to threaten such a happy occasion and does Olsten Ryder's mysterious disappearance have anything to do with the events that come to pass?
Passing Through is Jacqueline Dixon's debut novel, a dark and thought provoking murder mystery with more than a touch of speculative fiction and a bit of fantasy thrown into the mix for good measure. An absorbing and enthralling read.
300 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 26, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
June 27, 2025
Here is my review for Passing Through by Jacqueline Dixon
I found this to be a really intriguing story focusing around Olsten Ryder and his relationship with Celeste Harrington who seems to suddenly go off the rails and her whole personality changes. Olsten always maintains they are just friends but Celeste insists their relationship is more than that and that she will become his wife. The story makes for interesting reading especially when he is accused of the murder of Celeste and then disappears from police custody. I really enjoyed reading this debut story from this author which kept me invested in the book and I was hooked from the start. I like her writing style which is easy to read and follow. I thought that Olsten was an intriguing character who seemed to have a lot of lady friends, although they were just friends but kept his life very private. He was a very good and keen business man. He enjoyed his successful collectable doll manufacturing company using some of the best materials available and the best designers. The book is extremely well written and I just couldn’t put it down as I needed to know what happened next, it was like a slow burn. The other characters were interesting and some had their traits. The plot was very intriguing.
Blurb :
Olsten Ryder is a successful, affluent and ambitious businessman, his collectable doll manufacturing company being amongst the most niche in the world. But when he is accused of the murder of Celeste Harrington, a young and beautiful member of his own social circle, his friends and colleagues are left astounded when he disappears from police custody, leaving no trace that he'd ever existed.
Over the years that pass after Olsten's disappearance, his former colleagues and friends remain in contact and they are all invited to the twenty-first birthday party of Amitola, the adopted daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Defoe, successful architects and friends of James Lambert, who just happens to be Olsten Ryder's solicitor.
Everyone is delighted to meet together again, and even more so when Amitola's engagement is announced at her party. What could possibly happen to threaten such a happy occasion and does Olsten Ryder's mysterious disappearance have anything to do with the events that come to pass?
Passing Through is Jacqueline Dixon's debut novel, a dark and thought provoking murder mystery with more than a touch of speculative fiction and a bit of fantasy thrown into the mix for good measure. An absorbing and enthralling read.
I found this to be a really intriguing story focusing around Olsten Ryder and his relationship with Celeste Harrington who seems to suddenly go off the rails and her whole personality changes. Olsten always maintains they are just friends but Celeste insists their relationship is more than that and that she will become his wife. The story makes for interesting reading especially when he is accused of the murder of Celeste and then disappears from police custody. I really enjoyed reading this debut story from this author which kept me invested in the book and I was hooked from the start. I like her writing style which is easy to read and follow. I thought that Olsten was an intriguing character who seemed to have a lot of lady friends, although they were just friends but kept his life very private. He was a very good and keen business man. He enjoyed his successful collectable doll manufacturing company using some of the best materials available and the best designers. The book is extremely well written and I just couldn’t put it down as I needed to know what happened next, it was like a slow burn. The other characters were interesting and some had their traits. The plot was very intriguing.
Blurb :
Olsten Ryder is a successful, affluent and ambitious businessman, his collectable doll manufacturing company being amongst the most niche in the world. But when he is accused of the murder of Celeste Harrington, a young and beautiful member of his own social circle, his friends and colleagues are left astounded when he disappears from police custody, leaving no trace that he'd ever existed.
Over the years that pass after Olsten's disappearance, his former colleagues and friends remain in contact and they are all invited to the twenty-first birthday party of Amitola, the adopted daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Defoe, successful architects and friends of James Lambert, who just happens to be Olsten Ryder's solicitor.
Everyone is delighted to meet together again, and even more so when Amitola's engagement is announced at her party. What could possibly happen to threaten such a happy occasion and does Olsten Ryder's mysterious disappearance have anything to do with the events that come to pass?
Passing Through is Jacqueline Dixon's debut novel, a dark and thought provoking murder mystery with more than a touch of speculative fiction and a bit of fantasy thrown into the mix for good measure. An absorbing and enthralling read.
June 24, 2025
I'm reviewing this as part of a tour with Hygge Book Tours.
Olsten Ryder is a doll manufacturer and owns one of the most successful businesses in the world. When he's accused of murder, it comes as a shock to those who know him; even more so when he mysteriously disappears. Twenty-one years later, Amitola, the adopted daughter of Ryder's solicitor, is celebrating her birthday and engagement, but will anyone ever know the truth about Ryder?
I found that the author had a way of making me feel very interested in the characters, even if initially, they didn't seem like characters that I would like or connect with. The author brought them to life in an exciting way, and it seemed to me like they all had a story of their own. I found Celeste to be an interesting character in particular.
I felt the story moved at a steady pace, but the more I carried on reading, the more it sparked my interest. This would probably fit into the speculative fiction genre, with elements of thriller and fantasy. It was a unique and intriguing story, and based on this, I would probably read something else by this author.
Thank you to Hygge Book Tours, and to the author and publisher, for the opportunity to read and review this.
Olsten Ryder is a doll manufacturer and owns one of the most successful businesses in the world. When he's accused of murder, it comes as a shock to those who know him; even more so when he mysteriously disappears. Twenty-one years later, Amitola, the adopted daughter of Ryder's solicitor, is celebrating her birthday and engagement, but will anyone ever know the truth about Ryder?
I found that the author had a way of making me feel very interested in the characters, even if initially, they didn't seem like characters that I would like or connect with. The author brought them to life in an exciting way, and it seemed to me like they all had a story of their own. I found Celeste to be an interesting character in particular.
I felt the story moved at a steady pace, but the more I carried on reading, the more it sparked my interest. This would probably fit into the speculative fiction genre, with elements of thriller and fantasy. It was a unique and intriguing story, and based on this, I would probably read something else by this author.
Thank you to Hygge Book Tours, and to the author and publisher, for the opportunity to read and review this.
June 22, 2025
Celeste Harrington's 'descent into madness' was interesting to watch. From a high spirited social butterfly to a crazed psychopath, given to outbursts of violence and spite, she quickly becomes a different person. She is obsessed with ceramic doll manufacturer Olsten Ryder and believes that he wants to marry her. She even ditches her fiance and cancels their wedding. But Olsten denies all knowledge of this romance, it's all in her muddled head.
I was surprised to discover Olsten is only around 40 years old, I thought initially he was at least 50 from the description and the fact that he was so much older than Celeste.
I loved the whole concept of the miniature ceramic dolls, all lovingly designed, dressed in beautiful clothes and wearing real jewels, including diamonds and other precious stones. I dread to think how much they cost. They were created for collectors, not as children's toys. But my favourite part was Celeste's murder, which was both original and ingenious. That's all I'm saying.
Amongst the other characters we meet are Millicent, Olsten's secretary, Olsten's best friend and lawyer James, French fashion designer Danielle, jewellery designer Lily, and Roy on reception, to name just a few.
This was a great debut novel, my only reservation being the fantasy part, but that's just me.
Many thanks to Hygge Book Tours for inviting me to be part of the #PassingThrough #blogtour.
I was surprised to discover Olsten is only around 40 years old, I thought initially he was at least 50 from the description and the fact that he was so much older than Celeste.
I loved the whole concept of the miniature ceramic dolls, all lovingly designed, dressed in beautiful clothes and wearing real jewels, including diamonds and other precious stones. I dread to think how much they cost. They were created for collectors, not as children's toys. But my favourite part was Celeste's murder, which was both original and ingenious. That's all I'm saying.
Amongst the other characters we meet are Millicent, Olsten's secretary, Olsten's best friend and lawyer James, French fashion designer Danielle, jewellery designer Lily, and Roy on reception, to name just a few.
This was a great debut novel, my only reservation being the fantasy part, but that's just me.
Many thanks to Hygge Book Tours for inviting me to be part of the #PassingThrough #blogtour.
July 2, 2025
This was my first read by this author - and I believe us also their debut novel too.
I wasn't sure what to expect but the cover piqued my interest and I was hoping for some mystery and darkness within.
Well, this certainly was quite a journey!
This is quite a different read and encompasses a few different genres, some of which I don't read too often (the fantasy elements) - but this all worked so well when threaded together.
It was quite a slower paced read than I'm used to with my thrillers - but again, I'm really liked this for a change and after getting used to the writing style, meeting the characters and starting to really follow the storyline, I became more and more invested.
We follow the story from Celeste's pov. She's obsessed with Olsten and even though it was clear to all that he wasn't interested and it was all in her head - she continues her plight.
Gradually, we see her decline from social butterfly to crazed psychopath and this ultimately concludes with her death.
Olsten is accused of the murder but subsequently goes missing leaving only a mystery behind him.
I wouldn't say that I fell in love with any of the characters - but the way that they were presented and developed left me completely invested in their stories.
I just had to keep on reading to find out how things planned out in the end.
I think this was really well written, especially for a debut!
It's definitely not my usual read - but I loved the darkness and dare I say, the mix of genres - maybe I've found my fantasy vibes after all!
Really enjoyable and unique read - I'd love to read more from this author in the future.
I wasn't sure what to expect but the cover piqued my interest and I was hoping for some mystery and darkness within.
Well, this certainly was quite a journey!
This is quite a different read and encompasses a few different genres, some of which I don't read too often (the fantasy elements) - but this all worked so well when threaded together.
It was quite a slower paced read than I'm used to with my thrillers - but again, I'm really liked this for a change and after getting used to the writing style, meeting the characters and starting to really follow the storyline, I became more and more invested.
We follow the story from Celeste's pov. She's obsessed with Olsten and even though it was clear to all that he wasn't interested and it was all in her head - she continues her plight.
Gradually, we see her decline from social butterfly to crazed psychopath and this ultimately concludes with her death.
Olsten is accused of the murder but subsequently goes missing leaving only a mystery behind him.
I wouldn't say that I fell in love with any of the characters - but the way that they were presented and developed left me completely invested in their stories.
I just had to keep on reading to find out how things planned out in the end.
I think this was really well written, especially for a debut!
It's definitely not my usual read - but I loved the darkness and dare I say, the mix of genres - maybe I've found my fantasy vibes after all!
Really enjoyable and unique read - I'd love to read more from this author in the future.
June 25, 2025
I really enjoyed this one. It was a bit different from other books I’ve read. It follows the story of Celeste Harrington as her personality changes from being a happy girl lucky social butterfly to that of a violent psychopath. Her obsession with a doll maker Olsten. Ryder is a bit frightening, actually. The world she creates in her head has her convinced he loves her, resulting in all kinds of difficulties that eventually led to her murder supposedly by Olsten. She’s a very well developed and portrayed so realistically that it’s scary. There was never a role in this book that is very well written and I was hooked from the very beginning. Passing through is a fantastic debut.
June 26, 2025
Passing Through by Jacqueline Dixon.
This was a good read. I loved the cover. That’s why I signed up. I did find it slow to start with. I wasn't sure how I felt about any of the characters. It's an intriguing story. It was different from what i'm used to. This is a new author for me.
This was a good read. I loved the cover. That’s why I signed up. I did find it slow to start with. I wasn't sure how I felt about any of the characters. It's an intriguing story. It was different from what i'm used to. This is a new author for me.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews