It's disappointing for me to say I didn't connect with this story at all, however, after a few chapters I was intrigued by Deni's situation and wanted to know how it played out.
"I turn away from the mirror and don't look back. I throw the paper towel into the trash, then dig through my backpack, pull out a tube of sunscreen, reapply it, and toss it back into the pack. I check the time on my phone. This is my last stop before Three Rivers. Am I ready? Yes. I've done everything necessary, except for one thing. It's the reason I stopped here."
There's no action going on, it's almost like a diary describing Deni's day and her life as a professor with flashbacks explaining her trauma and fear levels as she tries to cope and move forward. The story just felt too fragmented to me, like puzzles pieces slowly being put together. It didn't grab my attention.
I easily suspected Keith, the husband, and Willow, the student. To me, Keith was either abusive or guilty.
My fave characters were Jaylan, the best friend, Deni's mom and Sonia the Detective. There's no violence in the story (someone gets hit by a baseball bat and there's an accident while skydiving...there's a confrontation with the bad guy at the end, but none of these are graphic or suspenseful). A character is killed off scene in a flashback but nothing is described and the scenario becomes more tragic than anything else. The writing hides A LOT from the reader or feels misleading. I just couldn't stand Keith and Denilyn is such a great character but her ways of coping and trying to heal are more told than experienced.
There was a VERY important detail left out until the end of the story and I just couldn't believe it wasn't revealed early on, felt like the narration was poking fun at the reader. There was a SLIGHT hinting towards this reveal but I totally missed it wondering what would happen next to Denilyn. When everything gets explained, it felt like the story was messing with my mind instead of trying to help me enjoy a suspenseful story played out with justice. I totally disagreed with Denilyn's tactics to flush the bad guy out, also felt tricked by that. Her personality completely changed and it just didn't feel practical or authentic to me.
This book wasn't for me, but I hope it helps and entertains others who need encouragement in a story like this one. Also the cover is good, but to me it doesn't match Denilyn's appearance.
I received a copy from the publisher via Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review, the comments and opinions are my own.