2.5 stars, decent story but very slow burn and melancholy feel.
This book starts with a startling incident. Patrick is intoxicated and driving one night when he hits a dog (dog is fine). He sees a man standing in the shadows, but ends up leaving. In the morning, it is discovered that 20-year-old Eden is dead, later determined to be murder.
Three young adults are found to have been present: Hannah, her boyfriend Jack, and their friend Christopher. The novel is told from the perspectives of many of their parents. Secrets are kept, brought to light, lies are told, and all through the lens of privilege and power.
There are some fascinating themes throughout, with privilege, power, race, and addiction as backdrops to the incidents that occur. However, I just didn't feel like the multiple perspectives gave any one of them the justice they deserved. Some characters are much more fully fleshed out than others, and this provides an uneven feel to the narrative.
The book is also very repetitive. Same conversations held over and over by various characters as one, then the other finds out about something. The teenagers all keep secrets until part of it is revealed, then they all add that small bit to their stories and so on. I didn't completely have buy in for the conclusion of the book either. There's a bunch left up to the reader's imagination, which works in a way because we do know who did it, but not who will ultimately be held responsible. It's just overall so very sad. No one gets a satisfying ending, much less a happy one.
I listened to much of this as an audiobook before switching to print, and while Cassandra Campbell does a good job, this is an audiobook that really cries out for a full cast narration. With both male and female points of view, there should have been at least two narrators to distinguish them.
This book has really resonated with many people, so be sure to read some positive reviews for this book as well. It would make an excellent book club choice because there's much here to promote discussion.
This book starts with a startling incident. Patrick is intoxicated and driving one night when he hits a dog (dog is fine). He sees a man standing in the shadows, but ends up leaving. In the morning, it is discovered that 20-year-old Eden is dead, later determined to be murder.
Three young adults are found to have been present: Hannah, her boyfriend Jack, and their friend Christopher. The novel is told from the perspectives of many of their parents. Secrets are kept, brought to light, lies are told, and all through the lens of privilege and power.
There are some fascinating themes throughout, with privilege, power, race, and addiction as backdrops to the incidents that occur. However, I just didn't feel like the multiple perspectives gave any one of them the justice they deserved. Some characters are much more fully fleshed out than others, and this provides an uneven feel to the narrative.
The book is also very repetitive. Same conversations held over and over by various characters as one, then the other finds out about something. The teenagers all keep secrets until part of it is revealed, then they all add that small bit to their stories and so on. I didn't completely have buy in for the conclusion of the book either. There's a bunch left up to the reader's imagination, which works in a way because we do know who did it, but not who will ultimately be held responsible. It's just overall so very sad. No one gets a satisfying ending, much less a happy one.
I listened to much of this as an audiobook before switching to print, and while Cassandra Campbell does a good job, this is an audiobook that really cries out for a full cast narration. With both male and female points of view, there should have been at least two narrators to distinguish them.
This book has really resonated with many people, so be sure to read some positive reviews for this book as well. It would make an excellent book club choice because there's much here to promote discussion.