Mister Tender's Girl started off strong and finished with a deflated bang. Alice Hill was attacked by twin girls who were influenced by Alice's father's hit graphic novel character, Mister Tender. Over the years, the tragedy haunted Alice and destroyed her family. Now living in America, her brother is in his twenties but still dependent on their mother, and though Alice has her own business she suffers from panic attacks and paranoia.
The premise of the story is what drew me in. The first few chapters intrigued me and made me think Alice was a flawed, but kick-butt character who rose from the ashes of a tragedy and learned to survive. Well, that's only partially true. When an unpublished and unfinished copy of a Mister Tender graphic novel turns up in her coffee shop, Alice learns that though she changed her name and moved across the pond, she's not as under the radar as she thinks. Trouble has been following her all along and now it seems that Mister Tender has found her. A series of events put Alice in a hard place and she flounders until she decides to seek out the identity of this character who doesn't exist in real life. The search is fruitless and it's only at the near end of the novel that a real clue appears.
The story rambled to a conclusion that was quite blah. It came to a screeching halt after a fast-paced scene that was rushed and equally disappointing. Questions were definitely answered, but after making it this far into the story without giving up hope that it would surprise me, I expected a bit more from this big confrontation.
I didn't get a sense of being drawn in and intrigued as the story progressed. I just wanted to get to the bottomline of the story and everything in between was just filler. I didn't hate Mister Tender's Girl, it just didn't turn out to be the story I expected.
*Review copy provided via BookishFirst*
The premise of the story is what drew me in. The first few chapters intrigued me and made me think Alice was a flawed, but kick-butt character who rose from the ashes of a tragedy and learned to survive. Well, that's only partially true. When an unpublished and unfinished copy of a Mister Tender graphic novel turns up in her coffee shop, Alice learns that though she changed her name and moved across the pond, she's not as under the radar as she thinks. Trouble has been following her all along and now it seems that Mister Tender has found her. A series of events put Alice in a hard place and she flounders until she decides to seek out the identity of this character who doesn't exist in real life. The search is fruitless and it's only at the near end of the novel that a real clue appears.
The story rambled to a conclusion that was quite blah. It came to a screeching halt after a fast-paced scene that was rushed and equally disappointing. Questions were definitely answered, but after making it this far into the story without giving up hope that it would surprise me, I expected a bit more from this big confrontation.
I didn't get a sense of being drawn in and intrigued as the story progressed. I just wanted to get to the bottomline of the story and everything in between was just filler. I didn't hate Mister Tender's Girl, it just didn't turn out to be the story I expected.
*Review copy provided via BookishFirst*