B.A. Paris | Book Chatter

Bring Me Back
By B.A. Paris
St. Martin’s Press, 9781250151339, June 2018, 304pp.

The Short of It:

Great start. Poor finish.

The Rest of It:

B.A. Paris wrote Behind Closed Doors which I thought was a pretty good read. Many of you read it and I think overall it was well received. Her next book, The Breakdown was also very popular with readers. What I cannot deny is that she writes tense, suspenseful page-turners and that was what I was in the mood for when I picked up her latest book Bring Me Back.

This story is all about Finn, Ellen and Ellen’s missing (presumed dead) sister Layla. It’s a love triangle with a lot of twists and turns. The last time Finn saw Layla, was at a rest-stop. After a lover’s quarrel, Finn steps out of the car to use the facilities and when he comes back Layla is gone with no leads, except for the little Russian nesting doll she left behind.

Years pass. Layla never shows up. During this time Finn falls in “like” with Ellen, Layla’s sister. As the two of them approach marriage, Finn does his best to push his feelings for Layla aside so that he can spend the rest of life with Ellen. But then, a little Russian nesting doll appears out of nowhere. What does this mean? Is Layla alive? Is she trying to communicate with him? Is someone holding her captive?

The set-up is good. I was pulled into the story, but very early on I figured out what happened and because of that realization, the rest was too much of a cat and mouse game and the ending was ultimately lackluster. Plus, I never want to hear about or see a Russian nesting doll again. It’s seriously overused.

I really DO enjoy these types of books. I am all about page-turners this summer but I need a solid plot. Give me that, and some decent characters and I’m good. This story was just too much of Finn running around trying to figure out what was, in my opinion, very obvious to begin with.

Source: Review copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley.
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

The Breakdown
By B.A. Paris
St. Martin’s Press, 9781250122469, July 2017, 336pp.

The Short of It:

Another unputdownable read by B.A. Paris.

The Rest of It:

I’ve spent this summer reading page-turners and I have to say, it’s be a really pleasant summer for these types of reads. In The Breakdown, we meet Matthew and Cass. Newly married, they live in a large home in rural part of town. A home that backs to the woods and a road that Matthew has warned Cass not to take late at night. After an evening out with friends and the horrible storm-related traffic on the highway, Cass goes against her better judgement and takes the shortcut home. What she didn’t expect to see was a woman pulled over to the side of the road. She makes a snap decision to NOT stop to see if she needs assistance and to her horror, the woman turns up dead the next morning.

This is a fun book to read. I’ll admit, Cass has some issues and they get a little repetitive in the telling. For one, she has signs of early onset dementia, which her mother had so everything she does and knows cannot be relied upon because of her failing memory. Plus, she’s jumpy from the fact that a murderer is on the loose so there are a lot of false alarms but man, I couldn’t stop turning those pages.

I really enjoyed Behind Closed Doors so when I heard that Paris had another book out, I jumped at the chance to read it and I am glad I did. It was fun and suspenseful even though I kind of figured out what was going on. If you like quick, psychological thrillers and don’t mind an unreliable narrator (I love them!) then be sure to pick it up.

Source: Review copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley.
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

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