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.
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