3.5*

An interesting thriller with enough twists and turns to keep you engaged. The slow drip of information is timed well, revealing just enough to keep you reading until the next reveal. It does what it sets out to do very well, most of the criticisms of the book lie in treating this book as something it’s not. I agree with many of them; the setting is disappointing, it’s not fleshed out at all, neither does it add anything to the story, it’s simply somewhere for the story to take place; many of the characters feel like stereotypes, the scared woman, the controlling man, the eccentric psychologist. If these aspects are important to you in your reading, I’d advise you to read something else. Everything in this book comes second to the mystery, to the detriment of the rest of the story.

The allegories used in the book, namely Alcestis are kind of heavy-handed and oftentimes the main points are reiterated quite a few times. You also have to take any mentions of psychology and therapy in this book with a mound of salt. It is pop psychology to a T and never pretends to be anything else.

With all that being said, this book delivers on the premise of a page-turning thriller and keeps me engaged the whole way. It has one job to do and does it well. A good book that I’d feel comfortable recommending to others, particularly fans of thrillers.