whitneydaniell

by: Kristen Bird
published: March 12, 2024
genre: Suspense, Thriller
338 Pages, E-Book ARC Courtesy of NetGalley
GoodReads Link

Synopsis

It’s early morning in the small Texas town of Edenberg when the body of sixty-seven-year-old Beverly Hoffman is discovered in the Guadalupe River—drowned in only two inches of water.

Beverly had been beloved in the tight-knit community, having cofounded the wildly popular personal development company Genetive, Inc., alongside her influential husband. But something sinister has been smoldering beneath the surface of their picturesque hometown. And Genetive is at the center of it all.

I. Characters

The story unfolds through the eyes of Nichole, Jenny, and the late Beverly, who seems to be speaking from purgatory. Now, Nichole is initially not the most likable character. I get it, she’s grieving, and I’m supposed to sympathize, but her actions make it kinda of tough. The heavy reliance on booze? Cringe. And that opening scene with a mystery man, later revealed as Wes, in her bed? Didn’t hit the mark it was supposed to.

On the flip side, Jenny’s way more relatable. Right from the get-go, her frostiness towards her husband, Curt signals he did something majorly messed up, and she’s sticking around for the sake of the kids. Her story about ditching LA and the LA Times did pull at my heartstrings, making me feel for her. But, as the tale unfolded, Jenny started grating on my nerves a bit.

Beverly only gets a handful of chapters to spill her story, and since it’s posthumous, her character doesn’t evoke much emotion. Yet, her narrative is the heartbeat of the whole book, steering the plot along.

Curt, oh boy, talk about dense. Thank the stars he finally woke up.

Wes! Early on, my notes screamed, “I DO NOT TRUST HIM!” And that feeling stuck around most of the story. Sure, he had some redeeming qualities, but everything else in my notes about him turned out to be spot-on. Maybe I’ve read too many thrillers, ’cause, as Amanda Seales says, “I be knowing.“

II. The Story / Plot

This ain’t your average murder mystery – there’s a whole shady underworld lurking in the cozy town of Edenberg, TX. To unravel the chaos, you’ve gotta hit the brakes at the top. Getting to the bottom of Beverly Hoffman’s saga means diving into the tangled connections of Nichole, Jenny, and Robin. Nichole and Jenny, lifelong buddies, are wrestling with some serious personal baggage. Nichole’s in the thick of mourning her sister, Christina, while Jenny’s navigating the wreckage of her marriage. Together, they’re on a mission to uncover what went down right before Nichole stumbled onto Beverly’s lifeless body in that shallow river.

Gotta admit, as much as it pains me, this story was a bit too on the nose. Flipping through my notes, I pieced together the gaps and called the ending as early as page 174. Didn’t stop me from chugging along, just an observation.

The main deal is figuring out who offed Beverly Hoffman, but within that, there are all these distracting little Easter eggs throwing you off the scent. Don’t get me wrong, I like a good twist, but I wish there was less fluff and more mystery.

And let’s talk about Genetive Inc.—weird from the get-go. My notes straight-up said, “…brainwashing people like a cult or Scientology,” and it took a solid 113 pages for someone in the story to echo my sentiments, calling it a “cult” or “cultish” to be precise. George Hoffman is L. Ron Hubbard, and Edenberg is Clearwater, FL – the plot thickens.

III. The Writing

Kristen Bird understands how readers digest words on a page, the writing was spot on – I have no complaints. Dialogue was perfect and timely. There weren’t excessive words where they shouldn’t be and, she painted a picture of the scene very well.

IV. My Final Thoughts

This should have been a quick read but, honestly, I couldn’t get into it because the ending was right there in the beginning – where it had no business. But, that’s my opinion, I still enjoyed the story. Would I buy it or recommend it, maybe I would, maybe I wouldn’t, it would certainly depend on the reader I’m talking to. This story reads like an introduction to thrillers, not for someone whose sole genre of choice is suspense and thriller novels.

Didn’t love it, didn’t hate it. Read it for yourself.