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Thursday, June 6, 2013

He's Gone: A Novel by Deb Caletti

(This book has been provided to me by the publisher and TLC Book Tours.)
about book:

From National Book Award finalist Deb Caletti comes an intensely gripping story about love, loss, marriage, and secrets—perfect for readers of Jodi Picoult, Kristin Hannah, and Anna Quindlen.
  
“What do you think happened to your husband, Mrs. Keller?” 
The Sunday morning starts like any other, aside from the slight hangover. Dani Keller wakes up on her Seattle houseboat, a headache building behind her eyes from the wine she drank at a party the night before. But on this particular Sunday morning, she’s surprised to see that her husband, Ian, is not home. As the hours pass, Dani fills her day with small things. But still, Ian does not return. Irritation shifts to worry, worry slides almost imperceptibly into panic. And then, like a relentless blackness, the terrible realization hits Dani: He’s gone.

As the police work methodically through all the logical explanations—he’s hurt, he’s run off, he’s been killed—Dani searches frantically for a clue as to whether Ian is in fact dead or alive. And, slowly, she unpacks their relationship, holding each moment up to the light: from its intense, adulterous beginning, to the grandeur of their new love, to the difficulties of forever. She examines all the sins she can—and cannot—remember. As the days pass, Dani will plumb the depths of her conscience, turning over and revealing the darkest of her secrets in order to discover the hard truth—about herself, her husband, and their lives together.

my thoughts:

He's Gone just wasn't my cup of tea.  I found myself wanting more of the mystery and less of the introspection.  You see, the book starts off with Dani waking up and realizing her husband, Ian, has gone missing.  So, I figured that the story would revolve around that - trying to piece together what happened to Ian.  Instead, I found myself reading a slow-paced novel about a woman looking back through her past memories in order to figure out her present life.  And as a result of Dani's flashbacks, I found myself disliking the couple more and more. 

Now, don't get me wrong, the book is actually a pretty good read.  The writing is terrific and the pacing of the book fits in perfectly with the way the story unfolds.  I even found myself eagerly turning pages at times to see what would happen next.  However, my dislike for the characters combined with the flat ending wound up clouding my view of the story completely.  In the end, this book wasn't for me.

I've read some pretty glowing reviews of this book, so I'm thinking it was just me that didn't connect with this book.  And, I don't want to discourage you from reading what could be a great read for you, so I'm including the link to the TLC Book tour page for He's Gone - check it out here!!

I'm off to read Revenge Wears Prada: The Devil Returns - the sequel to The Devil Wears Prada by Lauren Weisberger.  I wanted something fun to read and this fits the bill perfectly!  Happy Reading!
Thank you to TLC Book Tours and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book!

15 comments:

bermudaonion said...

Too much introspection can drive me crazy! I read to get away from that in my own life.

The Relentless Reader said...

The premise sounds great. Too bad it didn't really work for you.

I've seen some glowing reviews for this as well. But I've also seen some not so glowing. I don't think you're alone. :)

I dig a little introspection if it isn't overdone.

Ti said...

I was a SKIM QUEEN because I have 25 pages left and feared a spoiler.

BUT.. I did see your reaction and comment about the introspection. Gawd, I love that shit. Sorry! Haha!

Nadia said...

Kathy, exactly! The same reason I read, too :)

Jennifer, good to know that I'm not alone :)

Ti, I figured you would enjoy this one :)

Rebecca @ Love at First Book said...

Hmmm. . . you seem iffy on this one, so I'm going to have to check out more reviews. Even though it sounds like an interesting premise, it might just be too much!

Nadia said...

Rebecca, definitely check out other posts. Some people really loved the book, so maybe I missed something.

hand painted oil painting said...

I've heard this before, and now i should probably add it to my list!

Nadia said...

hpop, check it out, you may wind up loving the book ;)

Lisa said...

I don't mind introspection in my books - I just want it to be what I'm expecting. If I were expecting a mystery, I wouldn't like it either.

Nadia said...

Lisa, exactly! I wouldn't have minded the introspection as much, if there had been mystery, too :)

Dot said...

Ah it's a shame you didn't enjoy it, I thought the premise sounded great!

Heather J @ TLC Book Tours said...

Darn, I'm sorry this one didn't turn out to be the book for you, but thanks for being on the tour.

Nadia said...

Dot, it just wasn't my cup of tea. Oh well.

Heather, thanks for having me on the tour :)

Lingerie sexy said...

Too much introspection can drive me crazy! I read to get away from that in my own life.

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