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Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Don't Try To Find Me: A Novel by Holly Brown

(Thank you to the publisher and TLC Book Tours for providing me with a copy of this book!)
about book:

Don’t try to find me.
Though the message on the kitchen whiteboard is in fourteen-year-old Marley’s handwriting, her mother, Rachel, knows there has to be some other explanation. Marley would never run away.

I’ll be okay.
Marley’s quiet. Innocent. Sheltered. Growing up in Northern California with all the privilege Rachel never had, what does Marley know about taking care of herself? About being okay?
Rachel might not know her daughter at all. But she does know that she needs to find Marley before someone else does. Someone dangerous.

I’ll be better.
The police have limited resources devoted to runaways. If Rachel and her husband, Paul, want their daughter back, they’ll have to find her themselves. Paul turns to Facebook and Twitter and launches FindMarley.com.  But Marley isn’t the only one with something to hide. Paul’s social media campaign generates national attention, and the public scrutiny could expose Rachel’s darkest secrets. When she blows a television interview, the dirty speculation begins.

I love you.
The blogosphere is convinced Rachel is hiding something. It’s not what they think; Rachel would never hurt Marley. Not intentionally, anyway. But when it’s discovered that Rachel lied to the police, the devoted mother becomes the prime suspect in Marley’s disappearance.
Is Marley out there, somewhere, watching it all happen . . . or is the truth something far worse?

my thoughts:

A chilling thriller that makes for an intense and entertaining read.  Sounds pretty good, right?  Well, it wasn't.  Or, at least I didn't think so.  Don't Try To Find Me by Holly Brown was just not what I expected.  I thought I would start reading this book and never stop - I imagined an unputdownable read that would have me biting my nails in suspense.  Instead I got a story that just disappointed.  I found the characters to be unlikeable to the point that I honestly didn't care what happened to them or what secrets they were hiding.  I just could not get into the writing of the book (and it has nothing to do with the alternating chapters - I love that in books) and found myself skimming pages early on, which is a sign that I am not going to finish the book.  And, I didn't finish it.  I just found myself mystified by the characters' behaviors and actions within the story and couldn't engage with them at all.  This book was just not for me.

Of course, I've read plenty of positively glowing reviews about this story - heck, they even compare it to Gone Girl (of course, I hated that book, so that should have been a sign that this story wasn't for me).  So, who knows, maybe this book will be your favorite summer read.  Check out what other bloggers thought about Holly Brown's, Don't Try To Find Me.  Here's the TLC Book Tours schedule for: Don't Try To Find Me
Thank you to the publisher and TLC Book Tours for providing me with a copy of this book!

7 comments:

Ti said...

Have I told you lately how much I appreciate your honest reviews? From the title, you'd absolutely expect this to be a page turner and thrilling for sure but I tend to wait for reviews before picking up these kinds of books.

Plus, there seems to be a lot of books with similar titles and plots right now. I can't keep them all straight.

Holly (2 Kids and Tired) said...

I love honest reviews and knowing that someone doesn't love a book and why. I've seen this one around and was curious. I think one of the most disappointing things about reading is unlikeable characters.

Holly (2 Kids and Tired) said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Nadia said...

Ti, thanks so much :) Sometimes I think I can be too honest and worry about that. But, I figure if I don't like a book why lie about it, right? And you are so right - these books are coming out like crazy - so many of them!

Holly, thanks! I agree - its hard to make unlikeable readers readable. There have only been a handful of books that can make you want to know what happens to unlikeable characters, but this isn't one of them.

bermudaonion said...

Sorry to see this was a disappointment for you.

Heather J @ TLC Book Tours said...

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this book for the tour.

Nadia said...

Kathy, it really was. Just not as good as I had hoped. Oh well.

Heather, thanks for having me on the tour :)