R. Jean Reid

This was the second installment in the Nell McGraw series, and while I haven't read the first book, I never had the feeling I was missing something.

The prologue was unexpectedly shocking and may offend more squeamish readers, but it was very effective to draw my undivided attention - I raced through the first half in one sitting: a true page turner. The characters were well-drawn and a good mixture: some I liked immediately, while others took some time to warm to, and some remained disagreeable to the end. I appreciated how some characters changed during the book, or maybe more precisely how my view of them was changed with the turn of events.

Then in the second half the story stalled a bit. Every few pages Nell wondered about the whereabouts of her children, that she had to take them to/from some place and her insecurities about being a good single mother. While that was understandable as a part of her every day routine and as a still struggling to adjust widow, it slowed the story down repeatedly. The ending came as a surprise, but then again not so - or maybe I'm just spoiled from other stories.

My one-line conclusion: a page-turner thriller that pulls no punches and leaves me wanting for more.

(Thanks to Netgalley, the author, and the publisher for a copy of the book, all opinions are my own)