Monday, June 1, 2015

Review: The Last Good Day of the Year by Jessica Warman

20613800Release date: May 19th 2015
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Purchase: Amazon


Synopsis via Goodreads:

A new powerful thriller from the globally-embraced author of Between.

Ten years ago, in the early hours of New Year’s Day, seven-year-old Samantha and her next door neighbor, Remy, watched as a man broke into Sam’s home and took her younger sister, Turtle, from her sleeping bag. Remy and Sam, too afraid to intervene at the time, later identified the man as Sam’s sister Gretchen’s much older ex-boyfriend, Steven, who was sent to prison for Turtle’s murder.

Now, Sam’s shattered family is returning to her childhood home in an effort to heal. As long-buried memories begin to surface, Sam wonders if she and Remy accurately registered everything they saw. The more they re-examine the events of that fateful night, the more questions they discover about what really happened to Turtle.

Master storyteller Jessica Warman keeps readers guessing in this arresting page-turner.


*Publisher approved request via Netgalley





One of the main reasons why I don't like reading synopsis' beforehand is because it tends to leave me with big expectations. That was the case for this book, and I went in thinking I was getting a lot more than what was delivered. The Last Good Day of they Year certainly has great writing and an interesting storyline, but I feel like it didn't hit the mark for me and I didn't get the "powerful thriller" aspect that was promised. 

It took me a long time to finish reading the book because I had a hard time after the first few chapters and I couldn't connect with the characters. And even though I understand why the author gave so much backstory surrounding the tragedy, I still felt overwhelmed whenever she'd take us in the past or bring up segments from ---(I forgot the name of the man) his book. 

I guess my main issue with the story is that I wanted to feel more for the characters, in particularly Sam, especially since this book is based on such a horrific event. I wanted to feel their emotions and invest more in the story, but I couldn't. Sadly, I was more focused on finding out who the real killer was and just finishing it. 
Like I said, the author is a great writer; her words flowed perfectly. But the story itself kind of fell short on the mystery aspect, and when the real murderer is unveiled, there wasn't a lot of momentum towards it. It felt a bit rushed actually, compared to the pace of the rest of the book.

Overall, it's an okay read. If you don't mind backstories, details, a subtle mystery with family drama, do give this one a try. 


14 comments:

  1. I totally agree. A lot of blurbs have tricked me this year. Oh well, at least there are many other books, right?

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    1. True. Still, I wish I liked this one more. The potential was there.

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  2. Aw always hard when you don't connect with the characters as much as you want to

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  3. Eesh. That sucks that you couldn't get into this one. I remember seeing the cover when it was up for grabs on Netgalley. It sounded interesting but I wasn't 100% sold on it. Glad I passed because there's nothing worse than not being able to connect with the characters.

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    1. Yeah but who knows, you might like it more than I did :)

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  4. I've read a couple of reviews for this one and I feel like I see a lot of the same. That the blurb made it seem like there was more ( and it does make it seem like more of a thriller). Great review!

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    1. It's kind of a let down when you go into the story thinking it's going to be so much but unfortunately, at least for me, it didn't bring on the fireworks.

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  5. A shame you didn't get enough emotion from these characters, and I hate it when the book is different from what the synopsis portrays.

    Naomi @ Naomi’s Reading Palace

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    1. It might work better for you than me. Give it a read :)

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  6. shame that you couldn't connect with the characters that is somethng that i hate with books,

    em @ afternoonbookery.com x

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    1. Connecting with characters never bothered me so much, but I feel like that had to be established in this book for me to have a better reading experience.

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  7. Yeah, you have to be able to feel for the charactrs with this type of book.

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  8. Ah bummer. I had hopes for this one and was contemplating reading it! I love a good thriller with mystery! But yeah, if you can't get wrapped up in the characters, then it's hard to love a story to its fullest. Nice review though!

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