The One Who Got Away by Caroline Overington Published by HarperCollins - AU on May 1st 2016
Source: Publisher
Genres: Thriller
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Perfect couple; perfect lie. The not-to-be-missed new psychological thriller from Caroline Overington.
We all keep secrets. Some are deadly. Loren Wynne-Estes appears to have it all: she's the girl from the wrong side of the tracks who's landed a handsome husband, a stunning home, a fleet of shiny cars and two beautiful daughters ... Then one day a fellow parent taps Loren on the shoulder outside the grand school gate, hands her a note ... and suddenly everything's at stake. Loren's Facebook-perfect marriage is spectacularly exposed - revealing an underbelly of lies and betrayal. What is uncovered will scandalise a small town, destroy lives and leave a family divided. But who is to be believed and who is to blame? Will the right person be brought to justice or is there one who got away? An unsettling psychological thriller for fans of Girl on a Train and Gone Girl.
To celebrate Halloween, today I’m reviewing an Australian thriller novel that has been compared to The Girl on the Train.
Told from the perspectives of the stepsister, the journal of the victim Loren, a reporter and a Judge, we discover the life and seemingly perfect marriage between the beautiful Loren and the successful David. As we dissect a number of unreliable narrators and are given second hand information, it’s up to the reader on which person bears the truth – and who’s telling the lies.
I read this thriller in one sitting, which is a credit to the ease of reading even through the multiple point of views. While the start and middle of the novel delivers endless twists and turns, some which had me gasping in delight, the latter half of the novel dwindles particularly when you hear from the stepsister Molly and the preceding court case. I also felt it was rather rushed at times, particularly where it skips over the wedding and some of the hazier details in Loren’s journal.
While the narrative is certainly filled with twists and turns, delivered in order to shock the reader, the lack of foreshadowing made some of these twists rather convenient. Because we are only given a few chapters from each perspective, it’s hard to see anything coming outside of what we’re given. I would’ve liked to hear more about the development of the ending and how this came about. It was also glaring that we never see things from David’s perspective, outside of his interview with the journalist.
Scandalous, thrilling, filled with deceit, lies and sexual intent, The One Who Got Away is a quick, shocking thriller that had me glued to its pages. While it starts to fizzle out towards the ending until the very few pages, I still found it to be a quick and satisfying read with limited depth and development.
Rating: 3 out of 5
Thanks to HarperCollins for sending me a review copy.
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I like that it was a quick read, that is usually good in this type of book! And shocking definitely is appealing! It is kind of sad that the characters aren't developed very well though. But the convenience of the twists would probably leave me the most unsatisfied! I find I have been having a lot of trouble really connecting at all to thriller-type books, I need to find one that really… well, thrills me, I guess 😉 Great review!
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Hehehe yeah sometimes I like picking them up for a quick thrill (pardon the pun). I guess character development isn't the main point for thrillers lol.
Hmm… a mystery / thriller should get caught up in details, and I think that jumping over some of those that were offered in Loren's journal was maybe too bad? I love reading these kinds of stories with unreliable narrators, though, because it means you can't really trust anyone, and that makes the mystery even better.
Great review, Jeann 🙂
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Yeah, it definitely kept the pace going because I wanted to know what was going on lol. It kind of makes it more fast paced because those details were missing.
I rarely read thrillers these days, but you’ve made me want to pick this book up. I can’t pass a multiple POV book and read-in-one-sitting made me curious.
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Yesss, sometimes you just need a good thriller to sink your teeth into you know?
It's always nice when it's a one sit read! Too bad it didn't quite carry throughout the whole book but glad you still enjoyed it for the most part, Jeann! Lovely review and hope you had a fun Halloween 😉
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Yeah, sometimes you just want your brain to shut off for the mindless entertainment hehe. Thank you Cyn! We don't really celebrate here but it was fun either way.
Well, you know my thoughts about thrillers haha. They're just not my thing and too angsty for me. Sucks to see limited development, urgh!
Hahah I completely get your point! I like how intense they are and I just need to find out the answers now lol
Great review Jeann! I've read a couple of Overington's books after seeing rave reviews, but I must admit I had some of the same misgivings when it comes to the stories fizzling towards the end and the characters lacking depth. Nonetheless, I love being able to read them in one go and I can't lie – I am absolutely hooked even though there are things which niggle at me when I'm reading about the characters or story.
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Thanks Michelle! I actually hadn\’t heard much about her books before but yeah, it was definitely lacking depth but still fun to read. Will you be picking this one up Michelle?
Seems interesting. I'll see if I can get it in the library and if not I'll make a request.
ohhh I\’m glad you\’re keen to check it out! I hope you get your hands on it 🙂
Good enough for a quickie. I sometimes gravitate towards books like this where I don't want it too intense, just entertaining enough
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Yeah, they\’re kind of good for a palate cleanser before getting into the heavier stuff!
One-sittng thriller reads is the only way to go. 😉
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We definitely can\’t be left hanging!
We definitely can\’t be left hanging!
Hmmm… sounds like it was good, not great. Not sure if it's on sale here, but if I see it, I'll check it out!
Great review, Jeann 🙂
Thanks so much for stopping by! Jen @ YA Romantics
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Yeah, it\’s more of a quick thriller read if you\’re into it so was mildly entertaining lol.
I usually really like books that go in depth with their characters, especially in the case of a suspense novel or a thriller, but this still sounds really good – I like that it's a quick read and told from multiple points of view. I'll definitely be adding this one to my list! Great review!
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Yeah, it was quite fascinating the way it was told even though it limited the immediate development of the characters. Glad to hear you\’re keen on reading it Kelly!