Grief Archives • Rabid Reader's Reviews

Publication Date: February 21, 2021

The drunk driver that killed Tess’ daughter got two years in prison but why should his daughter, Eve, live when hers had died. Tess obsessively stalks Eve and when the young girl goes missing, Tess is the obvious suspect but what if it wasn’t her?

I received this book for review from the Book Club Reviewer Facebook group.

If She Dies is a study in grief. Because Tess is telling us this story, we never really know how honest she’s being with us. What the reader learns early on is that Tess avoids reality with the exception of the loss of Lily which she sees as her loss alone. Tess is wrapped in sorrow and an unfocused need for vengeance that leaps from the page. What the first person method does is create a connection to the character for a reader. Tess can be a lot but we understand, she’s lost what she saw as her purpose. She feels that her husband doesn’t feel the loss as deeply as she does but then she doesn’t ask because, frankly, she’s too lost in herself to care. A twist changes the Continue reading If She Dies by Erik Therme

Audio, Fiction, Thriller, Uncategorized

death, dennis lehane, erik therme, Grief, If she dies, loss, Psychological Thriller

Publication Date: April 14, 2013

In It Isn’t Cheating if He’s Dead by Julie Frayn, Jemima Stone’s fiancé Gerald has been missing for four years. She’s been going about her life, feeding the homeless in the park and hoping that one day she’ll see Gerald. Her weekly updates with Detective Finn Wight give her the confidence that someone is looking, and he might be found. Sadly, he is found. Dead in Montreal. Gerald’s mother blames Jem for his mental illness and to some extent, she blames herself for his leaving and feels as though she’s sullying his memory when she and Finn give into their mutual attraction. Can she cleanse her soul by helping a newcomer to the park reunite with his family? He won’t talk to her, but she knows someone is looking for him as she looked for Gerald and she, with Finn’s help, is determined to return him to his loved ones.