Jar of Hearts opens with Geo being sentenced to five years of jail for the involvement in the murder of her best friend, Angela. And to be honest, I almost gave up during the section on her years in jail because there was a lot of violence - both sexual and non-sexual.
But if you can get through the prison section to when she gets out, things start to get interesting. Because just before Geo gets out, two bodies turn up near Geo’s home - a mother and child murdered the way Angela was. Kaiser, Angela and Geo’s childhood best friend, is investigating and he quickly confirms that this case is connected to their shared past. I shan’t say anything more about the plot because I might give too much away. But it was really well-paced and I liked how the past informed the present.
Geo was a good protagonist. Even though she did a horrible horrible thing (and didn’t ‘fess up for 14 years), she clearly regrets it. And the more I read about her and Angela’s relationship, the more I saw how complicated it was and even though it doesn’t excuse what she did at all, it did help me to understand her.
On the other hand, I was a bit meh about Kaiser. I thought he had a pretty strong start, but he soon faded away and it felt like his purpose was more for plot than for character. I know him not really changing is his schtick in the book, but he felt a little two-dimensional at times, which is a pity because I thought he was an interesting foil to Geo at first (and would be the childhood friend who’d keep her accountable).
The ending was pretty good. Not something that could be deduced from hints in the book (except for the few chapters before) but everything flowed nicely and it was pretty satisfying. Overall, if you like darker thrillers, you should check this book out. Despite the slightly rough start, I got hooked and flew through the second half because I wanted to find out what happened.
Disclaimer: I got a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a free and honest review
I would like to read this one. I don't tolerate violence (especially sexual violence) like I once did (in my reading, I mean), and so I am grateful for the warning. I am glad you ended up enjoying this one despite the iffy start.
ReplyDeleteI've always been a bit squeamish about violence myself, but if you can make it past the start, I think it's a good read(:
Delete