The Fiancée

The book wasn’t horrible, but I also wasn’t excited to continue reading it. The main reason is that the main character in book was difficult to understand—she wasn’t given much depth, background or color. She came across as very bland and flat, so it was hard to like her or even relate or understand her motivations. So when the “action” starts and she begins obsessing over the fiancé, she becomes quite annoying. VERY annoying actually. The whole construct is just weird, too. Like a bad version of an Agatha Christy. Why is an actress—not even a good actress—trying to solve a murder on her own? Clearly she’s not cut out for detective work since she had it all wrong. Overall the story just felt contrived and boring. Yet I did read the whole thing. So there’s that.

**Spoilers** After reading another Kate White, I was looking forward to this one. It had an intriguing storyline and setting. I appreciated how sensory and descriptive it is, but found myself rather bored. There are way too many details and scenes that don’t add to character development, plot, or mood. A hundred pages could’ve been summed up in a few paragraphs. The readers don’t need a day by day, moment by moment of vacation minutia. As far as Summer’s character goes, I found myself super annoyed with her conclusions jumping, her fixation on Hannah, the repetition of nonsensical “facts” in her head, and her constant gossiping to any listening ear when when she should’ve been seeking help from authorities. She doesn’t need to know everything her husband does or says, but she acts like he’s betraying her. And she would automatically think absurd things like, “this person is the murder because they were angry at someone else” etc. I felt like the reader was supposed to sympathize with her, but instead it was easy to side with Gabe, who was irritated with her behavior. Another annoyance is the family vacation itself. I don’t know of any families who spend their vacation on one property making appointments with each other, when to meet and where, and hurrying off to see their spouses in the other room. I think if there was more background into why the family was so structured, it could’ve made sense. The end was a little predictable with a little plot twist you kind of see coming, but it’s hard to believe who the the real killer is based on their actions and character. Overall a so-so book, I’d give it 2-1/2 stars.

This book has me hooked the whole time and the ending was something I did not expect!