#allthebookreviews – What Remains of Her by Eric Rickstad

The #allthebookreviews duo isn’t slowing down!

Thanks to William Morrow Books and TLC Book Tours for the free copies in exchange for our honest reviews.

WHAT REMAINS OF HER – Eric Rickstad (out now!)

Chandra’s Thoughts: 3.5/5 stars

This is a standard case of mother and daughter disappearing with the husband as prime suspect number one.  There’s an ominous tone set from the beginning with the depths of childhood imagination and that wholehearted importance to keep secrets for your best friend, no matter the consequence or potential helpfulness to a case.  It’s amazing what we deem to be so much more important as children than as adults.

We fast forward a couple of decades+ where people close to the case are still dealing the aftermath of this horrible crime.  There’s nothing worse than not having answers… or so we like to think.  Grass is greener? Graves are darker?  While I did like how the author transversed from one timeline to another smoothly, I found myself liking the beginning part of the book better.

The short chapters make for a fast read and I found myself continually flipping page after page.  Next thing I know it’s way past my bedtime and I’m halfway through the novel.  While this story is addicting, I did find the ending not to surprise me as much as I thought that it would.  I did the whole, “ohhhhhhhh, really?! asshole…” then shrug and continued on.  (Asshole for a certain character, not the author, to be clear!)

This is an absolutely solid lighter thriller with some creepy tones and no real big surprise.  The story is well written and even without that throat punch a lot of people expect from thrillers these days, it still makes an impact.  I felt this was a bit more character driven and I did feel for a certain two of them.  I just wanted a little bit more bite that I felt the ominous tone set at the beginning felt like it was promising.

My Thoughts: 4/5 stars

This was my introduction to Eric Rickstad – I have heard nothing but amazing things about his other books. Needless to say I was excited to get started. WHAT REMAINS OF HER did not disappoint!

What would you do if you woke up one day to find your spouse and child missing? Well, this is the new reality for Jonah Baum. His wife Rebecca and their daughter Sally are gone. What’s even more confusing is that there is no sign of kidnapping, murder, and no hard proof that Rebecca didn’t just up and leave their marriage.

Something isn’t quite right about the situation and they are determined to find them. As the investigation gains momentum, Jonah becomes a person of interest. What do the strange drawings that Sally left behind mean? What secrets is Jonah hiding? What did Sally and her friend, Lucinda, see in the woods that night?

This book really ramps up in suspense and intensity as the chapters go on. Rickstad does a great job sucking the reader in and keep your attention. If I wasn’t at my family reunion, then I would have finished this much sooner!

 

 

What Rickstad book should we pick up next?

–Jess