Book 87: Abducted by T. R. Ragan and a revisit to Book 42
Book 87: Abducted (Lizzy Gardner #1).
Author: T. R. Ragan, 2011.
Genre: Crime, Serial Killer. Detective.
Other Details: ebook. 382 pages.
When Lizzy Gardner was only seventeen, what should have been the perfect night became the perfect nightmare. Kidnapped just blocks from home after a romantic evening with her boyfriend, Jared, she woke up to find herself at the mercy of a depraved serial killer. Imprisoned and tormented for months by the maniac she came to know as Spiderman, Lizzy narrowly escaped, the only one of his victims to survive. But Spiderman escaped too, outwitting police and cursing Lizzy to spend her life looking over her shoulder…
Fourteen years later, Lizzy is a private investigator who teaches self-defense to teenage girls in her free time. She does what she can to help others protect themselves and to forget the horror of her ordeal, yet fears she will always be known as “the one who got away.” Then she receives a phone call from Jared, now a special agent for the FBI, with grim news. The killer has resurfaced, this time with a very specific target-Lizzy. And he’s made it clear that she will not escape him again. So begins a chilling game of cat-and-mouse, a terrifying, heart-pounding hunt that only one will survive. -synopsis from author's website.
I borrowed this title from the Kindle Lending Library as it was listed as one of the most popular. I found it a well written, fast paced crime thriller with unsettling aspects. Given I am quite frightened of spiders I found it disturbing given the killer's fondness for torturing his victims with them.
Still it was an enjoyable read and so I have borrowed the next in the series. I participially liked that despite her experiences that Lizzy was no victim and did kick ass.
Book 42: The Girl on the Train.
Author: Paula Hawkins, 2015.
Genre: Thriller. Mystery.
Other Details: ebook. 325 pages.
Rachel catches the same commuter train every morning. She knows it will wait at the same signal each time, overlooking a row of back gardens. She’s even started to feel like she knows the people who live in one of the houses. ‘Jess and Jason’, she calls them. Their life - as she sees it - is perfect. If only Rachel could be that happy. And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough. Now everything’s changed. Now Rachel has a chance to become a part of the lives she’s only watched from afar. - synopsis from publisher's website.
Although I had only read this a few months ago when it was selected by one of my reading groups I elected to re-read. I felt it held up very well for a second reading though I still felt exasperated by Rachel's drinking.
It was well received by the group though we all agreed that all the main characters were hard to like much. We ended up talking about our own experiences of drinking to excess - in our younger wilder days and wondering whether the degree of drinking Rachel was doing was realistic in terms of the effects. It was a fun discussion and certainly collectively we agreed the novel deserved the popularity it had gained since publication.
Cross-posted to 50bookchallenge.