"The past is always with you, whether you choose to think about it or not, whether you take responsibility for it or not. You carry the past with you because it transforms you. You can try to bury it and pretend it never happened, but that doesn't work. Geo knows that from experience. Because buried things can, and do, come back."4.5 stars to this unputdownable novel. The narrative gripped me with its first sentence and captivated me until the very end. The book begins with a trial, 14 years after Angela Wong was murdered by Calvin James. Georgina Shaw is on the stand at his trial testifying to what transpired on that night when she was sixteen years old. After fourteen years of hiding the truth, Angela's family has closure. But the past holds many secrets and is more complex than anyone imagined.
The reader starts with knowing the end result, but not the actions that lead up to that fateful night or what transpired. This is a novel which navigates a dual perspective narrative masterfully, told in four parts in the alternating perspectives of Kai and Geo. Hillier weaves the past and present seamlessly with excellent pacing, giving the reader just enough information to keep them hooked as she slowly peels away the layers and revealing more about the past. A lot of times a dual perspective narrative winds up disjointed; however, it flows beautifully and is this narrative style done right.
"In every story, there's a hero and a villain. Sometimes one person can be both."The character building was masterful. They are complex people that I learned to love, learned to hate. Even the smallest of characters have a depth that is palpable. Geo and Kai were best friends in high school, but Angela's murder drove them apart.
"Everyone has a single defining moment in life, something that thrusts them irrevocably into a new direction, something that affects them at their core, something that changes them forever."cw: rape, rape culture and victim blaming, murder, abuse, domestic violence
Everything tied together in the end, and the little clues that were sprinkled throughout all clicked just before it did for the characters in the book, adding a level of suspense and intensity that didn't feel gimmicky but real. The only thing I am left wondering is was the Shipp Lipstick shade a coincidence?! Like how.
This was an amazing read that captivated me and caused me to read past when I was exhausted, causing me to drop my e-reader on my face twice. It was that good! Highly recommend this one!
Thank you Netgalley and the publisher, Minotaur Books, for the electronic ARC in exchange for my honest review.
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