The Old Boys

August 2022 Hoopla Bonus Borrows Recommendation


This was a hard one to rate. For the most part it was a page turner. Three childhood bullies are kidnapped on the eve of their high school reunion. Locked in a remote cabin guarded by men with masks, the three men are forced to revisit their terrible life decisions including who is really a murderer.


Now to the plot. The writing had me eager for more. The pacing relatively good. And it was interesting to see the imagined reflection of childhood bullies and guilt over their inaction.

But why 3 stars? The plot twist. It went for shock value and honestly felt it fell flat. I wish it had stayed the course with the original path. Instead it takes a sharp right and tbh and don't think it paid off. I went from listening to the audiobook at 1.4 speed, curious to know what happened next, to listening at 2.3 speed, eager to get to the end.