Ratings9
Average rating3.8
"A deadly, dangerous, beautiful nightmare." — Chris Whitaker, New York Times bestselling author of We Begin at the End
For readers of Rachel Hawkins and We Were Never Here comes a searing vacation thriller set on a remote island in Thailand following two mysterious women, a charismatic group of expats, and the one murder poised to bring their paradise crashing down.
Welcome to paradise. We hope you survive your stay...
There are three rules to follow during a vacation at the famous Koh Sang Resort
1 – Leave the past behind.
When Cass sets foot on the coast of Thailand's world-famous party island, she's searching for an escape. With dark secrets following her every move, Koh Sang becomes the perfect place to hide.
2 - Always be careful of who you trust.
Now, years later, Cass is a local dive instructor alongside the Permanents, a group of expats who have claimed the island as their own. The Permanents don't linger on who they were before the island. Simply because, like Cass, they all have something to outrun.
3 – If someone discovers who you really are, run.
But suddenly, a dive student is found dead and paradise comes crashing down. Because this isn't the first mysterious death on the island, and it won't be the last. Someone knows who Cass is and they're ready to make sure justice is finally served.
Reviews with the most likes.
I will have to divide my review in two parts: one for the book, and one for the AUDIObook. I've never had to do this before, but the narration by Miranda Raison, Dakota Blue Richards, Joe Jameson, and Pema Monaghan drove me absolutely mad. I will be honest, it wasn't until writing this review did I even realize there were multiple female narrators. The male narrator only comes in once, and god I wish we had gotten more of him. I couldn't tell the difference between any of the characters AT ALL. Not only do the narrators sound exactly the same, none of them do so much as change the pitch of their voice when reading lines for another character, and it is so confusing and absolutely maddening. Typically, narrators change inflection, accents, pitch, etc, but nope! Not these ladies. You can't tell the difference at all and it completely ruined the experience.
Now, on to the book. Ignoring a few very frustrating and obvious plot holes, it is SO GOOD. I was totally hooked and will definitely be reading more from Sara Ochs (provided she has better narrators). THAT ENDING! This is the kind of thriller I like, although it's much better suited for a summer read, so I recommend holding off for warmer weather.
Audiobook: 1.5
Book: 4
Was a 2 star but that ending dropped it. Also you'd think if you were a narrator you'd learn how to pronounce things or idk look it up if you're unsure. On top of that how the fuck they both sat “beEaAn” when saying been. Took me OUT every time I was so annoyed.
A bit of a slow start where it spends maybe too long explaining the relationships between the Permanents, focusing on all but one, who never really gets fleshed out at all.
The mystery builds and leaves you guessing the whole way through with twists and turns I never saw coming.
Unfortunately the end is some Deus Ex Machina situation where it swoops in, fixing everything before we move on to the aftermath and an opening for a sequel. It felt rushed and like the buildup through the whole book was pointless.
Probably not an author I'll pick up again, which is disappointing as I liked everything up to that point.