REVIEW: Only Ever Her by Marybeth Mayhew Whalen @tlcbooktours @luauthors #marybethmayhewwhalen
Only Ever Her
by Marybeth Mayhew Whalen
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
Publish Date: May 7, 2019
Paperback
287 Pages
Standalone
Genres: Mystery, Thriller
It was to be the perfect wedding—until the bride disappeared.
Annie Taft’s wedding is four days away, and it will be one of the grandest anyone can remember in her small South Carolina town. Preparations are in order. Friends and family are gathering in anticipation. Everything is going according to plan. Except that Annie herself has vanished. Did she have second thoughts? Or has something much worse happened to the bride-to-be?
While her loved ones frantically try to track her down, they’re forced to grapple with their own secrets—secrets with the power to reframe entire relationships, leaving each to wonder how well they really knew Annie and how well they know themselves.
My Review:
My first read by Whalen and I wouldn't quite categorize this in the thriller category - but more as a contemporary mystery. This is a very character driven story. We get several different POVs that was a lot to take in at first. Once I got myself under control, I definitely became quite involved with the story. This book does move a bit at a slow to moderate pace. Normally this would cause my attention to wane, but in this case I was pretty well into needing to know what was going on. Where did Annie go?
My favorite character was Clary and her doves. There's a lot of symbolism I got from her chapters and that final scene really did get to my heart. Ba-dum-sigh. Honestly, it was compelling to read all the narrators voices. This really gave a full look at how small towns work. I always find this fascinating since while my Dad is from a small town and it's strange to visit there at times, I've always grown up and lived in large cities. I don't know if it's better to have someone always know everyone's business or to have more anonymity.
Honestly, the mystery itself isn't what makes this book. If I based it solely on this part, I probably would have ranked this a little bit lower as I felt this was more background. It's the characters and their interactions and what they bring to the story and the mystery that makes this book worth reading. If you love character driven books, then this will definitely be a story for you. Understand that it does start a bit slow but picks up in the second half.
★★★★
My favorite character was Clary and her doves. There's a lot of symbolism I got from her chapters and that final scene really did get to my heart. Ba-dum-sigh. Honestly, it was compelling to read all the narrators voices. This really gave a full look at how small towns work. I always find this fascinating since while my Dad is from a small town and it's strange to visit there at times, I've always grown up and lived in large cities. I don't know if it's better to have someone always know everyone's business or to have more anonymity.
Honestly, the mystery itself isn't what makes this book. If I based it solely on this part, I probably would have ranked this a little bit lower as I felt this was more background. It's the characters and their interactions and what they bring to the story and the mystery that makes this book worth reading. If you love character driven books, then this will definitely be a story for you. Understand that it does start a bit slow but picks up in the second half.
★★★★
Gosh, this cover is so pretty. Every time I see it, I smile. Interesting that you didn't think it was the mystery that was the key of this story but rather the character interactions... I'm going to have to read this one with that mindset. Thank you for being on this tour! Sara @ TLC book Tours
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