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A review by pagesplotsandpints
A Talent for Murder by Peter Swanson
3.5
<b>Read Complete 6/18/24 |</b> 3.5 stars
<b><I>Do I need to read Books 1 & 2 before reading this book?</b> </I>Technically, no. The characters of Lily and Henry do appear and have some increasingly larger roles in the book as it progresses, but you can read this first if you want as the plot is independent. If you plan on read THE KIND WORTH KILLING, then this may spoil parts of that book. You may also feel a little lost being thrown into these two characters without the context and history to back it up, but the plot stands alone.
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I actually really liked the beginning of this book and was quite interested in it. I wasn't really keen on another Lily Kintner/Henry Kimball book, so I was pleasantly surprised when Lily was involved but just on the peripheral. She did have her own POV, but the story was really about an old friend Martha and her husband who she thought might be a serial killer.
The first half of the book was really interesting and I really liked the story! I was really connecting with it for a while, and I actually really liked the twist that took us into the second half of the book, but it lost me from there.
The second half of the book lost its momentum and this is where Lily and Henry really pick up the story. I was pretty irritated by it because I honestly don't care about them anymore and was enjoying Martha's story and everything that she was discovering. I would have rather had Lily & Henry make smaller appearances or not be in it at all and this could be a stand alone. It just really killed the pacing for me and the ending was all a little too easy in some ways. I did like how at the *very* end, things did circle back and everything was wrapped up well.
I did enjoy the read but honestly, Lily & Henry being big parts of it made it worse instead of better for me. Mixed feelings on this one.
<b><I>Do I need to read Books 1 & 2 before reading this book?</b> </I>Technically, no. The characters of Lily and Henry do appear and have some increasingly larger roles in the book as it progresses, but you can read this first if you want as the plot is independent. If you plan on read THE KIND WORTH KILLING, then this may spoil parts of that book. You may also feel a little lost being thrown into these two characters without the context and history to back it up, but the plot stands alone.
----
I actually really liked the beginning of this book and was quite interested in it. I wasn't really keen on another Lily Kintner/Henry Kimball book, so I was pleasantly surprised when Lily was involved but just on the peripheral. She did have her own POV, but the story was really about an old friend Martha and her husband who she thought might be a serial killer.
The first half of the book was really interesting and I really liked the story! I was really connecting with it for a while, and I actually really liked the twist that took us into the second half of the book, but it lost me from there.
The second half of the book lost its momentum and this is where Lily and Henry really pick up the story. I was pretty irritated by it because I honestly don't care about them anymore and was enjoying Martha's story and everything that she was discovering. I would have rather had Lily & Henry make smaller appearances or not be in it at all and this could be a stand alone. It just really killed the pacing for me and the ending was all a little too easy in some ways. I did like how at the *very* end, things did circle back and everything was wrapped up well.
I did enjoy the read but honestly, Lily & Henry being big parts of it made it worse instead of better for me. Mixed feelings on this one.