To me, this well-written and unexpectedly fast paced. However, I only found a few of the characters actually likable. I did feel like the portrayal of the characters of color to be a bit racist due to how unlikable they are and due to the way they’re spoken about by the intentionally sympathetically written white characters.

That said, I don’t think all characters need to be likable in general - yet, it does become a problem when they’re the only BIPOC people being represented.

I do think it’s important to consider, though, that this was written in 2008 so it doesn’t reflect who the author is fairly. So hopefully people don’t think I’m saying Jewell is necessarily problematic.

Anyway, if you’re a Lisa Jewell fan, this is a readable book that demonstrates she’s good at what she does (crafting stories). I do prefer her thrillers, though, and am currently really enjoying her Jessica Jones iteration.