A bland mystery with shoddy plotting and shoddier representation. The Rumour was an easy read, granted: I read it in just over a day but just didn't find the story plausible enough to enjoy it or invest myself in its narrative. The characters feel one-dimensional and the pacing was unbearably slow for me, feeling like nothing had really happened as far as two-thirds into the book. This is the second book of Kara's that I've found tame (this one to a higher extent, granted) so maybe her writing style just doesn't click with me. A lot of filler and some really half-hearted representation of POC and LGBT as well.