Psychologist and photography blogger Lauren snaps a picture of a woman on the beach in Italy. After she posts it, she is contacted by someone demanding to know who the woman is. Lauren's life is turned upside down when the anonymous troll begins to stalk her.
I liked that this book delved into some of the darker sides of social media, and how sometimes maybe we can share too much or how it could be used against us. I felt for Lauren at times, because her family was so critical of her and her desire to be on social media. To me, she sounded like a normal woman who wasn't sharing anything outside the ordinary.
I had suspicions of who was stalking Lauren and thought it could be any number of people, so Mara really did a good job of keeping me in suspense. However, I did have some issues with the book. When the stalker was revealed, I was surprised, but not necessarily in a good way. I thought it was a big stretch and kind of convoluted. Also, the writing felt stiff and stilted at times. 3.5 stars
When Jillian is involved in a car accident, it will take five strangers to save her, each with their own story of survival.
I love stories that play with the ideas of fate and destiny, and I also love stories with a big cast of characters that, throughout the story, we learn are all connected in some way. Ripple certainly fit that criteria. The main character is Jillian, an elite athlete who is involved in a terrible accident on her way to the airport. As the story progresses, we meet the people who will be integral in her making it out alive. Through flashbacks, it is revealed that each of those people was involved in a life or death situation at some point in their lives. Is it fate that is bringing all of them together now?
This story was a short, quick read. The dialogue was awkward, to say the least. The conversations and thoughts of the characters were so wordy and unreal-sounding - lots of telling, not showing. As the book progressed, I had to suspend my disbelief so many times and honestly I was rolling my eyes a bit at all the coincidences. BUT - this book was totally saved by the ending, where a big twist in the last couple pages had me sighing with relief. 3 stars
I should so more requesting at my library as well. I seem to be spending way more than I ought to be on books these days. Ripple sounds like it has an interesting concept. I am sorry that these weren't what you had hoped for. ;)
ReplyDeleteYes, it's definitely nice to have them buy the books instead of me!
DeleteMy library has been awesome at accepting my purchase suggestions - sometimes they take forever to come in, but I still appreciate it nonetheless. I am also trying to pay it back by donating my book haul items to them. When I suggest a purchase I also feel more pressure to enjoy the book since the library actually went out and spent money on it.
ReplyDeleteDonating your used books is great - or even donating them to the Friends group so they can sell them and get more funds for the library!
DeleteI agree, I went into these books hoping I would love them!
Oh, a book about blogs and social media. I pretty much live on social media, so I’m always interested in those. Sorry that both of these were a little disappointing.
ReplyDeleteAj @ Read All The Things!
Yes, I enjoy books that incorporate some social media aspect, since it's so relevant these days!
DeleteI love that they will purchase based on your requests, Angela. Fantastic reviews on these two, but hope you love your next reads.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jennifer!
DeleteRipple looks interesting, though the awkward dialogue would probably bother me! I'm glad it redeemed itself in the end. :)
ReplyDeleteLindsi @ Do You Dog-ear? 💬
Awkward dialogue is one of my biggest pet peeves when I'm reading!
DeleteOne Click sounds like a really interesting premise. I hate when the big reveal ends up being something that doesn't quite make sense. I should look into making purchase suggestions sometime. I use the inter-library loan requests all the time, but my county system still doesn't have the biggest selection.
ReplyDeleteYeah, at my library, when you make a purchase suggestion, they also ask if you would like to get the book via ILL if they don't buy it. So, that's always an option for me, too!
DeleteMy library always purchases the books way after I have read them. Oh well. Too bad you these didn't end up being as good as you hoped.
ReplyDeleteWell, hopefully now that they're in circulation, someone else will pick them up and love them!
DeleteOne Click sounds pretty interesting! I'm sorry you didn't love it. I hate when the ending is too far fetched to believe.
ReplyDeleteI know! It really could have gone in a different direction that would have made more sense.
DeleteMy library has a pretty extensive system as well. Most of the time I can find a book but there is a good amount of times I can't. Mostly because I know about too many books. I don't think I've ever had a book purchased based on my request. That is so lucky! Although, too bad you didn't like them too much.
ReplyDeleteI know, there are just so many books out there, it's pretty amazing that I find almost everything I want in the county system.
DeleteHow fun that your library actually got some of the books you requested! I've only done that once and I'm not sure that they ever got the book.
ReplyDeleteI actually just had a 4th request accepted, so that was exciting!
Delete