So Much Pretty

I received the book for free through Goodreads First Reads.

So Much Pretty by Cara Hoffman

From Amazon:
Set in a rural community steeped in silence and denial, So Much Pretty explores all parents’ greatest fear, that their child will be hurt. But it also examines a second, equally troubling question: What if my child hurts someone else? The disappearance and murder of nineteen-year-old Wendy White is detailed through the eyes of journalist Stacy Flynn and a host of other richly drawn characters, each with their own secrets and convictions. After Wendy’s body is found, Flynn’s intense crusade to expose a killer draws the attention of a precocious local girl, Alice Piper, whose story intertwines with Wendy’s in a spellbinding and unexpected climax.

This book arrived in the mail on my Birthday. How excellent is that?! I knew I'd won a book or two from Good Reads, but I forgot what they were and had no idea when they were coming. So when I tore open the package, it really was like a birthday present!

I didn't mean to read this book as quickly as I did. But I found my self thinking, "ok, just one more chapter..." and then I was done.

I wasn't immediately pulled into the book. It jumped back and forth through time, and was told from so many different perspectives, it was hard to keep track who was who. The mystery kept me reading, however, and it wasn't long before I was totally sucked in.

The way it was written, although at first confusing, was the genius of this book. It made me feel like I was constantly on the edge of figuring it all out. But then I didn't. I had no idea what was coming. Either I'm getting worse at figuring out mystery/thriller stories, or I've just read some really great authors of the genre lately. I prefer to believe the latter.

 Some of the subject matter is horrific, but it's also real. Violence against women, sexual assault and murder. It also based on a real crime -  which I was somehow unaware of until after. I guess when free books show up in the mail I just read them, I don't ask questions (or thoroughly read book covers).

On a scale from Totally Awesome to Horrifically Awful, I'd give it a Pretty Awesome. You should read this if you like thrillers and awesome books.