A Captivating Read
4 out of 5 stars
The Mistake was an impulse buy, it was on sale (almost half price) the day I purchased it and I was looking for something exciting to listen to. It sounded crazy twisty good, with mostly positive reviews and after finishing it, I can say that wasn’t disappointed but I wasn’t overwhelmed either. The Mistake is a great listen with a few twists and turns but the main character initially seems naive to a fault. It wasn’t as suspenseful as I had anticipated but I can honestly say that I had no idea “who’d done it” until the truth was revealed at the very end of the book. As another reviewer surmised, this book is more driven by thrills, chills, and tension than the plot itself. It’s narrated by Lucy Price-Lewis who’s pleasant voice helped to drive the plot along and increase the sense of tension and urgency when necessary.
Slater’s thriller, The Mistake, alternates between the present day and a time sixteen years in the past, covering the months leading up to and immediately following the death of Rose’s young brother Billy. We listen as Rose, a naive university art student, is swept into a relationship with an older, controlling man who immediately seems to be the villain. He successfully isolates her from her friends and controls her family, offering her father a job and her family a kind of economic security they hadn’t experienced since the mine closed. Fast forward sixteen years and the Rose we know now is paranoid, anxious, and struggling with disordered eating and years of guilt, feeling largely responsible for her beloved brother’s death. When she checks in on an elderly neighbor and unexpectedly finds a key to her brother’s disappearance and subsequent murder, everything she thought she knew is questioned and everyone she thought she could trust seems suspect. I found myself thinking I had figured out who was really responsible for Billy’s death several times throughout the book only to be taken by complete surprise when the answer was finally revealed. Not only did I suspect the wrong person, but I also had the motivation wrong too!
Slater’s characterization was strong, with an obvious villain and victims. Her portrayal of an emotionally abusive relationship and controlling, the manipulative boyfriend was well done if a bit overdone. I initially found Rose to be a bit too naive, in a slightly unrealistic way, but I appreciated the growth her character experienced and the expert way her “present-day” self differed from her “sixteen years ago” self, demonstrating the effects of her both her unhealthy relationship and her devastating loss. Though the pace of The Mistake was not as swift as I anticipated, it was enjoyable. It wasn’t rushed or too drawn out and there were enough uncertainty and discomfort to keep me interested. There was something about this novel that weighed me down with an impending sense of dread and had me wondering if the trauma in Rose’s life was really going to end with Billy’s death. It wasn’t necessarily difficult to put down but I looked forward to picking it up again. If you’re looking for a captivating read, give The Mistake a shot.
Book Description:
You think you know the truth about the people you love. But one discovery can change everything….
Eight-year-old Billy goes missing one day, out flying his kite with his sister Rose. Two days later he is found dead.
Sixteen years on, Rose still blames herself for Billy’s death. How could she have failed to protect her little brother? Rose has never fully recovered from the trauma, and one of the few people she trusts is her neighbour Ronnie, whom she has known all her life. But one day Ronnie falls ill, and Rose goes next door to help him…and what she finds in his attic room turns her world upside down.
Rose thought she knew the truth about what happened to Billy. She thought she knew her neighbour. Now the only thing she knows is that she is in danger….
The Mistake is a completely gripping thriller that will keep you up all night, from the top 10 best-selling author of Blink, Liar and Safe with Me. Perfect for fans of Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train.
The Mistake by K.L. Slater
Narrator: Lucy Price-Lewis
Length: 8 hrs and 26 mins
Published by Audible Studios on November 28th 2017
Genres: Mystery, Psychological Thriller
Format: Audiobook
Buy from Audible
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