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ellinorreads's review
2.0
A dark psychological thriller that I found lacking… in what I can’t pinpoint, but the ending felt kind of sudden for one.
And I felt that the story dragged at times, and the characters were a little flat. I would have liked to know for instance what Bobby went to therapy for, it was never really explored what was ”broken” in him, even though it’s referenced serveral times.
It was good in describing difficult family dynamics though.
And I felt that the story dragged at times, and the characters were a little flat. I would have liked to know for instance what Bobby went to therapy for, it was never really explored what was ”broken” in him, even though it’s referenced serveral times.
It was good in describing difficult family dynamics though.
tillb1ta's review
Told in the past, leading to the night of Brooke’s disappearance and now, twenty years later. Robert is half brother to Brooke who wants to uncover the reason why and how she disappeared. Mike is suspected having been her on and off bad guy boyfriend last known to have been with her that last night. Aaron, one of the good guys, is her best friend that was in love with her. A young woman seeks out Robert to disclose she is the child of his long missing half sister. He doesn’t take her word since many claims and sightings brought false hope through the years. The ending for all characters dramatically changes in the end which is not at all how I expected.
bookrantreviews's review
4.0
It's been over two decades since 20-year-old Brooke Mulcahy disappeared. Her body never found, rumors about her fate have plagued her younger half-brother Bobby's life. He was only a kid at the time she went missing, living with Brooke's alcoholic father following their mother's death. Detested by Brooke, uncared for by her dad, and abused by her boyfriend, his childhood was a nightmare no kid deserved. It wouldn't have been a shock if he'd turned to alcohol and drugs to cope like those around him. But he didn't. Instead, he rose above it.
Now known as Robert with a wife and child of his own, he's a successful professor at Uniondale University and the winner of a coveted NEH grant. His life is pretty sweet. His wife is gorgeous. His son's thirteen and a great kid. He lives in a nice house in the suburbs and drives a Porsche. Although he goes to therapy to try to find closure from his childhood and Brooke's disappearance, he's lived his adult life as a stable, proud, and happy man. However, his life quickly starts to unravel when a young woman named Lily shows up at his office one afternoon claiming to be Brooke's daughter.
Suddenly, the past is literally at his doorstep, breaking into his house and mutilating his dog. His wife leaves him without warning and takes his son with her. A red car starts stalking his house. Robert has no choice but to go back to the night Brooke disappeared and figure out exactly what happened. However, nothing that he uncovers about that night is as horrific as the truth about their lives leading up to her disappearance -- or the unraveling of Robert's life in present-day.
Chilling, gritty, and twisty, "All Who Wander" by Joe Clifford is just what you expect from this author. It's brilliant. Unputdownable. And filled with a darkness that you can feel as if it were your own. Joe Clifford has a knack for creating characters that you don't just get to know. You get to "feel" them too. It's almost like you can hear them breathing and read their thoughts. There's a depth to them that you don't find with every author, even the mega popular and talented ones.
This is especially true with Robert's "character". He's a heavy character who I couldn't like, no matter how much was written into the story early-on that should have made me feel otherwise. Brooke was cruel to him when he was a kid, but she was troubled too and just wanted out of her unloved, unhappy life. She was written to be unliked, but I couldn't quite get there. Did Clifford want me to dislike her? Definitely -- if you judge by the words he wrote. However, you get gut feelings about Joe's characters like you would people in real life. Your gut feelings are very likely not to be the same as mine because in real life (again) we aren't always going to like the same people.
There's a lot going on in "All Who Wander". Although the book follows Robert as he searches for the truth about what happened to his half-sister Brooke, other characters and revelations about the past deliver a much more complex storyline. It's well-written and completely engrossing right up until the conclusion when he reveals Brooke's fate and what happened before she disappeared. It's a satisfactory final twist that you'll either have you shocked or saying "meh". It didn't knock my socks off, but it did lower them to my ankles. That's good enough for me. Not every ending has to be a jaw-dropper, especially when the book as a whole is as good as this one.
Thank you to Joe Clifford and Lisa from Swell Media for the complimentary eARC in exchange for an unbiased review.
Now known as Robert with a wife and child of his own, he's a successful professor at Uniondale University and the winner of a coveted NEH grant. His life is pretty sweet. His wife is gorgeous. His son's thirteen and a great kid. He lives in a nice house in the suburbs and drives a Porsche. Although he goes to therapy to try to find closure from his childhood and Brooke's disappearance, he's lived his adult life as a stable, proud, and happy man. However, his life quickly starts to unravel when a young woman named Lily shows up at his office one afternoon claiming to be Brooke's daughter.
Suddenly, the past is literally at his doorstep, breaking into his house and mutilating his dog. His wife leaves him without warning and takes his son with her. A red car starts stalking his house. Robert has no choice but to go back to the night Brooke disappeared and figure out exactly what happened. However, nothing that he uncovers about that night is as horrific as the truth about their lives leading up to her disappearance -- or the unraveling of Robert's life in present-day.
Chilling, gritty, and twisty, "All Who Wander" by Joe Clifford is just what you expect from this author. It's brilliant. Unputdownable. And filled with a darkness that you can feel as if it were your own. Joe Clifford has a knack for creating characters that you don't just get to know. You get to "feel" them too. It's almost like you can hear them breathing and read their thoughts. There's a depth to them that you don't find with every author, even the mega popular and talented ones.
This is especially true with Robert's "character". He's a heavy character who I couldn't like, no matter how much was written into the story early-on that should have made me feel otherwise. Brooke was cruel to him when he was a kid, but she was troubled too and just wanted out of her unloved, unhappy life. She was written to be unliked, but I couldn't quite get there. Did Clifford want me to dislike her? Definitely -- if you judge by the words he wrote. However, you get gut feelings about Joe's characters like you would people in real life. Your gut feelings are very likely not to be the same as mine because in real life (again) we aren't always going to like the same people.
There's a lot going on in "All Who Wander". Although the book follows Robert as he searches for the truth about what happened to his half-sister Brooke, other characters and revelations about the past deliver a much more complex storyline. It's well-written and completely engrossing right up until the conclusion when he reveals Brooke's fate and what happened before she disappeared. It's a satisfactory final twist that you'll either have you shocked or saying "meh". It didn't knock my socks off, but it did lower them to my ankles. That's good enough for me. Not every ending has to be a jaw-dropper, especially when the book as a whole is as good as this one.
Thank you to Joe Clifford and Lisa from Swell Media for the complimentary eARC in exchange for an unbiased review.
judithdcollins's review
4.0
Joe Clifford's ALL WHO WANDER is a dark and disturbing literary, domestic psychological suspense about a troubled young woman who mysteriously disappears during a snowstorm, never to be found again.
PAST: 1998 Vermont. A brutal snowy night. A young woman, Brooke Mulcahny, escapes her nightmare of a life, crossing the border from Massachusetts to rural Vermont. She is running from danger and her past. She was looking for a motel when, due to the weather, she ran off the road and crashed due to the icy roads and blizzard.
From that night, no one had seen her since. A neighbor man stopped by and offered help. She declined. Some cameras showed she may have gotten into a white van. Was she picked up by the serial killer who lived nearby—one who had killed other women?
The author takes us back to Brooke's childhood. Growing up in a highly dysfunctional home, her mom left without a word when she was young. Her father, Paul, was distant and spent most of his time working and drinking. Emotionally distant, he offered them food and shelter, and that was about it.
Her mother showed back up at their door years later with a baby boy, Bobby, from another man. Their life returned to some sense of normal until she told them she had cancer. Her mom left them again, died, and now left them with a boy. A boy that Brooke thought was weird. He just took up space.
Brooke got into drugs and all sorts of trouble with men as a teen, from the married high school coach to Mike, the drug addict. She was not pleasant to her stepbrother Bobby. She had a best friend, an upstanding, brilliant, friendly Aaron, who adored her, but she was not interested in him as a boyfriend.
She was dating an evil, abusive, bad boy, a drug addict, controlling and jealous, Mike, also from a bad home environment. Brooke dropped out of nursing school and worked at a nursing retirement home.
Then, with a crazy scheme for money, Brooke with a co-worker and Mike, a drug deal goes down badly. Now Brooke's dad has to put up the house as collateral. No one was there as an influence for Bobby. His mom was always on the run before she died, so he never had a stable upbringing.
From past to present, we learn the events leading up to the night Brooke disappeared. It kept you on the edge, waiting to see what happened the night of the accident.
PRESENT: Now, twenty-one years later, Bobby is all grown up and now going by Robert, an esteemed professor at a private Upstate New York University; he has just received a significant NEH grant and married with son Peter. He has undergone years of therapy to cope with his traumatic past. Can he leave his past behind?
Even though Robert does not owe Paul anything, he purchased Paul's home for him and pays his bills in an assisted living facility, which will not last much longer.
He has always wondered what happened to Brooke. Then, a young woman named Lily appears, claiming to be Brooke's daughter. From here on out, his world becomes unraveled as he investigates further.
Robert's life is out of control; he becomes detached. His wife left with his son to visit her parents for a while. Robert is determined to find out what happened to Brooke. Someone breaks into their home and screws up the dog's vocal cords. He does not believe Lily is Brooke's daughter. Something is up, menacing and sinister.
What happened to Brooke?
Atmospheric, gritty, dark, and compelling ALL WHO WANDER is my first book by Joe Clifford, a talented author. His writing is lyrical, with vivid descriptions, delving deep into the evil human conditions.
Honestly, I was hooked from the first page towards the end UNTIL the book turned to weird Stephen Kingish horror! Until this point, this was 5 Stars, and due to this strange turn, I downgraded it to 4 Stars.
When he brought the characters Robert/Bobby, Mike, and Aaron together —what happened next was just creepy! I was unsure of the purpose of this unless the author was exploring how people change. The good can turn evil, and the evil can turn good, doing a complete 180 and Robert going rogue! Do past sins define you? All the characters were deeply flawed—nature vs. nurture.
I enjoyed the author's lyrical, beautiful writing. The storyline was powerful, thought-provoking, and intriguing until it turned weird and twisted with an ending that was not satisfying. However, I look forward to seeing what comes next from the author.
There are themes of drug use, addiction, violence, abusive relationships, alcoholism, trauma, inner demons, step-siblings, and abuse.
Thanks to Swell Media and NetGalley for a gifted ARC for an honest opinion.
Blog review posted @
JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: Sept 5, 2023
My Rating: 4 Stars
Sept 2023 Must-Read Books
PAST: 1998 Vermont. A brutal snowy night. A young woman, Brooke Mulcahny, escapes her nightmare of a life, crossing the border from Massachusetts to rural Vermont. She is running from danger and her past. She was looking for a motel when, due to the weather, she ran off the road and crashed due to the icy roads and blizzard.
From that night, no one had seen her since. A neighbor man stopped by and offered help. She declined. Some cameras showed she may have gotten into a white van. Was she picked up by the serial killer who lived nearby—one who had killed other women?
The author takes us back to Brooke's childhood. Growing up in a highly dysfunctional home, her mom left without a word when she was young. Her father, Paul, was distant and spent most of his time working and drinking. Emotionally distant, he offered them food and shelter, and that was about it.
Her mother showed back up at their door years later with a baby boy, Bobby, from another man. Their life returned to some sense of normal until she told them she had cancer. Her mom left them again, died, and now left them with a boy. A boy that Brooke thought was weird. He just took up space.
Brooke got into drugs and all sorts of trouble with men as a teen, from the married high school coach to Mike, the drug addict. She was not pleasant to her stepbrother Bobby. She had a best friend, an upstanding, brilliant, friendly Aaron, who adored her, but she was not interested in him as a boyfriend.
She was dating an evil, abusive, bad boy, a drug addict, controlling and jealous, Mike, also from a bad home environment. Brooke dropped out of nursing school and worked at a nursing retirement home.
Then, with a crazy scheme for money, Brooke with a co-worker and Mike, a drug deal goes down badly. Now Brooke's dad has to put up the house as collateral. No one was there as an influence for Bobby. His mom was always on the run before she died, so he never had a stable upbringing.
From past to present, we learn the events leading up to the night Brooke disappeared. It kept you on the edge, waiting to see what happened the night of the accident.
PRESENT: Now, twenty-one years later, Bobby is all grown up and now going by Robert, an esteemed professor at a private Upstate New York University; he has just received a significant NEH grant and married with son Peter. He has undergone years of therapy to cope with his traumatic past. Can he leave his past behind?
Even though Robert does not owe Paul anything, he purchased Paul's home for him and pays his bills in an assisted living facility, which will not last much longer.
He has always wondered what happened to Brooke. Then, a young woman named Lily appears, claiming to be Brooke's daughter. From here on out, his world becomes unraveled as he investigates further.
Robert's life is out of control; he becomes detached. His wife left with his son to visit her parents for a while. Robert is determined to find out what happened to Brooke. Someone breaks into their home and screws up the dog's vocal cords. He does not believe Lily is Brooke's daughter. Something is up, menacing and sinister.
What happened to Brooke?
Atmospheric, gritty, dark, and compelling ALL WHO WANDER is my first book by Joe Clifford, a talented author. His writing is lyrical, with vivid descriptions, delving deep into the evil human conditions.
Honestly, I was hooked from the first page towards the end UNTIL the book turned to weird Stephen Kingish horror! Until this point, this was 5 Stars, and due to this strange turn, I downgraded it to 4 Stars.
When he brought the characters Robert/Bobby, Mike, and Aaron together —what happened next was just creepy! I was unsure of the purpose of this unless the author was exploring how people change. The good can turn evil, and the evil can turn good, doing a complete 180 and Robert going rogue! Do past sins define you? All the characters were deeply flawed—nature vs. nurture.
I enjoyed the author's lyrical, beautiful writing. The storyline was powerful, thought-provoking, and intriguing until it turned weird and twisted with an ending that was not satisfying. However, I look forward to seeing what comes next from the author.
There are themes of drug use, addiction, violence, abusive relationships, alcoholism, trauma, inner demons, step-siblings, and abuse.
Thanks to Swell Media and NetGalley for a gifted ARC for an honest opinion.
Blog review posted @
JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: Sept 5, 2023
My Rating: 4 Stars
Sept 2023 Must-Read Books
marisakucha's review
4.0
I was pleasantly surprised with this novel. I do love the past and present telling of the story for those different perspectives. The different narratives kept me guessing until the final few chapters. In saying that, I’m not sure how I felt about the ending, it did leave a little bit open. I think some could have been expanded on in the present, but I guess it’s up for interpretation.
Obviously, I felt more invested in the past narrative because it followed Brooke, the missing young woman, and her story. She does have a sad story and you just hope her story has a HEA and doesn’t end like everyone thinks it is going to. The present, which featured her half brother, left a lot of questions during and at the end. I would have liked to know a bit more about some of the help he had received between the timelines. He’s an interesting character.
I enjoyed the way the story was told and it seemed an appropriately pace. I think I would have liked an expansion on some topics that were brought up but I don’t think it’s completely detrimental to the story. This was my first read by the author, and I would be interested to check out his other works.
Thank you to NetGalley and Square Tire Books for the opportunity to read this book. All opinions are my own.
Obviously, I felt more invested in the past narrative because it followed Brooke, the missing young woman, and her story. She does have a sad story and you just hope her story has a HEA and doesn’t end like everyone thinks it is going to. The present, which featured her half brother, left a lot of questions during and at the end. I would have liked to know a bit more about some of the help he had received between the timelines. He’s an interesting character.
I enjoyed the way the story was told and it seemed an appropriately pace. I think I would have liked an expansion on some topics that were brought up but I don’t think it’s completely detrimental to the story. This was my first read by the author, and I would be interested to check out his other works.
Thank you to NetGalley and Square Tire Books for the opportunity to read this book. All opinions are my own.
cherihy808's review
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
2.0
2 ⭐️⭐️. This review is going to be short because I don’t even know what to say…I just didn’t like this book. I hated all the characters. The storyline dragged on. Most of it was predictable and the parts that weren’t were just meh. Just a bunch of messed up characters. Subject material contains sexual abuse, drug use, mental issues and animal abuse…all subjects that I don't care to read about. Sadly, I don't recommend this one.
Thank you to NetGalley and Square Tire Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to NetGalley and Square Tire Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
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