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3.29 AVERAGE
3.29 AVERAGE
Scott and Winny already have enough problems, but when they get stuck in the middle of a hold up at Cafe Flores, they both have to put their problems aside and fight for survival. Excellent pacing, which is an amazing feat considering the non-linear timeline. Quick and intense read that I really enjoyed!
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
funny
sad
tense
fast-paced
"I would have sworn it was a lifetime ago that these men intruded on my mundane haven, but the clock tells me it hasn’t been fifteen minutes.”
Genre: Young Adult Thriller.
Number of Pages: 288.
Perspective: Alternating First/Third.
Ten After Closing follows teenagers Winny and Scott during an armed robbery gone wrong at a family-owned cafe.
This book is told in a present timeline starting from the stick-up, alternating between Winny and Scott’s first-person perspectives. AND it also works backward from the event in their third-person perspectives. It is an interesting format. I did enjoy the way it was set-up, but it did take me awhile to get into the groove of all the different timelines and perspectives.
I don’t feel like there are too many thrillers like this meant for teens. It has the action of an adult thriller, but the backstories that connect with high school students. I love how it all tied together. It is a pretty fast read because it is filled with a lot of dialogue and action (rather than all the “fluff” that some novels have). I’d be very curious to see if she has a sequel. I still had some unanswered questions at the end, so I think she left it open for another book.
I recommend this book for lovers of “heist gone wrong” stories. Even though this is technically a young adult story, I think adults will love it too.
To read my full review, go here: http://judgingmorethanjustthecover.blogspot.com/2018/07/ten-after-closing-jessica-bayliss.html
Genre: Young Adult Thriller.
Number of Pages: 288.
Perspective: Alternating First/Third.
Ten After Closing follows teenagers Winny and Scott during an armed robbery gone wrong at a family-owned cafe.
This book is told in a present timeline starting from the stick-up, alternating between Winny and Scott’s first-person perspectives. AND it also works backward from the event in their third-person perspectives. It is an interesting format. I did enjoy the way it was set-up, but it did take me awhile to get into the groove of all the different timelines and perspectives.
I don’t feel like there are too many thrillers like this meant for teens. It has the action of an adult thriller, but the backstories that connect with high school students. I love how it all tied together. It is a pretty fast read because it is filled with a lot of dialogue and action (rather than all the “fluff” that some novels have). I’d be very curious to see if she has a sequel. I still had some unanswered questions at the end, so I think she left it open for another book.
I recommend this book for lovers of “heist gone wrong” stories. Even though this is technically a young adult story, I think adults will love it too.
To read my full review, go here: http://judgingmorethanjustthecover.blogspot.com/2018/07/ten-after-closing-jessica-bayliss.html
Pretty average. The writing style was OK but bland, and I felt like the characters left much to be desired, especially the parents. The final "showdown" was also extremely anticlimactic and the ending as a whole felt rushed.
An exciting read about a hostage situation gone very, very wrong. I enjoyed all the parts in the 'now' section; however, I found myself skimming the past sections. I'm sure they were meant to make points about the characters, but I found them dull and uninteresting and I didn't need them to understand what was happening.
A great read, one I'll heartily recommend.
"Ok, everyone," Pavan whispers to us as he comes around the counter with Twitch's coffee. "Just calm down. Those guys will be back soon. If you're saying we're still defenceless, we'd better come up with a way to remedy that."
I'm such a stupid, useless ass.
Everyone's martyr...
Except it's the martyr's job to die. With my rash decision, I may have killed us all.
A great read, one I'll heartily recommend.
"Ok, everyone," Pavan whispers to us as he comes around the counter with Twitch's coffee. "Just calm down. Those guys will be back soon. If you're saying we're still defenceless, we'd better come up with a way to remedy that."
I'm such a stupid, useless ass.
Everyone's martyr...
Except it's the martyr's job to die. With my rash decision, I may have killed us all.
I went out on a limb with this one but I actually really liked it. The thriller aspect was really INTERESTING and with the way the story was set up I was afraid I was going to be bored or confused but I actually loved it it made me want to keep reading cause I really wanted to know about what had happened in the past and what was going to happen. It certainly helps that the characters were amazing. Nothing about this story was awkward or out of place it was PERFECTLY WRITTEN
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
3.5 stars.
Written from the main characters' perspectives and weaving back and forth between two timelines, Ten After Closing by Jessica Bayliss is a suspenseful young adult novel.
Ten minutes after closing, the Flores Cafe should be empty of customers with owners Sylvie and Oscar on the premises to close for the night. Scott Bradley is not even supposed to be working, but he agreed to cover a co-worker's shift. His friend, Winsome "Winny" Sommervil has dropped by the cafe to chat with him. Two regular customers are still in the cafe when three armed men, which includes Sylvie's brother Ryan, stop in with the intention of robbing the coffee shop. Within minutes, one of the customers is dead, Oscar has been shot and the rest of the group are now hostages. With the situation growing more frantic with each passing moment, will the captives figure out a way to escape from their captors?
The alternating chapters move backward in time and detail the events of the day from Winny and Scott's points of view. This snapshot of their lives provides insight into their home life and struggles they are facing as they try to figure out their respective futures. Winny's parents are Haitian immigrants who have strong ideas about what path their daughter should take. While at one point Winny shared their plan for her future, she now realizes that she wants a different career. Scott, on the other hand, has quite a few college options but he is torn between which offer he should accept. He is also undecided about a decision he needs to make about a situation at home.
In the present, Ryan and his cohorts make a discovery that ratchets up the tension as they try to figure out how to fix the quandary they are in. Realizing they have few options, they make a fateful decision to go in with guns blazing but they will need the co-operation of their hostages to succeed. In the meantime, Scott, Oscar, Sylvie and Winny are desperately trying to come up with a plan to rescue themselves but will they devise a way to outwit their dangerous captors?
Although the premise of Ten After Closing is unique, the pacing is slow and the storyline is a bit unrealistic. Winny and Scott are interesting characters and their backward moving timelines take some getting used to but overall, this form of storytelling works well. Sylvie and Ryan clearly have a complicated past but the lack of a detailed backstory is frustrating. The resolution of the hostage situation is action-packed and exciting, but Scott's decision regarding his home life misses the mark in a huge way. Since this is a young adult novel, it would have been preferable for Jessica Bayliss to use his story arc as a teaching moment to any teenager who might be faced with a similar situation.
Written from the main characters' perspectives and weaving back and forth between two timelines, Ten After Closing by Jessica Bayliss is a suspenseful young adult novel.
Ten minutes after closing, the Flores Cafe should be empty of customers with owners Sylvie and Oscar on the premises to close for the night. Scott Bradley is not even supposed to be working, but he agreed to cover a co-worker's shift. His friend, Winsome "Winny" Sommervil has dropped by the cafe to chat with him. Two regular customers are still in the cafe when three armed men, which includes Sylvie's brother Ryan, stop in with the intention of robbing the coffee shop. Within minutes, one of the customers is dead, Oscar has been shot and the rest of the group are now hostages. With the situation growing more frantic with each passing moment, will the captives figure out a way to escape from their captors?
The alternating chapters move backward in time and detail the events of the day from Winny and Scott's points of view. This snapshot of their lives provides insight into their home life and struggles they are facing as they try to figure out their respective futures. Winny's parents are Haitian immigrants who have strong ideas about what path their daughter should take. While at one point Winny shared their plan for her future, she now realizes that she wants a different career. Scott, on the other hand, has quite a few college options but he is torn between which offer he should accept. He is also undecided about a decision he needs to make about a situation at home.
In the present, Ryan and his cohorts make a discovery that ratchets up the tension as they try to figure out how to fix the quandary they are in. Realizing they have few options, they make a fateful decision to go in with guns blazing but they will need the co-operation of their hostages to succeed. In the meantime, Scott, Oscar, Sylvie and Winny are desperately trying to come up with a plan to rescue themselves but will they devise a way to outwit their dangerous captors?
Although the premise of Ten After Closing is unique, the pacing is slow and the storyline is a bit unrealistic. Winny and Scott are interesting characters and their backward moving timelines take some getting used to but overall, this form of storytelling works well. Sylvie and Ryan clearly have a complicated past but the lack of a detailed backstory is frustrating. The resolution of the hostage situation is action-packed and exciting, but Scott's decision regarding his home life misses the mark in a huge way. Since this is a young adult novel, it would have been preferable for Jessica Bayliss to use his story arc as a teaching moment to any teenager who might be faced with a similar situation.