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alongreader's review against another edition
3.0
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.
lindsey_kerrigan's review against another edition
5.0
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
mikaylab92's review against another edition
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? It's complicated
2.0
kbranfield's review against another edition
3.0
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.
bookedbrunette's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
4.0
πππ ππππππ πππ ππππ. βππππ’βππ πππππ ππ ππ ππ, ππππππ πππ. πΏππ πππ ππ ππππ. πΈ πππβπ ππ ππππ ππ πππ.β βππππ ππ ππππ πππππππ πππ’π ππ’? πΈ π πππ πΈ πππππ π πππ π πππππ π πππ πππ ππππ ππ πππ ππππ, πππ πππ πππππ π πππ πππ π’ππ π ππππππ π’ππ πππππ πππ ππ πππ.β
βοΈβοΈβοΈβοΈ/5
Ten After Closing
Jessica Bayliss
316 pages
FC: Winny, Oscar, Pavan
Wow.
Thereβs a lot that I enjoyed about this book, seriously, it was well done!! It passed the Tessa Test, totally made me cry!!
Butβ¦there were a few things I dislikedβ¦
Ten After Closing follows a group of hostages in a robbery at a small town cafe. The really interesting part of the book is each chapter is done in minute increments. Ten minutes all the way to two hours, with specific minute times in between. I thought that part was so well done because it was just SO FAST!!
The part that I didnβt like about it was that in between the Ten minutes AFTER closing chapters, there were ten minutes BEFORE closing chapters, that displayed what the characters did before the hostage situation and how and why they got to the cafe!
That was SUCH A COOL CONCEPT!!! Butβ¦for meβ¦it didnβt hit the mark.
I cannot read a suspense novel in which a gun is trained on multiple people in a cafe and THENβ¦the next chapter I read is about one of the characters method of transportations to workβ¦it took me out of the gripping, horror filled, anxiety inducing evils of humanities.
That was honestly the only reason itβs not a 5 star.
The characters were SO lovable, the situations were entirely realistic whilst being so scary, and every single thing ever, was connected. I really really adored the story as a whole but the scheduling of events was not up to par with the story being told. Thatβs all I think.
It talked about domestic violence, gun violence, people getting shot, gang fights, drugs useβ¦and a few more I canβt mention or itβll give some stuff away.
I totally recommend nonetheless tho !!!
π«π«π«πͺπ«’π«’
βοΈβοΈβοΈβοΈ/5
Ten After Closing
Jessica Bayliss
316 pages
FC: Winny, Oscar, Pavan
Wow.
Thereβs a lot that I enjoyed about this book, seriously, it was well done!! It passed the Tessa Test, totally made me cry!!
Butβ¦there were a few things I dislikedβ¦
Ten After Closing follows a group of hostages in a robbery at a small town cafe. The really interesting part of the book is each chapter is done in minute increments. Ten minutes all the way to two hours, with specific minute times in between. I thought that part was so well done because it was just SO FAST!!
The part that I didnβt like about it was that in between the Ten minutes AFTER closing chapters, there were ten minutes BEFORE closing chapters, that displayed what the characters did before the hostage situation and how and why they got to the cafe!
That was SUCH A COOL CONCEPT!!! Butβ¦for meβ¦it didnβt hit the mark.
I cannot read a suspense novel in which a gun is trained on multiple people in a cafe and THENβ¦the next chapter I read is about one of the characters method of transportations to workβ¦it took me out of the gripping, horror filled, anxiety inducing evils of humanities.
That was honestly the only reason itβs not a 5 star.
The characters were SO lovable, the situations were entirely realistic whilst being so scary, and every single thing ever, was connected. I really really adored the story as a whole but the scheduling of events was not up to par with the story being told. Thatβs all I think.
It talked about domestic violence, gun violence, people getting shot, gang fights, drugs useβ¦and a few more I canβt mention or itβll give some stuff away.
I totally recommend nonetheless tho !!!
π«π«π«πͺπ«’π«’
hilaryistired's review against another edition
3.0
I received a copy of this book from Thomas Allen & Son in exchange for an honest review.
This was one of those books where it seemed like it could really go either way. It could be really good, or it could be really awful, and nothing in between. To my surprise, this actually ended up landing right in between.
This book was a quick, easy read, but it wasn't quite as exciting as I was hoping it was going to be. Maybe because it ran so high the entire time that the excitement of the whole thing kind of wore off. I just kept waiting to see how they were going to get out of it, and I didn't really care what else was happening. Maybe if I'd read it quicker, it would have been a different experience, but as it stands, it just missed the mark for me.
The Good Points of Ten After Closing:
I really enjoyed the characters in this book, especially the two main characters. They were both well developed and well rounded, and I really enjoyed following them throughout the story. Even the minor characters were brilliant.
This book follows two time lines, before and after. The before is told in reverse, and this is probably the first time I've seen it done perfectly. Things get revealed in a way that it doesn't feel like a gimmick, and it actually comes across really well. So well done.
The pacing was very well done, and this book flies by pretty quickly. It's definitely one of those that you could read in an afternoon if you were able to sit with it, and you wouldn't get bored at any point.
The Downsides of Ten After Closing:
I felt like we could have used more backstory on the situation. We get enough on Winny and Scott to get by, and we know a bit about why the whole situation was happening, but I felt like we could have used a lot more.
This book ran so high that the excitement and the stress of it did kind of wear off eventually, and you just wanted to know how it ended. Again, maybe this is different if you read it in a day, but it was the case for me.
I won't say too much, but for a novel that is driven by the characters, the ending is rather disappointing. I wanted more from the endings with Winny, and especially with Scott.
All in all, this was a fun read, but not the best thriller I've come across to date. If you enjoy stories that take place in a short period of time, thrillers, or character driven books, you should definitely check out Ten After Closing!
This was one of those books where it seemed like it could really go either way. It could be really good, or it could be really awful, and nothing in between. To my surprise, this actually ended up landing right in between.
This book was a quick, easy read, but it wasn't quite as exciting as I was hoping it was going to be. Maybe because it ran so high the entire time that the excitement of the whole thing kind of wore off. I just kept waiting to see how they were going to get out of it, and I didn't really care what else was happening. Maybe if I'd read it quicker, it would have been a different experience, but as it stands, it just missed the mark for me.
The Good Points of Ten After Closing:
I really enjoyed the characters in this book, especially the two main characters. They were both well developed and well rounded, and I really enjoyed following them throughout the story. Even the minor characters were brilliant.
This book follows two time lines, before and after. The before is told in reverse, and this is probably the first time I've seen it done perfectly. Things get revealed in a way that it doesn't feel like a gimmick, and it actually comes across really well. So well done.
The pacing was very well done, and this book flies by pretty quickly. It's definitely one of those that you could read in an afternoon if you were able to sit with it, and you wouldn't get bored at any point.
The Downsides of Ten After Closing:
I felt like we could have used more backstory on the situation. We get enough on Winny and Scott to get by, and we know a bit about why the whole situation was happening, but I felt like we could have used a lot more.
This book ran so high that the excitement and the stress of it did kind of wear off eventually, and you just wanted to know how it ended. Again, maybe this is different if you read it in a day, but it was the case for me.
I won't say too much, but for a novel that is driven by the characters, the ending is rather disappointing. I wanted more from the endings with Winny, and especially with Scott.
All in all, this was a fun read, but not the best thriller I've come across to date. If you enjoy stories that take place in a short period of time, thrillers, or character driven books, you should definitely check out Ten After Closing!
megs_s's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
teresarosereads's review against another edition
I just wasn't feeling this one right now and there are other things that I want to read instead. I haven't found myself wanting to pick this up and with the deeply mediocre reading year I've had, I don't have time for a book I feel meh about.
dweebaline's review against another edition
Something literature professors (and I'm sure many other professors who've ever had students write a paper or piece for them) always drill into the minds of their students to guide their writing process is the "so-what". The "so-what" is to make sure that everything you include in the story has a purpose and ties into the greater narrative rather than just include stuff because you can.
Sadly half of this book (the before part) really did not need to be in this book (or at the very least didn't need to be included as much) because it served really no purpose in furthering the robbery/hostage situation or provide greater context. The only context it provided was why Scott and Winny were there....half the book was devoted to just describing why they were at the cafe....(yeah it was a romance and yadda yadda about their home life, but it was so drawn out and Winny's part did not tie into the cafe situation AT ALL and felt like an ENTIRELY different story and moral).
The flashbacks or backwards progression from the cafe holdup could have worked if it was just from Scott's perspective and actually gave backstory to the whole Sylvie, Ryan and Oscar thing, while also including previous interactions with everyone at the cafe during the holdup. Which could have also allowed some portions about Scott's home life and his relationships with Becky and Winnie, but no that's not what we got.
Instead we got confusing and shoddily interwoven flashbacks and current events from two different perspectives with very similar voices at points, bad guys who were very cartoonish (Twitch need I say more), and cliched writing. All of that was annoying, but the conclusion is what really bothered me about this book. The conclusion involves a minor choosing to keep quiet about the physical and mental abuse (yes his mom is also a victim but she also mentally abuses Scott) he experiences at home...in a book geared towards minors...
(Also the reasoning behind that was messy in my opinion since the character was just shown an example of what happens to children and their relationship to one another when an abusive parent goes unchecked.)
I was going to give this book at least 2 stars but that ending made it so I didn't want to give this a star at all.
Sadly half of this book (the before part) really did not need to be in this book (or at the very least didn't need to be included as much) because it served really no purpose in furthering the robbery/hostage situation or provide greater context. The only context it provided was why Scott and Winny were there....half the book was devoted to just describing why they were at the cafe....(yeah it was a romance and yadda yadda about their home life, but it was so drawn out and Winny's part did not tie into the cafe situation AT ALL and felt like an ENTIRELY different story and moral).
The flashbacks or backwards progression from the cafe holdup could have worked if it was just from Scott's perspective and actually gave backstory to the whole Sylvie, Ryan and Oscar thing, while also including previous interactions with everyone at the cafe during the holdup. Which could have also allowed some portions about Scott's home life and his relationships with Becky and Winnie, but no that's not what we got.
Instead we got confusing and shoddily interwoven flashbacks and current events from two different perspectives with very similar voices at points, bad guys who were very cartoonish (Twitch need I say more), and cliched writing. All of that was annoying, but the conclusion is what really bothered me about this book. The conclusion involves a minor choosing to keep quiet about the physical and mental abuse (yes his mom is also a victim but she also mentally abuses Scott) he experiences at home...in a book geared towards minors...
(Also the reasoning behind that was messy in my opinion since the character was just shown an example of what happens to children and their relationship to one another when an abusive parent goes unchecked.)
I was going to give this book at least 2 stars but that ending made it so I didn't want to give this a star at all.