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heidikundin's review against another edition
3.0
2.5 stars
I already wrote a really long review of this one, yet it seems to have vanished into thin air, and sadly, I didn't enjoy this book enough to fully write it again. Saw the cliched twist coming from a mile away. The whiny and rather unlikeable 23-year-old characters felt way older than they should have been portrayed.
I already wrote a really long review of this one, yet it seems to have vanished into thin air, and sadly, I didn't enjoy this book enough to fully write it again. Saw the cliched twist coming from a mile away. The whiny and rather unlikeable 23-year-old characters felt way older than they should have been portrayed.
rainbowdrank's review against another edition
mysterious
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? Yes
karlyo83's review against another edition
1.0
My Rating System: 1⭐️ ticked no boxes TOTAL DUD CITY!!!
Halloween, 5 years earlier Chelsea Dutton’s college roommates were fatally stabbed to death and Chelsea almost bled to death in the bathtub. She was found just in time by police and saved.
She only has fragments of her damaged memory and shes been trying her level best to get past the incident ever since. Moving away, getting an apartment and living a somewhat reclusive lifestyle.
She had never truly shake the fear that her attacker is out there waiting for her to finish what he started 5 years earlier. With only one person she trusts, Elizabeth, a nurse she met while in recovery her world if very small.
Chelsea reconnects with someone from her past and weird things begin to happen, terrifying messages and vandalism of her car she begins to wonder if the murderer has come back for her and is it who she thinks it is.
The synopsis for this one caught my eye and I was like sure why not… psychological thriller sign me up. Uh Oh… It kind of started off alright reeled me in pretty quickly but then just as quickly as that happened it felt like it went straight downhill… why you ask did I continue reading… well clearly I felt like I needed some kind of book punishment - honestly though, I don’t know and by the time I was like this is RUBBISH I was too far in not to confirm my suspicions of who the baddie was. I was disappointed to say the least with the entire thing.
Let’s start with Chelsea, you are supposed to feel bad for her I think. You are supposed to feel her pain and her paranoia and terror. Instead what I felt was that she was a stupid idiot that kept doing stupid idiot things putting her in harms way. For instance… Oh I am so scared the baddie is coming back to get me so the first thing I think NOT to do is get my running gear on and go for a run by myself, with headphones on, in the early hours of the morning!!! LIKE WHAT!!! Are you high?? That is the last thing you should do and quite honestly if I am receiving threatening letters and am scared for my life I am staying the hell indoors and not risking my life for something at ridiculous as running!!!
Chelsea also went from a neat freak, who never drank alcohol or had friends let alone sex with almost random strangers to being the complete opposite in the matter of chapters. The depths to which she sunk for her cleanliness were disgusting. I get it girl you’re depressed but shower please, don’t have rotten food lying around with ACTUAL flies swarming your apartment and I don’t want to know how much you stink… this could all have been inferred without the actual foul details that I was subjected to. She also basically went full alcoholic within a week of this rando dumping her and that was completely out of character because even when shes been depressed in the past she didn’t drink… it was just all a bit far fetched and annoying. I basically couldn’t feel sorry for her because she just kept eating that Idiot sandwich for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner!!!
So the guy… she met him from what I could tell once at the murder party 5 years earlier - she had a different boyfriend at that time (who is the suspect all through the book) and Boyd who she meets up with randomly and hooks up with for like a week suddenly becomes her everything and there is love thrown around… like I get it sometimes love at first sight… I guess… but this next excerpt … really…. After one week???
Boyd’s silence sat on Chelsea’s chest like lead. It had been a week since she’d hear from him. Was he not receiving her texts for some reason? She new that was just wishful thinking. Of course he was. Which meant he was avoiding her. Does that mean he’s done with me? Event after everything he said? After telling me that he loved me? That he’d been in love with me for years? Had they just been words to get her to sleep with him? No. That didn’t make sense. He’d told her those things after they’d had sex.
OMG Girl really!!! Like this guy is a loser and a user and you are delusional and repetitive and annoying and the writing was switching and being stupid and I hated it and it made me want to throw my kindle on the driveway and run it over myself!!!!
I will skip over anymore excerpts or complaints about the character because this will be too long otherwise but the story was disjointed and a complete idiot factory. There were red herrings galore but they didn’t pan out or make sense so you knew they were going nowhere. Things were rushed but other things were drawn out for page after page after page… a monologue of whyyyy doesn’t he love me… ohhh I am so disgusting I am going to eat an entire lasagne and drink wine and eat Valium like lollies wahhhhhh - honestly it is not what I signed up for and I hated it!!!
The writing quality was sub-par at best… sure my reviews are not going to win awards BUT I am not a published author and I can’t even pretend to say I enjoyed it. The twist and the ending was guessable (easily) which wouldn’t have been a problem if it wasn’t so rushed and stupid! There were plot holes and annoying things not tied up but then there were chapters on useless info and characters that meant nothing.
Honest recommendation if I am asked - STAY AWAY FROM THIS ONE AT ALL COSTS. You will find better books to read and spend your hard earned reading time on.
Halloween, 5 years earlier Chelsea Dutton’s college roommates were fatally stabbed to death and Chelsea almost bled to death in the bathtub. She was found just in time by police and saved.
She only has fragments of her damaged memory and shes been trying her level best to get past the incident ever since. Moving away, getting an apartment and living a somewhat reclusive lifestyle.
She had never truly shake the fear that her attacker is out there waiting for her to finish what he started 5 years earlier. With only one person she trusts, Elizabeth, a nurse she met while in recovery her world if very small.
Chelsea reconnects with someone from her past and weird things begin to happen, terrifying messages and vandalism of her car she begins to wonder if the murderer has come back for her and is it who she thinks it is.
The synopsis for this one caught my eye and I was like sure why not… psychological thriller sign me up. Uh Oh… It kind of started off alright reeled me in pretty quickly but then just as quickly as that happened it felt like it went straight downhill… why you ask did I continue reading… well clearly I felt like I needed some kind of book punishment - honestly though, I don’t know and by the time I was like this is RUBBISH I was too far in not to confirm my suspicions of who the baddie was. I was disappointed to say the least with the entire thing.
Let’s start with Chelsea, you are supposed to feel bad for her I think. You are supposed to feel her pain and her paranoia and terror. Instead what I felt was that she was a stupid idiot that kept doing stupid idiot things putting her in harms way. For instance… Oh I am so scared the baddie is coming back to get me so the first thing I think NOT to do is get my running gear on and go for a run by myself, with headphones on, in the early hours of the morning!!! LIKE WHAT!!! Are you high?? That is the last thing you should do and quite honestly if I am receiving threatening letters and am scared for my life I am staying the hell indoors and not risking my life for something at ridiculous as running!!!
Chelsea also went from a neat freak, who never drank alcohol or had friends let alone sex with almost random strangers to being the complete opposite in the matter of chapters. The depths to which she sunk for her cleanliness were disgusting. I get it girl you’re depressed but shower please, don’t have rotten food lying around with ACTUAL flies swarming your apartment and I don’t want to know how much you stink… this could all have been inferred without the actual foul details that I was subjected to. She also basically went full alcoholic within a week of this rando dumping her and that was completely out of character because even when shes been depressed in the past she didn’t drink… it was just all a bit far fetched and annoying. I basically couldn’t feel sorry for her because she just kept eating that Idiot sandwich for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner!!!
So the guy… she met him from what I could tell once at the murder party 5 years earlier - she had a different boyfriend at that time (who is the suspect all through the book) and Boyd who she meets up with randomly and hooks up with for like a week suddenly becomes her everything and there is love thrown around… like I get it sometimes love at first sight… I guess… but this next excerpt … really…. After one week???
Boyd’s silence sat on Chelsea’s chest like lead. It had been a week since she’d hear from him. Was he not receiving her texts for some reason? She new that was just wishful thinking. Of course he was. Which meant he was avoiding her. Does that mean he’s done with me? Event after everything he said? After telling me that he loved me? That he’d been in love with me for years? Had they just been words to get her to sleep with him? No. That didn’t make sense. He’d told her those things after they’d had sex.
OMG Girl really!!! Like this guy is a loser and a user and you are delusional and repetitive and annoying and the writing was switching and being stupid and I hated it and it made me want to throw my kindle on the driveway and run it over myself!!!!
I will skip over anymore excerpts or complaints about the character because this will be too long otherwise but the story was disjointed and a complete idiot factory. There were red herrings galore but they didn’t pan out or make sense so you knew they were going nowhere. Things were rushed but other things were drawn out for page after page after page… a monologue of whyyyy doesn’t he love me… ohhh I am so disgusting I am going to eat an entire lasagne and drink wine and eat Valium like lollies wahhhhhh - honestly it is not what I signed up for and I hated it!!!
The writing quality was sub-par at best… sure my reviews are not going to win awards BUT I am not a published author and I can’t even pretend to say I enjoyed it. The twist and the ending was guessable (easily) which wouldn’t have been a problem if it wasn’t so rushed and stupid! There were plot holes and annoying things not tied up but then there were chapters on useless info and characters that meant nothing.
Honest recommendation if I am asked - STAY AWAY FROM THIS ONE AT ALL COSTS. You will find better books to read and spend your hard earned reading time on.
namitakhanna's review against another edition
5.0
Five years ago on Halloween night Chelsea and her friends were celebrating a birthday party when both her friends were killed and Chelsea was found brutally stabbed hanging on to her dear life.Now years later she still has no memories of that night and leads a secluded life.But then when she receives a scary note her worst fears come true as she knows she’s being hunted again
Disturbed is a fast paced psychological thriller that’s keeps you guessing till the end. Lots Of twists and turns with an unexpected ending. My first by Jennifer Jaynes but definitely won’t be my last.
I would like to thank Thomas & Mercer & NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest and fair review.
This and more reviews at https://chloesbooksblog.wordpress.com/
Disturbed is a fast paced psychological thriller that’s keeps you guessing till the end. Lots Of twists and turns with an unexpected ending. My first by Jennifer Jaynes but definitely won’t be my last.
I would like to thank Thomas & Mercer & NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest and fair review.
This and more reviews at https://chloesbooksblog.wordpress.com/
alisharochelle's review against another edition
5.0
Intriguing.
Normally with any book i read, I base my interest off of the first chapter. I was immediately hooked to this story within seconds of reading the first page. It's very worth the read if you're looking for a few hours of escape. You'll never see the ending coming. With each page flip, it'll have your mind running in circles. Very suspenseful. Fantastic plot. Just a really good read altogether. 💜
Normally with any book i read, I base my interest off of the first chapter. I was immediately hooked to this story within seconds of reading the first page. It's very worth the read if you're looking for a few hours of escape. You'll never see the ending coming. With each page flip, it'll have your mind running in circles. Very suspenseful. Fantastic plot. Just a really good read altogether. 💜
judithdcollins's review against another edition
4.0
Talented Jennifer Jaynes returns following The Stranger Inside with her latest twisty psychological thriller DISTURBED — a gritty fast-paced standalone page-turner, both chilling and emotional with a mind-blowing conclusion.
“You Made Me.”
Those were the words on Nov 1, 2010, the morning after Halloween. Three women who attended Springfield College. 911 was called. The young officer Brandon was the first responder.
One girl was left alive in the tub. Multiple stab wounds. One of them deep in the side of her abdomen. Blood everywhere.
Now, Oct 4, 2015 —Four years and eleven months later.
Twenty-three-year-old Chelsea Dutton is safe and sane. She is still paranoid and fearful. No one is out to get her. Not anymore. These words had been her mantra for almost five years.
The Halloween night that her college roommates (Christine and Amy) had been murdered and she had been carved up and left for dead.
Since then, she had merely existed. She had been diagnosed with psychogenic amnesia, which made life even more confusing and frightening.
There were no guarantees whether she would recover any of her lost memories. A few had come back over the years but nothing of real significance. A flash here, and there. Some scents and settings brought back some memories of the horrible night.
Her biological parents had been dead since she was six years old. There were a long string of foster families whom she had lived with until she turned eighteen and started college.
The night of the murders clung to her.
There had been a boy, Ethan whom Chelsea had invited and his roommate Boyd. Ethan was from a wealthy family. He was gorgeous. What caused him to start the brutal killings?
She had left Springfield and moved ninety miles east of Boston after the murders. She would be safer there. However, she had wondered why he had spared her. Would he return to finish the job?
She did not want to play the victim anymore.
Chelsea has a close friend Elizabeth. She had been her salvation. They had met nearly five years ago in the Springfield psychiatric hospital where Chelsea had been held for three months after following the attacks.
Elizabeth had been one of the nurses assigned to her pod. She was older, but they had stayed connected and when she had transferred to a Boston hospital, Chelsea tagged along. With her scars, she had a fresh start. Elizabeth was her rock.
When she runs into Boyd she thinks it may be nice to be around someone who was there that night. Even though Elizabeth was great, she was intimated by her. With Boyd, she was on more of an even playing field.
However, shortly afterward, there is a message left at a murder scene with the same message. Lang (detective) takes up temporary residence at a motel in Southie.
He remembered Boyd. The kid had been a drug user. He is determined to solve the case. Was it Ethan? Why come back to torment Chelsea now after all these years?
Who was the message meant for? One of the victims? Were the killings retribution for something? Motive?
Another message: “You’re going to make me do it again, aren’t you”?
Detectives Lang and Garcia are on the case and Chelsea is worried her attacker is back. Who can she trust?
Halloween, the fifth anniversary of the murders, takes on a new twist. Who is really the killer (then and now)? Or is there something more dark and sinister at play?
As always, Jaynes keeps her readers in suspense with twists and turns. A thrilling ride to very dark places of the human psyche. Disturbing, intense, and suspenseful to the final mind-blowing shocking conclusion.
From beginning to end, Jennifer creates a sense of foreboding, paranoia, fear, distrust, and lurking darkness. You know there is something beneath the surface.
Chelsea is a complex character. She continues to live with the consequences of her violent and painful past, which continue to plague her. However, is she an unreliable narrator?
As a reader, you will question everyone.
The author does an exceptional job in keeping you glued to the pages. She knows how to emotionally hook the reader. Without any spoilers . . . nothing is as it appears. Jaynes’ fans will enjoy another twisty, edgy psychological thriller to add to their collection.
Highly recommend all of the author's books. She never disappoints. For fans of James Hankins, Jennifer Hillier, and Lisa Unger.
Read my reviews here:
The Stranger Inside
Don’t Say a Word
Ugly Young Thing
Never Smile at Strangers
A special thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Thomas & Mercer for an advanced reading copy.
JDCMustReadBooks
“You Made Me.”
Those were the words on Nov 1, 2010, the morning after Halloween. Three women who attended Springfield College. 911 was called. The young officer Brandon was the first responder.
One girl was left alive in the tub. Multiple stab wounds. One of them deep in the side of her abdomen. Blood everywhere.
Now, Oct 4, 2015 —Four years and eleven months later.
Twenty-three-year-old Chelsea Dutton is safe and sane. She is still paranoid and fearful. No one is out to get her. Not anymore. These words had been her mantra for almost five years.
The Halloween night that her college roommates (Christine and Amy) had been murdered and she had been carved up and left for dead.
Since then, she had merely existed. She had been diagnosed with psychogenic amnesia, which made life even more confusing and frightening.
There were no guarantees whether she would recover any of her lost memories. A few had come back over the years but nothing of real significance. A flash here, and there. Some scents and settings brought back some memories of the horrible night.
Her biological parents had been dead since she was six years old. There were a long string of foster families whom she had lived with until she turned eighteen and started college.
The night of the murders clung to her.
There had been a boy, Ethan whom Chelsea had invited and his roommate Boyd. Ethan was from a wealthy family. He was gorgeous. What caused him to start the brutal killings?
She had left Springfield and moved ninety miles east of Boston after the murders. She would be safer there. However, she had wondered why he had spared her. Would he return to finish the job?
She did not want to play the victim anymore.
Chelsea has a close friend Elizabeth. She had been her salvation. They had met nearly five years ago in the Springfield psychiatric hospital where Chelsea had been held for three months after following the attacks.
Elizabeth had been one of the nurses assigned to her pod. She was older, but they had stayed connected and when she had transferred to a Boston hospital, Chelsea tagged along. With her scars, she had a fresh start. Elizabeth was her rock.
When she runs into Boyd she thinks it may be nice to be around someone who was there that night. Even though Elizabeth was great, she was intimated by her. With Boyd, she was on more of an even playing field.
However, shortly afterward, there is a message left at a murder scene with the same message. Lang (detective) takes up temporary residence at a motel in Southie.
He remembered Boyd. The kid had been a drug user. He is determined to solve the case. Was it Ethan? Why come back to torment Chelsea now after all these years?
Who was the message meant for? One of the victims? Were the killings retribution for something? Motive?
Another message: “You’re going to make me do it again, aren’t you”?
Detectives Lang and Garcia are on the case and Chelsea is worried her attacker is back. Who can she trust?
Halloween, the fifth anniversary of the murders, takes on a new twist. Who is really the killer (then and now)? Or is there something more dark and sinister at play?
As always, Jaynes keeps her readers in suspense with twists and turns. A thrilling ride to very dark places of the human psyche. Disturbing, intense, and suspenseful to the final mind-blowing shocking conclusion.
From beginning to end, Jennifer creates a sense of foreboding, paranoia, fear, distrust, and lurking darkness. You know there is something beneath the surface.
Chelsea is a complex character. She continues to live with the consequences of her violent and painful past, which continue to plague her. However, is she an unreliable narrator?
As a reader, you will question everyone.
The author does an exceptional job in keeping you glued to the pages. She knows how to emotionally hook the reader. Without any spoilers . . . nothing is as it appears. Jaynes’ fans will enjoy another twisty, edgy psychological thriller to add to their collection.
Highly recommend all of the author's books. She never disappoints. For fans of James Hankins, Jennifer Hillier, and Lisa Unger.
Read my reviews here:
The Stranger Inside
Don’t Say a Word
Ugly Young Thing
Never Smile at Strangers
A special thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Thomas & Mercer for an advanced reading copy.
JDCMustReadBooks
bookswithnichol's review
dark
4.5
Whoa…this book was good. I thought I had it figured out but I was pleasantly surprised to find out I most certainly did not!!! I seriously could not put this book down!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm
tdchav's review
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
donnek's review against another edition
3.5
Meh, it was alright. At least it kept me interested enough to finish it. I'm on a little bit of a book vetting right now. I have so much on my too read list that I am just not interested in spending my free time on anything that isn't at least interesting. This one kept me guessing and I didn't figure it out until about the 85% point.
nickymaund's review against another edition
2.0
On Halloween, college student Chelsea wakes up in her bathroom covered in blood and stab wounds, the lone survivor of a frenzied attack by her would-be boyfriend (Ethan), who has now disappeared. Fast forward 4 or 5 years to present day and Chelsea has survived the trauma of that night, she still has the scars (both physically and psychologically), but she’s got her own place to live, a job, a good friend, and hardly any memories from that night. She has rebuilt her life. And then things begin to unravel when she bumps into Ethan’s best friend and someone starts leaving her notes. And then the A’s of yet unsolved investigation into that fateful night is reopened.
I have to say this started of really promising. I was quickly drawn into Chelsea’s story and it had me trying to work out what he big reveal would be. However, at a short read, it wasn’t very tense. It didn’t really pull me in much further. And the big reveal didn’t really feel well thought out (when compared to the rest of the story).
I have to say this started of really promising. I was quickly drawn into Chelsea’s story and it had me trying to work out what he big reveal would be. However, at a short read, it wasn’t very tense. It didn’t really pull me in much further. And the big reveal didn’t really feel well thought out (when compared to the rest of the story).