Rapid Falls by Amber Cowie
Forgive and forget? The past and present collide for two sisters who survived a tragedy—and must now survive the truth behind it. It’s been twenty years since Cara’s boyfriend died in a horrible accident and her sister, Anna, went to prison. The tragedy has become a local legend, but Cara has moved past her grief to have a successful career and a happy family. Pity about Anna. Recently released from incarceration, she’s struggling with addiction,…
Rapid Falls by Amber Cowie
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
Got this book from Amazon First Reads. Amazon, did you even read this before recommending it to zillions of people? I’m guessing no.
Well, let me fill you in. It was terrible. None of the characters is likable in the least, and their motivations are ridiculously juvenile. Everything is spoon-fed to the reader, because apparently we are too dumb to understand context and to read between the lines. The “clues” are so obvious that they might as well have been frantically waving a giant red flag that said, “Look at me! I’m a clue!” (Though it is pretty clear based on the book’s blurb what really happened.) I find present tense to be jarring to begin with, but the switching between present and past tense was extremely annoying, especially given the fact that this book was 90% flashback. The whole thing was completely implausible to me, especially how quickly Cara plotted the Perfect Murder—and managed to get away with it. And not for a few years. FOREVER.
Most people have an innate sense of justice and believe everyone should get what they deserve, good or bad—and on that count (along with many others), this book falls woefully short. It’s one thing when someone does something bad for a good reason, feels guilty about it, and still gets away with it. It’s something else entirely when there’s no remorse and no justice.
The only reason I gave it 2 stars instead of 1 is because I wanted to know why. Turns out, Cara’s just a sociopath. Mystery solved!
Purchase on: Amazon