This one was one of those easy-to-read formulaic thrillers that was...well, actually pretty damn good! The cover of the book looks like a young adult thriller and doesn't beckon you to take it very seriously, which makes it a surprise to read and find out it sure doesn't read like a YA novel.It's about five friends with a dark secret. They formed this silly little club when they were in their late teens, called 'The Six of Hearts'. The problem, obviously, is that one of them is now dead. You barely start the book when another of them is gone. And then there were four...The remaining four are in a race against time to find out the secrets of the girl who died and why her death has suddenly come back to haunt all of them, now. What I love about this is the way it's written. I've written really annoying thrillers that practically smack you in the face with clues (red herrings). They imply blatantly that EVERYONE is a suspect. This one does also...but in a way that respects the intelligence of the reader.Thompson goes on insinuations with her novel and not "What if HE did it?" cliffhangers which makes it believable. Instead, she tells the story and allows the reader to get their own creepy feelings about a character rather than TELLING the reader, "Hey, this guy said THIS so you should be freaked out!" It's all so subtle...and it kept me guessing to the last quarter of the book...and that's pretty good because I usually figure these things out from the first few chapters.For what it is, a thriller...It's one of the better ones out there. I love the author's style that doesn't assume the reader is an idiot who must have clues smacking them in the face.**Update - July 2013**Recommended this to quite a few Pretty Little Liars fans, now. Exactly the same premise...without the technology of text messaging.
I would give this book a solid 3.5 stars, as my opinion of it is somewhat mixed. Two comparisons kept coming to mind as I was reading: 1. It's a lot like a Lifetime movie with mediocre acting, only in book form, and 2. It reminds me a lot of the old Christopher Pike books I used to read as a teenager. The writing isn't very sophisticated, the characters aren't deep enough to form any connections to, and the plotlines are a bit cheesy and unrealistic sometimes. However, that said, it was a decently enjoyable read. There were several spooky/suspenseful/eerie moments throughout the book. I liked the sweet little girl Audra, and Laurel's dogs April and Alex (love the names!) I liked Laural's life, living at her parents house and running the family's floral shop. I enjoyed the small-town feel. So yeah, there were good points and bad. 3.5 stars, but I'll have to bump it down to 3 since we can't do halves.
Do You like book In The Event Of My Death (1999)?
This was a thriller. Five girls grow up together and form a secret club called the Queen of Hearts. One of the girls is killed (which they think is accidentally) while they are having one of their clubs "Chanting" and fun meetings in a old barn.They vow to keep it a secret until one of the girls is murdered and a tarot card with the "Queen of Hearts" is left at the murder scene. The murder is 13 years later from the date of the death of the girl that died. They are all now 30 years of age. It is a good thriller and the killer will definitely surprise you even though I figured in out before the reveal!!!If you like thrillers is is a good book to read and will keep your interest throughout.
—Irene Imhof
A club started by six young girls called the Six of Hearts started out innocent but ended with the death of their friend Faith. Now 13 years later, the surviving five are being picked off one by one. The calling card is the number six and a drawn heart together with a tarot card for judgment.Laurel Damron, one of the club members, is scared to death by what is happening but the original club leader, Monica Boyd, doesn’t want any of them to tell what happened that night that they lost one of their friends. Monica has worked too hard to become partner in her law firm to lose it now. After the second of them is found dead, Laurel tells her boyfriend, Officer Kurt Rider, everything. Now that it is in the open, she hopes that they will be able to solve this before the next one to be found dead is her! But who could it possibly be? Faith’s crazy father, her little sister or could it have been her unborn child’s father? Or could it be one of them? In the Event of My Death really had me guessing. The cast of characters are well written and keep you wondering because it seemed anyone could have had a motive. The atmosphere of the small town everyone knows your business really helps with the suspense because not one person knows the whole story. Laurel eventually pieces it all together with her own investigating but is it too late? My only hold up of not giving In the Event of My Death a 5 star rating would be with the relationship that happens in the end of the book. It was forced and fast, like the author quickly tidied everything up.Recommended for all the mystery lovers out there.
—Kelsey
