The Collective
By Alison Gaylin
Reviewed by Jessica Colleran
My brother received this book from his Book of the Month subscription and immediately gave it to me after he finished reading it. Of course, I had to find out what made this book so good! I have never read a book quite like this one; the storyline was crazy good, and I could not read each chapter fast enough to find out what happened next. I must say, this is not a book for the faint of heart, it's a pretty deep subject matter and can be disturbing at times. However, if you like a book that keeps you on the edge of your seat with anticipation, then this is the book for you!
Summary
Camille Gardener is haunted by the past. Haunted by the fact that her daughter was killed and left for dead in the woods one night at a college party, and her killer is living his life as if nothing happened. How is that fair? This young man is a senior in college now and was just in the papers for winning a prestigious humanitarian award. Camille wants him dead. She wants his parents to suffer the way she is after losing a child. Camille is barely hanging on to life, she is now divorced, and does a bit of freelance design work for websites, but nothing is enough to fill the void her daughter left. One day, a woman on the street randomly walks up to Camille and hands her a business card. On the card is written Niobe. Camille soon discovers a whole underground online group dedicated to Moms like herself, and soon Camille's life is turned upside down once again.
What I Liked/Didn't Like
This book was something else and I LOVED it! The concept and storyline may have been a heavy subject matter, but it was original and nothing like I have ever read before. I always appreciate a book with a unique storyline since so many books in so many genres these days have very similar stories. I love a book with a "fresh" idea. The characters in the book tugged on my heartstrings, and even though they are getting involved in some pretty wild things, I still found myself rooting for them. I also appreciated how the story was written. Since Camille is involved in this online support group, some of the chapters were written in a group chat format as if you were reading Camille's computer screen. This helped to break up the chapters and also made me feel like I was a member of the chat reading Camille's comments in real time.
Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
There was no doubt in my mind that this was a five-star book! All the elements of a great thriller were nestled in the pages: unique storyline, interesting characters, short and sweet chapters, and an edge to the story where I couldn't put the book down. Mix all of these elements and you have yourself one fantastic read! If you're looking for a book that you can't put down and one that will get you thinking, then you need to pick this gem up at your local bookstore......I promise you will thank me later! 😉
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