Sunday, December 4, 2016

REVIEW: The Off Season

The Off Season
Author: Colleen Thompson

Dr.Christina Paxton is troubled. Her life is unraveling. But then again, her life started out rocky. She and her infant sister were abandoned outside in the winter by their mother. Afterwards, she suffered nightmares for years. The freezing cold. Her sister's unmoving body. Her mother never coming back for them. Christina recovered enough to become a doctor, marry and have a daughter. Her life was happy for a short time until her husband passed away unexpectedly. Now she has returned to her childhood home on the New Jersey Shore, staying in a large,empty house as a housesitter until her mother returns from an extended trip to Europe. Just as she starts to relax and think she can start her life over again, strange things start to happen. A disembodied voice speaking from the monitor in her young daughter's room. A nasty messaged carved into her car door. Terrifying phone calls from a woman claiming to be her biological mother. When her daughter starts calling Christina by another, almost forgotten name and babbling about murder, Christina is truly terrified. The local police chief heads the investigation to discover who is threatening Christina's life, but he's a part of her past. A part Christina wishes she could forget. Who can she trust? Who is trying to kill her?

I love thrillers, especially ones that drag out the suspense til the last possible moment. This book fit that description perfectly! I wasn't sure what was going on until the very end....and even then the end caught me by surprise. Kudos to the author for fooling me until the bitter end. :) The pacing of the plot was perfect. Several subplots, including a touch of romance, did not get in the way of the suspense, but added to it instead. The story is well-written. The characters are developed enough to further the story without bogging it down in unnecessary details. When I won a copy of this book on Goodreads.com, I was a bit worried before I started reading. The book is categorized as "romantic suspense.'' Sometimes in similar books the suspense gets sidetracked by the kissy-face subplot. But not in this case. Big on suspense, with just a sprinkle of romance. Perfect.

All in all, a very suspenseful, enjoyable read!! Colleen Thompson has written several other suspense  novels including Beneath Bone Lake and Touch of Evil. I am definitely interested in reading more of her writing! To find out more information about the author and her books, check out her website: www.colleen-thompson.com

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