Review: Don't Turn Around

Don't Turn Around by Caroline Mitchell
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Without thinking and without skimming the blurbs, I bought both this and the second Time to Die book in the series for a reasonable price after picking up the third for 0.99 Eur a month ago - I tend to read series in order, mostly.
So I wanted a UK based page-turner crime. What I got was meh. Skimming a few 4 and 5 star reviews and with the supernatural twist revealed, I thought, this might really be good (or should be at least).
Well, not for me. The setting was UK, ok, some expressions and a little bit of scenery was good, but not enough for me, could have been way more english. And from the blurb and the reviews I was expecting a page-turner, I wonder which book the others read they are reviewing, not this one.
Instead, like some really good books I read (Val McDermid comes to mind, there it happens a few times) at around 40-44% there is certain lack of story, not enough action, no suspense and too many side-stories which only function together when all is revealed in the end and it comes together. But that does not save it for me. Having bought the next two books already I have wasted my money, but might look into them to fast-forward read them if they get better.
Sometimes the writing gets better after the author has settled and written more, the late Eva Hudson comes to mind (although the series took a nosedive for me with the takeover of the writing after her death by her friend and editor and I abandoned it), so here is hoping.
The MC is ok, and the background is interesting, but the writing is not. To explain that, the author has published a non-fiction book about a real, documented haunting that took place in the house she (her family) bought. That could be interesting, but I have not read it yet, and that does nothing for the suspense and possible entertainment I wanted from this book.

So this is not really recommended, barely warranting 3 stars for a good idea and a start of a series (and does this count as a debut? not sure about that).

View all my reviews