Monday, October 30, 2023

Theme Music by T. Marie Vandelly


 

Theme Music by T. Marie Vandelly

Reviewed by Christy

            Dixie wasn't even two years old when her entire family died tragically on Thanksgiving Day in 1992. The deaths of her mother and three brothers at the hands of their father shocked the entire nation and made headlines for years to come.

            Now in her late twenties, Dixie is aimless in life and struggling to piece together what happened that night. The aunt who raised her never liked to talk about the crime, so Dixie decides to take matters into her own hands. When the house where the murders occurred goes up for rent, Dixie snatches it up in the hopes of feeling more connected to her family. She even goes so far as to decorate it with her parents' furniture she discovers in storage. This leads her down an investigative path to discover the truth of that day.

            The premise caught my attention but unfortunately, I kind of hated this book. The writing style is incredibly off-putting and unpolished. The prose is muddled at times, which resulted in re-reading several passages to fully grasp what was happening. The tone, however, was the worst part for me. I think the author was going for sarcastic and slightly cheeky but it only reminded me of an edgy teenager desperately trying to get a reaction. There was just no tact whatsoever when discussing child murders or sexual assault, and it got to be a little too much for me.

            I kept reading because I did find the central mystery intriguing but even that came to a disappointing conclusion. There's just so much to pick apart about this book (and I haven't even touched on all of Dixie's deeply troubling issues that are glossed over). I was relieved to finish it and get out of Dixie's juvenile mind. There are so many wonderful thrillers and mysteries out there. Save your valuable reading time and skip this one.

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