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You Believers
by
Jane Bradley
You Believers is a powerful, cathartic story of casual evil and of how the worst things can be faced so that we might not only survive, but grow. A young woman goes missing, and her mother uproots her life to find her daughter. But it is not just the heartbreak or the deep mystery of the hunt for lost loved ones that Bradley so convincingly explores. Rather, with the help...more
Hardcover, 416 pages
Published
May 3rd 2011
by Unbridled Books
(first published April 25th 2011)
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A story of a girl missing, a girl saved and numerous who plummet someplace in between. All the characters are damaged and because of this, sympathetic. The characters pose the question when you become a victim, is it better to be killed or be a survivor. It examines what happens after a horrifying incident, how we are changed how we move on or why we don’t.
I found myself unable to put this book down. It is not possible to disengage from what is happening to all the characters psychologically, an...more
I found myself unable to put this book down. It is not possible to disengage from what is happening to all the characters psychologically, an...more
I found this to be a hear-wrenching book. The thoguth of any child going missing is horrible. Granted this child was a 30 year old woman, but it's quick to forget that there is a mother out there worried for her.
We read this story from a couple different voices. Livy, the mother of the missing woman, Billy, the fiancee and Shelby, the missing person tracker. Shelby's voice is the most personal and I was able read her point of view from a first person perspective. I grew to like her and understan...more
We read this story from a couple different voices. Livy, the mother of the missing woman, Billy, the fiancee and Shelby, the missing person tracker. Shelby's voice is the most personal and I was able read her point of view from a first person perspective. I grew to like her and understan...more
http://mariesbookgarden.blogspot.com/...
I didn't realize that You Believers was based on true characters until after I'd finished the book. It's about people who are lost and people who seek: damaged souls who take revenge on other people for their own hurt...grieving ones who lose their loved ones...and generous, dedicated people who dedicate their lives to finding the lost ones.
Shelby Waters is a professional seeker--she runs a volunteer organization that finds people who are lost. Livy's daug...more
I didn't realize that You Believers was based on true characters until after I'd finished the book. It's about people who are lost and people who seek: damaged souls who take revenge on other people for their own hurt...grieving ones who lose their loved ones...and generous, dedicated people who dedicate their lives to finding the lost ones.
Shelby Waters is a professional seeker--she runs a volunteer organization that finds people who are lost. Livy's daug...more
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I was lucky enough to have the pleasure of attending a book reading by Jane Bradley at the University of Toledo. The book itself was amazing, but the reading was nothing short of powerful. I rushed to the review, late, my mind in my own business, and by the time I left, I was so shaken that I could think of nothing but the story. The words flowed through my head continuously for weeks; the story was unshakable. You Believers did not have the classically popular plot line with unrealistic happy e...more
A heart-crushing tale of a girl lost, a girl saved and several who fall somewhere in between. All the characters are flawed and because of this, demand sympathy on some level. The juxtaposition of the characters poses the question when victimized, is it better to be killed or live. It examines what happens when we come out the other side of horrific events, how we are changed and what motivates us as individuals to move on, or not. Most would say this is obvious, but is it? What does it mean to...more
May 14, 2011
Michelle
added it
You Believers is one of those novels that is seemingly simple until one goes to describe the plot to someone else. Only then does one realize just how layered and complex the story really is. In this case, what could be construed as a simple missing-persons thriller becomes a study of evil and loss, the need to help and the power of love. It is a psychological drama, a thriller, a murder mystery and family narrative all in one.
Told from different characters' points of view, the power of the nove...more
Told from different characters' points of view, the power of the nove...more
Multiple voices are employed to stunning effect in this novel of those who are lost and those who find. Bradley's powerful writing catapults the story of a missing young woman into an engrossing character study that examines in meaningful and sometimes unexpectedly moving ways the actions of all the players in the story: those who love and miss her; those who search for her with their own versions of hope; and those who are responsible for her being lost. The voice of Shelby Waters, the finder,...more
You Believers is a haunting story of a missing person. The author voices (in an unusual way) each person affected by the event—the victim, the perpetrator, the victim’s fiancee, the victim’s mother and best of all, Shelby Waters, a searcher for lost persons. Sometimes she finds them and other times they stare at her out of the pictures hung on the walls of her home/office. The book takes a difficult subject and makes it riveting and satisfying. We all end up believing in something and sometimes...more
This was ok. This book is a story about missing persons and the effort behind searching for them and their kidnappers or murderers
At our book club we got to do a phone interview w/ the author and learned that a lot in the book is true, the characters and events.
Some of it was interesting, some parts a bit emotional. Some of it was overly sentimental..or droned on & on in some places about things irrelevant to the story.
I also disliked the lack of a climax..or maybe an interesting resolution....more
At our book club we got to do a phone interview w/ the author and learned that a lot in the book is true, the characters and events.
Some of it was interesting, some parts a bit emotional. Some of it was overly sentimental..or droned on & on in some places about things irrelevant to the story.
I also disliked the lack of a climax..or maybe an interesting resolution....more
What a fabulous multi-layered book with wonderful characters, and a powerful concept. This is one of those books that really move you - at least that's what I found. The kidnapping of a woman, who trusts a man because he is well-dressed, cute and says that he is in trouble (shades of Ted Bundy here). The passionate love of a mother, who loses her child, albeit a 30 year old. The abused boy, Jesse, who, whilst adopted by a loving family, cannot redeem himself from evil. And finally, Shelby, the w...more
Jesse is a sociopath hell-bent on making random women pay for the perceived sins of his mother and this is the story of those unfortunate souls who cross his path--the girls who go missing, the people who search for them, and the one young woman who survives. This is a literary page turner of the highest order, where the darkest corners of our everyday world are limned in sinister shadow and even the bright daylight spaces are dappled with menace.
I received an advance reading copy of this book...more
I received an advance reading copy of this book...more
Really a mixed bag. The good stuff—great character development and insight into the minds of two criminals; a page-turner; gritty and intense crime scenes (not for the squeamish) from both the criminal’s and victim’s point of view; the mystery is well-paced and unfolds with just the right amount of suspense and clues. As you learn bits and pieces of the criminals’ activities but don’t yet know what happened, you believe for a while (because you want to, need to, believe) that the victim escaped,...more
This was a book that missed the mark in some way but was almost there for me. It is about a women that supports the loved ones of missing people by getting the word out,making posters and being there to listen. Her sister disappeared years earlier and the remains were finally found. But, the women remembers how it felt and how hard it was to lose someone and not know if they were alive or dead. This book follows the disappearance of a women named Katy. There is some mystical portions that I am n...more
This was a well-written book. A heartbreaking account of a horrific murder. Yet, all the way through, I kept assuming it was a suspense novel and that what appeared to be clues ("she was smart and fast. She would do whatever it took to get out of this mess alive") were planted for a purpose. That the persona, "Randy," was planted for a purpose and would play some part in the resolution of the story. I was disappointed to discover that this wasn't really a "story," at all, it was a "situation." I...more
Steady paced mystery. Enjoyed the characters and the well designed pace between the following of the characters. Hits every angle/point of view of a murder. Enjoyed the style and pace of her writing.
A line that I could relate to:
"It was a day like so many days when you think you know where you're going, and the road bucks and you get thrown to a place without a map. You look around and try to get your bearings where low, thick clouds hang all around you, keeping you from knowing which way the su...more
A line that I could relate to:
"It was a day like so many days when you think you know where you're going, and the road bucks and you get thrown to a place without a map. You look around and try to get your bearings where low, thick clouds hang all around you, keeping you from knowing which way the su...more
I recieved an ebook copy of You Believers through Netgalley and proceeded to sit on it for a month or two. I'm not sure why except that the book is extremely depressing and dark and my mood lately has resulted in the need to avoid anything as honestly terrifying as this book is. I am placing this on my literary-horror shelf but other readers may disagree. The book is more straight up fiction but the eloquence and honesty with which the author wrote elevated the book in my esteem. The story telli...more
This review first appeared on my blog: http://www.knittingandsundries.com/20...
When 30-year-old bartender Katy Connor goes missing on a shopping trip, Shelby Waters of Rescue Effort Volunteers joins in the search for her. Shelby, from the small town of Suck Creek, lost her own sister Darly to a killer and has made it her life's work to bring either rescue or closure to families of the missing.
If you read the description alone, you might think that this book is full of darkness, and while there A...more
When 30-year-old bartender Katy Connor goes missing on a shopping trip, Shelby Waters of Rescue Effort Volunteers joins in the search for her. Shelby, from the small town of Suck Creek, lost her own sister Darly to a killer and has made it her life's work to bring either rescue or closure to families of the missing.
If you read the description alone, you might think that this book is full of darkness, and while there A...more
Didn't love it, but it held my interest. It was hard to understand the author's goal....but after reading the Acknowledgements section in the back of the book, the reason she wrote the book became clearer. It's hard to read in parts and not really bedtime reading because of some of the scenes. I think it could have used more editing---I was kind of tired of reading about the Mom and Billy, but certain scenes seemed way too brief, and I would have liked to learn more about Jesse's background.
I was disappointed in this book. Things I really liked: some wonderfully lyrical language, so nice to delve into the emotional lives of survivors of horrible crimes, really good sense of place, taking on religious belief - after all 40% of Americans say they are religious, but we never see it treated sensibly in our fiction. What drove me crazy: Really, really corny in places. I kept thinking of high-fructose corn syrup. Especially the boyfriend going to church. Over the top and obvious. Also th...more
Although this is a story that revolves around a young woman who has gone missing, it is not really a mystery or crime novel in the usual sense. The reader knows almost from the start what has happened, and who the perpetrator is, with more details being revealed throughout the story. This book evolves into a story not just about how a mystery is solved and a person found, but also tells of all the emotional ups and downs of those who are searching, and the struggle to sustain hope. The author ut...more
This was a book that the librarians thought that I might like. It was intersting. There were parts that were totally false and made me mad for people that think they can go to a death scence and move stuff and that it is okay. I enjoyed some of the story but it was a little long winded. It could have been shortened by about 100 pages at least. I probably wont be reading this author again.
I bought this book after hearing author Jane Bradley read from it at the Meacham's Writers Workshop. I usually don't read the suspense genre, so I wasn't sure if I would like it or not. I didn't turn too many pages before I was hooked! The characters are engaging, and the writing will pull you into this world whether you want to go or not. Excellent read!
This was alright. The first part was excellent, then it gets very violent (although I suppose I should have seen it coming, and well played to the author for not going into TOO much detail about what it must have felt like or that would have been too horrific). Still, after that I felt it was relatively predictable and I ended up skimming the entire second half.
A very heartfelt exploration of what happens when someone goes missing: the holes they leave, the sickening worry, the endless searching.
Interestingly told through multiple points of view: the victim, her family, the searcher, the criminal, the accomplice. A well written Southern novel about hope, fear, and waiting.
Interestingly told through multiple points of view: the victim, her family, the searcher, the criminal, the accomplice. A well written Southern novel about hope, fear, and waiting.
Wow! Don't read this one before you go to bed. By a local author, this is a well-written, but gut-wrenching book. I found it particularly difficult to read as a mother since there is a murder and another attempted murder of a young woman. It really is a book about loss and its aftermath, but the writer does discuss the crimes in some detail and it is so realistic, you will find it difficult to sleep.
Wow! Don't read this one before you go to bed. By a local author, this is a well-written, but gut-wrenching book. I found it particularly difficult to read as a mother since there is a murder and another attempted murder of young women. It really is a book about loss and its aftermath, but the writer does discuss the crimes in some detail and it is so realistic, you will find it difficult to sleep.
This book was a magnificently written thriller. It was disturbing, but the prose were so well written, it tore at your emotions.
I have a friend, when she says a book is amazing I grab it. Our tastes are so similiar I can't go wrong with her recommendations. You Believers is a case in point.
I have a friend, when she says a book is amazing I grab it. Our tastes are so similiar I can't go wrong with her recommendations. You Believers is a case in point.
Local author visit for book club. Follows the storyline of two women who are tortured by young psychopath. Shelby Waters is a private investigator who profiles missing people and aids families in their searches. Well written, but a little all over the place with characters. Some of the group complained about the violence...I did agree with that complaint...realism may have haunted some readers.
This book will tear at your emotions but not in the sense of some writing that simply seeks an emotional response but in the real visceral sense that one can feel the ache, numbness, and actual pain of those suffering the loss of a loved one. As the author tells the story from shifting points of view the reader also experiences the fear and terror of the victims.
Psychological insight into the mind of evil, the weak man who gets swept into the maelstrom of evil, the good man who knows the women h...more
Psychological insight into the mind of evil, the weak man who gets swept into the maelstrom of evil, the good man who knows the women h...more
I didn't expect to like this book as much as I did. I had a misconception about what it was. I picked it up at 8:30 am and finished it at 7:30 pm. Quick and easy to get into and moved at a good pace.
The characters were real.
The characters were real.
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Jane Bradley is the author of two acclaimed story collections and a novella, Power Lines, which was named a New York Times Notable Book. Originally from Chattanooga, Tennessee, she now teaches at the University of Toledo in Ohio. This is her first full-length novel.
More about Jane Bradley...
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