Never Let You Go, by Chevy Stevens- 3 Stars (decathalon)

[Joi]

Teetering between 3-4 stars. The psychological thriller-ness of this novel is a strong 4 stars. But I had a serious problem with the assumptions made with the ending. Enough to knock it down a whole star.

This book is in two parts. The first part flip flops between Lindsey in the past, meeting her now ex-husband and their relationship. And recent times- 10 years later and her ex husband is getting out of jail. The second part flip flips in modern times between Lindsey, and her daughter Sophie- building a relationship with both her father, and a boy in school. This book is mainly about relationships- the complication that crime can put on a family. Can someone really change after years in prison? How much can we trust those who are close to us? How does abuse effect future relationships for the victim?

The plot moves quickly, there is always something going on, new information being built, and the book is driven this way. I really liked the twist, I actually thought (view spoiler)[Lindsey was going to end up being the crazy one, and the husband was really not that bad this whole time (hide spoiler)]. There is alot I REALLY appreciated about this that does more than just normal psychological thrillers- it shows the aftermath. It shows the daughter of a torn family going into her first relationship, and how her struggles with her dad effect her dating life. I appreciate that it shows the after of an abuse victim-the paranoia, the struggle even after someone has been convicted.

But damn the overlooking of a pretty major plot point in the end tying together made me MAD. (view spoiler)[Andrew was truly evil. He was an abuser. We're supposed to just believe that he had magically become better, and that everyone is totally sad when he dies? There is no guilty relief from Lindsey or Sophie about his death? There was no 'he brought it on himself'? I was MAD at the end because they just seemed to forget the fact that Andrew was still or used to be a really bad man. (hide spoiler)]