Daly, Paula--The Mistake I Made informal buddy read starts July 18, 2018

[Moderators of NBRC, Challenger-in-Chief]

This thread is open to discuss The Mistake I Made by Paula Daly.



Synopsis
The Mistake I Made is the latest page-turner from one of the England’s most captivating new thriller writers. In her provocative and riveting third novel, Paula Daly focuses her masterful eye for psychological suspense and family drama on an indecent proposal that has fatal repercussions.

Single mother Roz has a reached breaking-point. After the dissolution of her marriage, Roz’s business has gone under, debts are racking up, the rent is late (again), and she's struggling to provide for her nine-year-old son, who is starting to misbehave in school. Roz is in trouble. Real trouble.

When Roz returns home from work one day and finds an eviction notice, she knows that it’s time for action—she has two weeks to find a solution otherwise they will be kicked out of their home. Increasingly desperate, Roz doesn’t know where to turn. Then the perfect opportunity presents itself. At her sister’s fortieth birthday party, Roz meets Scott Elias—wealthy, powerful, and very married. But the impression Roz leaves on him is indelible. He tracks her down and makes Roz an offer to spend the night with him—for money. He wants no-strings-attached intimacy and can guarantee total discretion. Could it be as simple as it sounds? With that kind of cash, Roz could clear her debts and get her life back on track. But as the situation spirals out of her control, Roz is forced to do things she never thought herself capable of. Can she ever set things right again?

[Moderators of NBRC, Challenger-in-Chief]

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[Moderators of NBRC, Challenger-in-Chief]

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[Geri]

I’ll be back!

[Laura]

Checking in!

[Brooke]

I've got this downloaded and ready to go for this week!

[Geri]

I read through chapter 16 last night. The first 10 chapters or so weren’t all that exciting. Mostly backstory. But I don’t think I have read a book about a massage therapist before.

I don’t know what to think about Scott yet. (view spoiler)[ He doesn’t seem all that exciting. Very vanilla. He is bored with his wife and wants a playmate he can satisfy. Not sure if there is more to his story.

Plus, I feel a little gipped since we didn’t get to read about Roz and Scott’s first encounter. Roz just tells us in a general way what happened. Too tame! I wanted my smut! LOL (hide spoiler)]

Then there is Henry. (view spoiler)[ There’s supposedly sparks between Roz and Henry. But I don’t feel it. What will happen between them?I can’t figure out why Henry is part of the story. (hide spoiler)]

And then there is Wayne. (view spoiler)[ He is the most interesting to me. He found out Roz was taking some of the money from her clients who pay cash. That surprised me about Roz. She is so in debt! And I guess that explains her behavior. And now Wayne is blackmailing her and wants sex. I actually thought he might be gay. lOL But I really want to find out how Roz gets out of this situation! (hide spoiler)]

[Brooke]

You are speedy, Geri. :-)

I have to finish Day Shift tonight, and then I'll start this one. I should be able to wrap up Day Shift this evening, although I have a lot of life stuff to do tonight as well. I have family visiting tomorrow night through Sunday unexpectedly, though, so my reading time might be limited. Maybe my dad will tire early due to the awful heat here so I can get some good reading time in nightly before bed.

[Laura]

I 'm trying the audio for this but ... as its my first audio its really going horribly! I'm going to have to get a physical copy.

[Brooke]

Laura, I like audiobooks but I don’t know if I could make them work for buddy reads. I like being able to refer to something in the book or look up a name I forgot which is nearly impossible with audio. I am going to give it a shot with Before I Let You Go though because I was able to borrow an audio copy. Fingers crossed.

[Geri]

Brooke wrote: "You are speedy, Geri. :-)

I have to finish Day Shift tonight, and then I'll start this one. I should be able to wrap up Day Shift this evening, although I have a lot of life stuff ..."

No worries. I’ve got some stuff going on which will slow me down some. I probably won’t finish until next Monday or so. Enjoy your father’s visit!

[Geri]

Laura wrote: "I 'm trying the audio for this but ... as its my first audio its really going horribly! I'm going to have to get a physical copy."

Audiobooks can be great. I love listening while I do chores or cook. Makes the work more fun for me. But it does take getting used to. My husband cannot multi task like that. But I have been doing it for years. The narrator is important too. The narrator for this book isn’t the best!

[Geri]

Read through chapter 30. It is getting more interesting!

Scott (view spoiler)[ He is definitely getting clingy! I still wish we got more detailed encounters. I know it’s not romance. But I do think it would help us see the development of Scott’s obsession. (hide spoiler)]

Henry (view spoiler)[ I did not see him being Nadine’s brother! (hide spoiler)]

Wayne (view spoiler)[ That was just crazy! Wayne knocks out Roz because he couldn’t go through with their encounter. And now he is missing. Did Scott follow her and he did something to Wayne?? (hide spoiler)]

The book description says the book is a psychological thriller. But the writing is too light and general to be suspenseful or dark. It’s a fast read, though. And I will try to finish on Monday.

[Brooke]

I've only made it through chapter 7

Roz (view spoiler)[ I'm not sold on cheering for her yet. I feel bad about the situation with her ex, but she's made so many bad decisions since then. (hide spoiler)]

Wayne (view spoiler)[ He is probably going to end up interesting, but right now I am just annoyed with him. Nosy Nellie! (hide spoiler)]

Scott (view spoiler)[ I agree with Geri that he is just too vanilla right now. He's wealthy and drives a Ferrari, blah blah blah. He needs a little more to him than money and a fit physique. (hide spoiler)]

Petra (view spoiler)[ I don't like this woman! Yes, she is Roz's sister, but come on. She is way too prim & proper yet superficial. (hide spoiler)]

I've also never read a story featuring a massage therapist. (view spoiler)[ It makes me cringe just a bit, but that might be the difference between American and English therapists - or it could be a knowledge gap with what the author knows. My ex-husband was a really good therapist and I know how much training is necessary to get that good. It is mentioned a couple of times that Roz just took a course to learn another discipline (acupuncture, for example), but to actually get results from that more than one course is needed. (hide spoiler)]

My dad and brother's family are all leaving town after brunch tomorrow, so my current plan for tomorrow is to relax on my sofa with a book. It is too hot to do much else these days!

[Laura]

My copy didn't come in yet. I ve been buying a few books so I'll come back when my copy comes in.

[Geri]

Brooke wrote: "I've only made it through chapter 7

Roz [spoilers removed]

Wayne [spoilers removed]

Scott [spoilers removed]

Petra [spoilers removed]

I've also never read a story featuring a massage therapist..."

Your ex was a massage therapist. What a good deal that had to be! (view spoiler)[ But I agree a certain amount of training needs to be done. I’ve had acupuncture treatments and I wouldn’t want just anyone putting the needles in who isn’t properly educated! (hide spoiler)]

Petra (view spoiler)[ Yes, she is annoying and you are only in chapter 7. LOL (hide spoiler)]

[Geri]

Laura wrote: "My copy didn't come in yet. I ve been buying a few books so I'll come back when my copy comes in."

What did you think of the other books you read by this author, Laura? Were they psychological thrillers too? I am not finding this one dark or suspenseful.

[Laura]

I really liked them; which is why I wanted to read this one. Is it a dud?

[Brooke]

Chapters 8-18

Wayne (view spoiler)[ Well I wasn't expecting that. I thought he would go through with it but go against his word and continue blackmailing her. Or be really stupid and attempt to blackmail Scott, I guess there is still time for that... (hide spoiler)]

Roz (view spoiler)[ It seems like every couple of chapters Roz as narrator clues us into more debt. Now we find out she borrowed a HUGE sum of money from her parents? Eek. I'm still not sold on cheering for her overall in the story, because we keep learning about bad decisions she's made and because she isn't very good at keeping up a brave face for the sake of George. I can't believe he's been stealing and she didn't even notice! (hide spoiler)]

Petra (view spoiler)[ Ugh. She is getting more insufferable with each time she appears in the story! This is the only time I can cheer for Roz. Petra is sitting on a mighty high horse. I can only imagine what her reaction will be if/when she finds out about Roz and Scott. (hide spoiler)]

Scott (view spoiler)[ He is still a bit too one-note for me. To add to the wealth and attitude, now he is dismissive of Wayne just because he got what he wanted. He is just as much to blame, in my opinion, with the Wayne/Roz situation. (hide spoiler)]

Geri: I agree about Henry. (view spoiler)[Right now I think he is the most interesting candidate in Roz's orbit, but I am not feeling any chemistry or connection between them. It was a weird coincidence that she ran into him on her first night with Scott. (hide spoiler)]

[Laura]

Do either of you like Colleen Hoover? I'm setting up a buddy read for her new book this week if you want to join in.

[Brooke]

Laura wrote: "Do either of you like Colleen Hoover? I'm setting up a buddy read for her new book this week if you want to join in."

I've never read anything by Hoover. I have a solid reading list for the next couple of weeks. If I have some free evenings and get through them faster than planned I'll check it out!

[Brooke]

Chapters 19-32

Wayne (view spoiler)[ I wasn't expecting that either. This is the storyline that isn't predictable in my opinion. (hide spoiler)]

Scott (view spoiler)[ I did expect this. He basically admitted to being a control freak and expecting to get what he wants, so of course he is going crazy when Roz isn't following his plan to the letter. He is getting super creepy, and the author is setting things up for Scott to have tracked Roz to Wayne's house. I don't know if he actually murdered Wayne, though. With the big hints dropped it seems a bit obvious. (hide spoiler)]

Henry: (view spoiler)[ I like him and wonder what happened in the past between him and Scott for there to be such animosity. Did Henry get the girl Scott wanted? (hide spoiler)]

Roz: (view spoiler)[ She is really in a pickle now. She'll have prints at Wayne's house. The huge tree limb in the road was a weird detail to include, so I suspect Scott put a tracker on her car which will be discovered by the mechanic. We'll see (hide spoiler)]

This is my first book by Daly, so I don't know her style. (view spoiler)[ Is she known for big twists? Or does she just tell a story not caring if she tricks the reader? If there is a big twist, it will be something bad about Henry. Otherwise everything points to Scott being crazy, murdering Wayne and taking the "if I can't have Roz, no one can" stance. (hide spoiler)]

[Geri]

Finished! Scott (view spoiler)[ the ending was anti climactic for me. Scott turned out to be a real crazy. I couldn’t believe he tells everyone about his love for Roz at his anniversary party! And then smirks when everyone gets mad at Roz! This book drove me nuts with the character’s reactions.

And then Scott gets arrested for financial fraud and not the murder of Wayne. Not a very satisfying ending for me. Roz drove me nuts with how she did not tell the police about who killed Wayne at first.She wasn’t a very likeable character to me. (hide spoiler)]

Henry (view spoiler)[ in the end, I don’t think Roz deserved a guy like Henry. But he obviously was coming back to her. (hide spoiler)]

[Geri]

Brooke wrote: "Chapters 8-18

Wayne [spoilers removed]

Roz [spoilers removed]

Petra [spoilers removed]

Scott [spoilers removed]

Geri: I agree about Henry. [spoilers removed]"

Oh, I wish you had written the story, Brooke! The ideas you had for Wayne were much more interesting than what Daly wrote!

[Geri]

Brooke wrote: "Chapters 19-32

Wayne [spoilers removed]

Scott [spoilers removed]

Henry: [spoilers removed]

Roz: [spoilers removed]

This is my first book by Daly, so I don't know her style. [spoilers removed]"

About Daly’s writing. (view spoiler)[ I never felt any connection between Roz and any of her men. And why was it that Roz had all the guys obsessed with her? That just felt a little far fetched to me. (hide spoiler)]

[Geri]

Laura wrote: "Do either of you like Colleen Hoover? I'm setting up a buddy read for her new book this week if you want to join in."

I’ve read a few books by Hoover. But don’t think I can fit another book in this week!

This book wasn’t for me! I haven’t read anything else by Daly so I can’t compare it to the others. I didn’t like any of the characters. And never felt any chemistry between them. This was supposed to be a psychological thriller. But it wasn’t done very well.

If you do read the book, let me know. I’ll come back to discuss with you.

[Laura]

Oh that doesn't sound good! Sorry you guys didn't like it.

[Brooke]

I finished this yesterday. Overall a 2.5 star read because I think Daly could have done so much more with the characters and a couple of the storylines.

The ending: (view spoiler)[ I am not sure how I feel about not being able to arrest Scott for murder but instead getting him on tax evasion and bank fraud. Those crimes will ruin his reputation and take away all of his money, but he won't serve much jail time. Surely someone that arrogant made a mistake along the way. (hide spoiler)]

[Geri]

Brooke wrote: "I finished this yesterday. Overall a 2.5 star read because I think Daly could have done so much more with the characters and a couple of the storylines.

The ending: [spoilers removed]"

I didn’t like the ending. I also did not think Roz deserved a HEA. There seems to be a trend in mystery thrillers where most of the characters are so unlikeable. I definitely don’t like it!

[Geri]

Laura wrote: "Oh that doesn't sound good! Sorry you guys didn't like it."

Not anything you did, Laura. You didn’t write it! LOL Sometimes that is the way it goes. Makes me appreciate it when I read a good book.

[Apoorv]

Team Gilderoy Lockhart
Part 1-5 - Chapter 1-30

I am definitely captivated to say the least.
I jumped into the book without reading the blurb, so when the curve ball of (view spoiler)[Scott making his offer to sleep with Roz and her accepting it (hide spoiler)] happened, I was definitely surprised.

I liked the backstory and how it all progressed right up to that point. While Roz isn't necessarily a favorite or a likable character, I certainly understand her story and the reasons for her actions.

Scott, on the other hand, (view spoiler)[is just plain straight-edged. Given the fact that he triggers and important change in the narrative, I hardly find his charcater remotely powerful or vicious enough. Its not even threatening at this moment. He is just a middle-aged man, wanting to sleep around, because his life is at a stale-mate and because he simply can. Nothing more. (hide spoiler)]

That is sort of my qualm with almost all the male characters in the book. (view spoiler)[Scott is vanilla, Henry is bland, Vince is a space filler, Winston is an asshole, and Wayne is a douche. If you need to make all the supporting characters weak to make your main character shine out, it is a clear sign of under-development of the main character on the author's part. (hide spoiler)]

But either way, the story is compelling nonetheless.