Monday, October 31, 2011

Book Review - Rearview Mirror by Stephanie Black

I recently finished reading Rearview Mirror by Stephanie Black. I've read one other of her books, Cold As Ice  and loved it. It made its way around my office where I'm the resident library. Rearview Mirror  is now making the rounds as well. As a disclaimer, the author provided me with a free copy of this book, but it didn't impact my review. I would definitely purchase it.

So what's it about?

On a rainy night eight years ago, Fiona Claridge lost control of her car and crashed, injuring herself and killing her roommate, Mia Hardy. Now, she strives to keep the painful past at bay by staying burrowed beneath the demands of her job as a college professor in a small New England town. But when someone starts leaving her gift-wrapped boxes containing malicious reminders of Mia’s death, Fiona’s guilt and grief come flooding back.

She assumes her stalker is Kimberly Bailey, a disgruntled student, and enlists the help of fellow professor James Hampton. But when Fiona encounters the angry wife of an old flame, it becomes clear her student isn’t the only one with an eye for revenge. Cruel messages escalate to danger, then murder. As past and present become horribly entangled, Fiona struggles to unravel the truth about a determined killer—before she becomes the next victim.


What did I think? I loved it. I really haven't been that much of a mystery/suspense reader, but I'm finding myself being pulled into this genre thanks to Stephanie. My heart went out to poor Fiona who already bears so many scars--both physically and emotionally--from the accident all those years ago.

I thoroughly enjoyed the characters that Stephanie created in this story because they were believably flawed. You're only given a part of each character's story and left to guess the rest. I found myself getting really nervous as the end of the book approached because I was emotionally invested in so many characters ... and I knew one of them was the villain. I kept thinking, "No, it can't be ***; I like *** too much." or "No, it can't be *** because if it is *** then **** will be devastated, and I don't want **** to be hurt."

Stephanie messed with my head so much that toward the end of the book, when things were getting really tense, I had a nightmare where my own romantic interest in the WIP I'm editing right now ended up turning into a villain. O_o Mine is not even a mystery/suspense!

If you're interested in reading the first chapter of Rearview Mirror, you can check it out here.


Well, it's Halloween, and tomorrow is the first day of NaNoWriMo.

I decided to be a Zombie but, man, they're sure a lot more bloodthirsty than when I was a girl. I'm going to be a Vegan Zombie.






Are you dressing up?

11 comments:

  1. Bunnicula!

    Not sure if you ever read any of those books, about the vampire rabbit who was draining vegetables by night; that's what your vegan zombie made me think of. Enjoy the day.

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  2. A vegan zombie, hahahaha...

    Not dressing up this year, but I usually go as some kind of witch when I do.

    Happy Halloween!

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  3. Can't believe someone brought up Bunnicula. My daughter used to read those tome, when she was learning to love reading. I loved hearing the tales. She thought she was reading some real scary stuff.

    Rearview Mirror sounds interesting. Participating in NaNo for the first time. I will be buried in my computer for the next month.

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  4. This sounds very interesting. I haven't heard of it, but I always love to hear about a good book to read. :) Glad you shared.

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  5. Thanks for the review. I always enjoy Stephanie's books. :) I'm looking forward to reading this one.

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  6. Very good review!

    Loved the Zombie song.

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  7. Looks like a great thriller book.

    I'm not dressing up. I'm kind of a halloween scrooge and I mostly just tolerate it.

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  8. Donna, thank you for the great review! I'm so glad you enjoyed the book (except for your bad dream . . . :)

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  9. Luv the cat;) Happy Halloween!

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  10. I just started reading Rearview Mirror and I'm looking forward to seeing what I dream about. Ha ha. I'll post my review in a couple weeks. Now go drink some tomato juice.

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  11. Love the idea of a veggie zombie. :D

    Sounds like a great book.

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