This started off strong but quickly lost my interest with its tangle of over-the-top drama and unconvincing twists. By the end I was so done, the river was the only character I was rooting for 🤭.  

 

Energy: Trifling. Miserable. Isolated. 

 

Cheese and melodrama (that didn’t feel intentional) killed any tension and intrigue. This dragggged on with endless snark and repetitive interview-style arguments. Convoluted twists and back-and-forth accusations about who is lying or at fault went in circles for far too long. Way too annoying (for me) just watching Jane get pushed around with no real resolution - it felt convenient for the plot instead of part of a story.  

Spooky, psychological vibe, but it devolved into a cringey soap opera. If you don’t like detailed description, this book might be a tough read (the writing doesn’t readily flow but for me the detailed descriptions made up for it). The conniving stepdaughter and easily manipulated dad read too much like caricatures from an overused trope and were one-dimensional.  

 

Vivid scenes and descriptive writing. The more detached, third-person style worked for me (but I’m not a fan of being too deep in a character’s mind via first-person narration). The tension around Jane realizing she’s stuck in a dysfunctional family.  

 

Scene: 🇨🇦 Set just north of Chilliwack, BC, Canada

Perspective: An up-and-coming documentary filmmaker who has recently been cancelled after a news story about their company, finds a whirlwind romance taking off. They’re now married and about to meet their teenage stepdaughter for the first time while renovating a lodge hotel with their spouse over the winter.

Timeline: Current (2020s) or not-too-distant future. 🍂❄️Fall/winter.

🔥 Fuel: Withholding. Relationship dynamics. Survival. Why does the stepdaughter dislike Jane? What happened in Jane’s background to get cancelled? What will happen if their spouse finds out? Do they really know their spouse?

 📖 Cred: Over the top, exaggerated semi-realism 

 

Industrial detergent. Stale coffee scent. Wooden beams. Roaring river. Damp chill air. Grilled cheese. Snowstorm. Snark. 

 

Content Heads-Up: Car crash (fatal). Public shaming. Pandemic, lockdown (brief memories positive and negative). Loss of parent (as teen). Sexual harassment, theft (very brief recall). Presumptive gender roles (patriarchal bias). Sexual content (consenting, descriptive but brief; on page). Eating disorder (bulimia). Antipsychotic/antidepressants. Grief (discussion). Toxic family dynamics, abusive teen (stepkid), gaslighting. Gun violence. Murder. Bullying (physical attacks, pranks, pack mentality). Adult/minor relationship.

 

Rep: Canadian. Second generation Chilean. Second generation Chinese. Cis. Nonbinary. Hetero. Pale, dark, light brown skin tones. 

 

📚 Format: Library Hardcover