I hadn’t read a thriller in a while, so I picked this up. I was intrigued by what I thought was going to be a murder mystery set during Pearl Harbor. Plus, this has a vintage-style cover that appealed to me. Ultimately, I thought this book was a fairly good read. It turned out this murder mystery spans the whole length of WWII. I wasn’t even thinking about the meaning of the title until the events of Pearl Harbor came and went, then it finally clicked. Five Decembers. Oh. Duh. Obviously. 

The writing here is simple, but it fits. The concise tone helps it achieve its noir vibe, complete with quick and snarky dialogue. The characters felt slightly stereotypical in my opinion, and certain plot points felt clichéd, but that’s to be expected in a noir-style thriller. 

The pacing was mostly able to keep the suspense going, but at one point the plot really takes a turn, and I felt like the story just stopped. It didn’t feel completely unintentional, but it also made me wish this story had just stuck with its initial vibe. I was thinking that maybe this story was trying to do too much. The pacing does pick back up and concludes the mystery to satisfaction. However, I wouldn’t call the conclusion itself flawless. It almost dragged along and rushed it all at the same time. 

So, for me, it’s a mixed bag. I liked it, but I wouldn’t say it’s a favorite in its field. I’d recommend this to readers who like detective stories, noir, and WWII historicals.