Wednesday, August 17, 2022

56 Days by Catherine Ryan Howard

 
First Line: It's like one of those viral videos taken inside some swanky apartment complex, where all the slim and fit thirtysomething residents are doing jumping jacks behind the glass railings of their balconies while the world burns.
 
Ciara and Oliver meet in the checkout line in a Dublin grocery store and begin dating that same week-- the very same week that Covid reaches Irish shores. A month later when faced with lockdown, Oliver asks Ciara to move in with him. Ciara looks forward to a relationship developing without the scrutiny of family and friends, and Oliver? Oliver sees a chance to hide who and what he really is.
 
In fifty-six days, police arrive at Oliver's apartment to discover a decaying corpse. Will they be able to discover what really happened, or has lockdown provided someone with the opportunity to commit the perfect crime?
 
~
 
After turning the last page of 56 Days, I wish I hadn't bothered. For me, the most interesting parts of the book were its synopsis and the Irish response to Covid. Neither Ciara nor Oliver was particularly likable (or even interesting) and the constant switching back and forth in the various timelines only served to give me a headache; they did nothing to build suspense. It wasn't long before I had a mental roadmap of each plot twist, and I freely admit to speed reading through at least half the book to see if my mental map was correct.
 
It was.
 
Ah well... onward! 
 
eISBN: 9781982694678
Blackstone Publishing © 2021
eBook, 312 pages
 
Thriller, Standalone
Rating: D+
Source: Purchased from Amazon.

8 comments:

  1. Oh, I am sorry to hear this, Cathy. The premise sounded so interesting, and I was wondering what it might be like. But if you don't like the two main characters, or at least find them interesting, well, that's not much to hold the interest. Hmm...I think I'll move on to something else for the wish list...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There were even two secondary characters (the two investigating police officers) that weren't particularly interesting or likable. Sometimes that's the way it goes.

      Delete
  2. At least I don't need to add this one to my already too-long TBR list! ;D Sorry it wasn't a better read.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. As the owner of my favorite bookstore says: I read 'em so you don't have to. ;-)

      Delete
  3. I had not put this on my list, despite the setting and interesting synopsis, because I'm not ready yet for much about Covid in my reading (the Elly Griffiths I'm waiting for will fill that niche for a while). Even though I try to keep the types of mysteries I read fairly diverse, I'm glad to learn that my judgment in this case is warranted.

    ReplyDelete
  4. It's always regrettable to invest time in a book that disappoints. But thanks for warning us off this one!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for taking the time to make a comment. I really appreciate it!