There are a handful of authors that I will read anything and everything they put out. Mary Kubica is one of those authors.
I've been in a bit of a reading slump lately. By the this time last year I had read around 30 books (I think) and this year, I haven't even cracked 20. I've been trying my best to speed through my TBR but nothing has been hooking me the way it should. I knew that I needed a good crime novel to pull me out of the slump and Kubica's newest novel, "Just The Nicest Couple" was just what the doctor ordered.
I took the book out from the library aka the Libby app on my Kindle and read it within two days. It was gripping from the first page and I truly had no idea what was going to happen until the very last word.
Publisher's Summary
Jake Hayes is missing. This much is certain. At first, his wife, Nina, thinks he is blowing off steam at a friend’s house after their heated fight the night before. But then a day goes by. Two days. Five. And Jake is still nowhere to be found.
Lily Scott, Nina’s friend and coworker, thinks she may have been the last to see Jake before he went missing. After Lily confesses everything to her husband, Christian, the two decide that nobody can find out what happened leading up to Jake’s disappearance, especially not Nina. But Nina is out there looking for her husband, and she won’t stop until the truth is discovered.
My Thoughts
As I said above, I read this book within two days and loved every moment of it. It's not the best thriller I've ever read, it's not the worst, but it's right on par with other crime novels I've loved. It was thrilling, interesting, irritating and kept me on edge.
It had a twisted ending that I saw only when the protagonist started to realize what was going on. It was out of left field, truly twisted and left me wanting more.
I didn't find anyone in this novel particularly likable. From the moment Jake Hayes goes missing, you know that he is a bit off, as is Lily. I wasn't a fan of Christian or Nina either... everyone felt like they had an ulterior motive. Christian felt really controlling, Nina was irritating and naive; however, I find that all good crime novels never have likable characters.
The entire time that you are reading Christian's POV and listening to Lily tell her side of the story it's very obvious that Lily isn't telling the entire truth. It's a little ridiculous that Christian didn't pick up on it, but I guess his blind loyalty and affection for his wife clouded it.
For most of the book you are under the impression that something really sinister went down but there was always a sense of Jake not really being missing. It felt like the plot was almost too obvious to be true, and because I've read hundreds of crime novels, I know that is usually the case.
One thing that kind of bothered me is that the title of the book doesn't make much sense to me. Who is the nicest couple? Is it Jake and Nina? Christian and Lily? Neither of them seemed very nice, and neither seemed evil which would be a play on words so I wasn't too sure of why it was named that.
If you are in need of an easy to read, exciting and thrilling crime novel, you will really enjoy "Just the Nicest Couple." It's perfect for fans of Lisa Jewell, Ruth Ware, Alice Feeney and you'll definitely enjoy if you liked Kubica's other books.
xoxo
B
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