Unthinkable, by Brad Parks
ISBN: 9781542022606
Amazon ID: B08BZJ6VJ5
A decidedly gripping story, well-paced, and written with a good timeline (ie: one thing happens after another). Chapters alternate (approximately) between his actions and hers, and this works well.
Chapter 25 in particular is very well done. In fact, the whole book gets even better from that point on - the story and the pacing take another step up, even from the level they were at before.
A further ten chapters on, and number 35 is rather nicely done too.
The biggest thing which I've felt has let the story down even a little bit is that the justification for "it has to be you who does this" feels weak and unsubstantiated.
Aside from that, it's well put-together and keeps you wanting to find out more.
The ending is also excellent - well done, entirely plausible, ties things neatly together, but is far from predictable.
Oh, but just one thing: who the hell gives a 3-year old girl "Parker" for a first name? Hm, the same people who decided that "Welker-Lovejoy" was a good combined surname to give her as well I suppose.
Nitpicks
Chapter 3: "As he went to leave the room, he pulled from his pocket a magnetic key card, which he then pressed against that reader in the doorframe."
- That isn't a magnetic key card (you'd have to swipe that through the reader); it's an RFID card.
Chapter 10: "Mr McBride hung himself early this morning."
- No, that would be "hanged".
Chapter 24: "…this video had been taken at 1:41 a.m. Wednesday morning."
- Ugh. It couldn't be 1:41 a.m. Wednesday afternoon, or 1:41 p.m. Wednesday morning, now could it? It's just 1:41 a.m. Wednesday, or if you prefer, 1:41 Wednesday morning.
Chapter 41: "The streetlights had all been green so far, but the one up ahead was turning yellow."
- Hm, strange street lights - they sound more like traffic lights. Those things change from green to yellow (and red), but street lights are normally just plain yellow, or plain white (or sometimes red when they're warming up), but never green.
Chapter 47: "The Doppler effect told me it was getting closer."
- Er, how's that? Had it been moving away, then turned around, and came closer? The Doppler effect tells you something has changed its direction relative to you (typically, coming towards you, passing, then going away from you), but it can't tell you that something is simply getting closer.