Half Moon Bay by Alice La Plante.

My first comment on this book was that it was an interesting start and second, that she wrote a lot of half sentences. At that point, I said, some would like that style, some will not. However, after around 10% of the book, that style was used so often and so much that it became totally annoying. It should not be used INSTEAD OF writing full sentences. It should be used to emphasize a point.

At times the narration delves into being a history book or a science commentary. An example is location 131 (on my Kindle) where she goes into a non literary speech on the percentage of deaths of a child in the population. Too much unnecessary information. Another example is location 318, a digression into how teenagers use phones. All this unnecessary commentary, which does not relate to the story, slows down the story and makes it a yawn.

By location 317 we still didn’t know what the problem is with Jane and it’s beginning to irritate. I hate when you are “teased” about what is going on with the character(s). The mystery is what happened and how to solve the mystery but there shouldn’t be a mystery as to what the story is about. By this time, I wrote in my Kindle notes:

“ What the hell is the author trying to say? And why is Jane conflicted … and by now, who the hell cares? If we are going to play guessing games all through this book, I am not going to play and will stop reading.”

A further major problem is the style of having the protagonist not speak for herself (i.e., the narrator tells her story and tells when she is upset and for what reason) and that has the result of totally separating the reader from any kind of connection or empathy or sympathy for the character. There is zero emotional connection with her. Instead we have clinical definitions of all the parts of grief!

Not only is it annoying that the narrator speaks for Jane, but he speaks in the present tense for past events, and then in the future, and then in the past. Ayyyy. Why does the editor leave this nonsensical style?

Note to the publisher. You don’t do any favors to the author by rushing books like these into print before they are properly edited. I haven’t the faintest idea if this book could have been salvaged by proper (and extensive) editing but right now, for me, it is unreadable.

Absolutely awful. I felt no affinity or sympathy for Jane at all. The storytelling was so dry and boring that I barely made it through. Save yourself the agony and skip this one.

Awful. I'm not a fan of first person, but the writing is so stilted it's almost like reading William Shatner speak. Every. Single. Sentence. I couldn't finish it, and there's rarely a book I do that to. I couldn't get into the plot because I was so distracted by the way it was written. Hard to follow because of that. I only gave it two stars instead of one because the plot itself seems good if you can put up with the writing style.
Edit: I came back to this book because of so many good reviews to try it again. I didn't even make it past the page I stopped at. Nope. It reads worse than a term paper.

If you enjoy beautifully written descriptions of native California flora, or beautifully written descriptions of the California coast, you might enjoy this book. If you expect a likeable heroine who captures your heart? You will be disappointed.

I wanted to like Jane. She’s lived through the worst nightmare a human can endure, the lose of a child and the subsequent disintegration of her marriage. Her childhood pretty much sucked, too. She’s depressed and adrift when she moves to a town near Half Moon Bay and takes a job at the local nursery. Her sleepless nights have her walking the nearby beaches late at night, and when local girls disappear and turn up dead, she comes under suspicion. She makes many bad decisions and can’t seem to see the clues starring Her in the face.

The author writes beautifully. Her descriptions of locations and topography are lyrical. I thought the plot was a little thin, with too many twists to retain a modicum of believability. Even grief-stricken, lonely and depressed, I just never felt any sympathy for Jane. At the end, I felt that the author had gotten fed up with Jane, as had I. It was abrupt. While I would love to read more from this author, this book didn’t work for me.

2shay Arc graciously provided by the publisher and NetGalley for an honest and voluntary review.

This book was flat, dry. It felt like I was reading a list of events instead of a novel and the conclusion had no excitement to it at all. To be honest, I'm not quite sure why I even finished it.

I'm afraid I just couldn't get into this book. While the main plot of missing girls was good, the writing seemed stilted. Jane, the main character was not very likeable. The town of Half Moon Bay was excellently described. Thats about the only good thing I could say about this book.

See link to goodreads review

I finished this book in two days. I couldn’t wait for it to end. The main character, Jane, was so flawed that I found her unbelievable. I think the author was trying, albeit unsuccessfully, to paint her as a damaged, ravaged and heart broken woman. A soul to be pitied and looked upon with emphathy. She was so easily manipulated, shaken enough to be malleable. I was bereft of any compassion for her. I think we were to believe that Jane’s incredible loss led her to make so many poor choices. I didn’t buy it. I didn’t like Jane, nor her pathetic self deprecating self. The ending was utterly and disappointingly unceremonious.

The beginning of this book was hard for me to push through. The way it's written is different, which isn't bad, but it made for tedious reading. I just wasn't expecting the choppy narrative between Jane's memories and Jane's present. Jane is a flawed character and she was frustrating at times, but I'd be flawed too if my daughter died. Admittedly, I wasn't that interested in her story until about 70% of the way through. The ending, while satisfying, was very abrupt. I wish there had been just a few more pages to wrap things up.

This is a really emotional book, telling the story of a mother's grief. The style reminded me of Anna Quindlen, which is definitely a compliment. It was a bit on the slow side at times, but it really is a character driven story, and I can appreciate is as that. The ending was a little much for my taste, but overall, it was a good read.

This was a thought-provoking book about loss and death. The main character's daughter is killed in a car mishap and the story revolves around the mother's grief. This is heart-wrenching story but has of course, healing in it too.

Goes along great until -- oh no -- what a cheesy ending! Could see this working way better as a film...

Author Alice LaPlante really outdid herself with this novel. I could not put the book down and I didn't want the story to end. I don't even know how to explain why this book is now my favorite book and why can't wait to read more books by her in the future. Anyone who reads this will give it 5 stars and if they don't they are crazy!

I was happy to have the opportunity to read Alice LaPlante's latest book as I have been a big fan of her previous books. I found this one to be very suspenseful and rushed to finish it to see what happened. It was a little creepier than I would have liked, so it was a stressful read for me. Despite the main character's sad background, I found her not particularly likable. I was less sympathetic to her than I would have expected, perhaps because I couldn't relate to much of her behavior. That probably added to the suspense of the book, however. I remain a big fan of Alice LaPlante and look forward to future books by her.

I found this book tense and atmospheric with it's small town engulfed in fog and haunted by a serial killer. The protagonist's agony over the loss of her own child coupled with the suspicion of the townsfolk that she is the killer built suspense throughout the book. The love triangle added its own intriguing complications and added unexpected twists as the story developed.

I'm torn on this one. I've loved the author's other books so I had high hopes for this one. It started off very well, and I settled myself in for an intriguing thriller. But...it lost me. Rather than it being a story full of psychological suspense and mystery, it turned into more of a love triangle-mental distress type book. Too many things going on, too many things to keep straight. Not quite four stars but not just three either. This is where Goodreads REALLY needs half star ratings!

Half Moon Bay is intense and chilling. A stunning novel of psychological suspense that you won't want o put down.

Great story! Looking forward to reading more by this author! Highly recommend!

This book wasn't even close to what I'd expected from the synopsis. It's very dark, with some weird twists. I began to wonder about the purpose of some of the characters, particularly Jane's co-worker, Adam. I had to finish the book because I wanted to see how it ended, but it was pretty tedious and depressing to read. Not the sort of book I really want to read for pleasure. But, if you like that sort of thing and are into more of a psychological analysis in your mysteries, you might like it.

Another masterpiece from this author. Although the developing of the story is rather predictable, getting to the end point was intriguing and suspenseful. A book I would recommend to all.