I love John Hart books generally. Down River is one of my favorite books of all time. I mostly liked this book. I liked Gibby a lot and I liked the setting. I liked the Southern, almost Gothic settings of his books and I like the post-Vietnam war timeline.

I found all of the Vietnam War history and anecdotes to be really interesting, as was Jason's storyline, his relationship with Gibby and Robert and his father.

My problems with the book had to do with the plotlines involving X and his minions. They were farfetched and detracted from the almost lyrical quality of writing during the rest of the book.

4 stars Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book. Published Feb 2, 2021

I have read every one of John Harts books and I must say this one is a bit off the beaten path. This book is not for the weak of heart. I have not known Hart to write with this scope of violence in his past books.

This book has very dark characters - "X", Jason, Reece. Not likeable people. It takes place, in part, in the dungeon area of a very old prison. It is tempered with Gibby and Chance and Becky, but they too are caught up in the all the violence and corruption.

I thought the story started very slow - which is also unusual for Hart. I thought about just shutting the book. However by 80 pages in the story took a severe turn. Grisly as it was, I was hooked.

The ending was right. I admire an author that can nail an ending and Hart did a great job. Things were not as they had appeared earlier in the story, and you were left with the feeling that all wrongs would be righted.

Even though this was by no means a 'regular' novel by Hart, it does not mean that it was not a good one.

Fantastic. I was unfamiliar with John Hart, so then went and read several of his prior works. Thank you for the opportunity to read this!

The Unwilling is a novel of despair where a family suffers from one son’s imprisonments, another’s death and now the alienation between the parents and their children. Very good narrative. I loved it. Thanks to Netgalley for the advance readers copy.

LOVE this author

Author John Hart has long been a favorite of mine. I've read most of his books and have enjoyed them all. I especially appreciate that he writes mostly standalone books - beginning, middle, killer endings with no cliffhangers. He's not the most prolific of authors and I guess that makes the anticipation sweeter when I hear of a new book coming out.

This story takes place in Charlotte, North Carolina in 1972. It centers on the French family that has sacrificed much to the Vietnam War and has had to pay a heavy price. One son, Robert, was killed in the war. The second one, Jason, came back dangerous and damaged. And the youngest, Gibby, just had to sign up for the draft. Their father is a city cop in Charlotte.

After a young woman is found horrifically murdered in town, events start spiralling out of control - with the different members of the French family, their friends, and especially those who hate Jason. There is rampant treachery at the local prison which figures strongly into the story.

I highly recommend this John Hart novel - and all his others too.

I received this Advanced Reading Copy from St. Martin's Press through Edelweiss and Net Galley in the hopes that I would read it and leave an unbiased review.

I usually love John Hart’s novels so I’m a bit confused why I don’t feel that way about THE UNWILLING. It might be that the characters felt a little off to me (an 18 year old that is never allowed to date or do extracurricular activities and is closely watched by his parents, is suddenly, overnight, out at all hours and no one really cares?). Mom’s character didn’t work for me either. Maybe it was just the plot—a little too gruesome to enjoy? Whatever the reason, the writing is still strong and the suspense is riveting.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the ARC to read and review.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to preview The Unwilling by John Hart. Hart is a superb writer - he takes pieces of history, and puts a story to it with great vengence.
This novel centers on three brothers - one has died, one has returned from prison, and one is a young high school student.
This is a long novel and the word "sprawling" comes to mind as Hart takes you on a long ride of family, frustration, and failure.
Hart will tear at your heart with this novel. Well written and memorable.
4 stars.

I had a hard time getting into this book. It had great reviews, but I struggled with the writing and the character development.

It was still a good read, but it just wasn't what I was expecting. I'm still not sure how I feel about it.

Wow. This is the first book I've read involving the Vietnam War and its effect on family. It was absolutely gut-wrenching. I really enjoyed how human the characters felt. The book does get super dark in the second half but I'm used to it since I read a lot of mystery/thrillers.

This was my first John Hart novel and definitely won't be my last.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Unwilling by John Hart

Multilayered magnificent look at a fractured family dealing with multiple issues. This book took me back to memories of high school when we sent cookies and letters to soldiers in Vietnam, letters I received thanking me, news clips, and the remembered dread of “what if someone I know is drafted?” It is not just the memories evoked that drew me…no…but those were as real to me as the characters described in this book.

What I liked:
* Jason: a complex man, war veteran, brother, son, and over time I grew to admire, root for, and wish him future success – would love to have a crystal ball to see how he was a decade later.
* Gibby: graduating from high school, interested in Beck, conflicted about his future, beginning to assert himself – on the brink of becoming a man to be reckoned with.
* Robert: the twin that was lost to war and a big part of the story though never seen in the flesh.
* Chance: a good friend of Gibby’s through good times and bad. I wouldn’t mind seeing him in a story of his own a few years down the road.
* Becky: smart, attractive, empathetic, strong and a perfect first love for Gibby
* The darker side of the story and the impact of X on so many
* Watching the growth of various characters as the story progressed. It wasn’t just the younger generation that grew and changed.
* The conflict within Detective William French and how he grappled with it.
* Ken Burklow: French’s homicide detective partner, Korean war veteran, good friend to both French and his sons.
* The way some of the bad guys were outsmarted.
* The revelations that Gibby and his father made related to Jason.
* The closeness I felt between the brothers.
* The high dive aspect of the book that ties in well with the cover – loved how the decisions were made to or not to dive.
* The real feel of the story…or at least most of it.
* The excellent writing, plotting and overall story.
* All of it really except…

What I didn’t like:
* Knowing that there are sadists, sadistic mercenaries, and psychopaths that exist in this world just like the ones in this book
* Gabrielle: wife of detective French and mother to Robert, Jason, and Gibby. I had moments I wanted to smack her, sit her down and give her a talking to, or…something worse.
* A few of the homicide detectives…

Did I enjoy this book? Yes
Would I read more by this author? Definitely

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC – This is my honest review.

5 Stars

Wow, John Hart of many years ago is back with what was a fantastic literary thriller! This is the story of a shattered family, the Frenches have twins Jason and Robert and younger brother Gibby. Robert is killed in Vietnam and the family tries in vain to pick up the pieces. Jason enlists and comes back a changed man. Gibby struggles with his overprotective mother and cop father when one day Jason, who's been in prison, reenters his life and form then on chaos, drama, betrayal, murder, and more ensue. Hart knows how to lay on the suspense but at the same time makes the reader feel for these characters-the good and the bad. And there's no shortage of evil in this story. I loved that he set this in the late 60s early 70s when there were no cell phones or internet. The backdrop of the Vietnam War was also haunting and timely. I thought the story was well-plotted and the characterization excellent!

When I think of John Hart, I remember my mother finding The Last Child at the bookstore, devouring it over a weekend and then telling everyone she knew what an amazing story it was, followed by her buying all of John Hart's earlier novels and reading them as fast as she could. Trust me when I say, The Unwilling will set you on the same path my mother experienced. John Hart is am amazing storyteller and everything he writes is pure readers gold, in my opinion.

Jason has just been released from prison and returns to his hometown, in hopes of reestablishing a relationship with his younger brother Gibby. Unfortunately, Jason's past reputation follows him, both for his reported actions in the Vietnam War and the drug charges that sent him to prison. Gibby feels torn between wanting to get to know his mysterious older brother and keeping his distance as his mother urges him to do. Ultimately, Gibby meets Jason for a day together at the lake with older women and booze. This seemingly simple day sets off a chain of events that have far reaching consequences for them all.

The Unwilling is a multi-faceted novel, with suspense, crime, family drama and coming of age all rolled into a book that will keep you turning pages at a feverish pace. Each character is authentic and genuine. There are dark and evil characters that you will never forget and tragically flawed characters that will leave their mark as well. This novel was a little darker than what I typically read, but combined with the other aspects of the story, it made for a compelling plot.

Another 5 star read for 2021! I received this book courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Published by St. Martin's Press on February 2, 2021

The best thriller I’ve read in this young year will certainly be among the best of the full year. The Unwilling mixes the strong characterization of fine literature with an absorbing plot and the escalating tension that thriller fans crave.

The story is set during the Vietnam War. It focuses on two brothers. A third brother, Robert, was killed in the war. Robert’s death prompted his twin, Jason, to join the Marines. He became something of a legend but the military made him a scapegoat. Dishonorably discharged and addicted to heroin, Jason soon did a stint in prison, where his fighting skills caught the attention of X, a serial killer on death row who uses wealth and fear to control the warden and everyone who comes within his orbit. X employs killers of his own, including Reeves, who has a taste for young women.

Jason’s younger brother is Gibby. His father is a police detective and his mother, who has lost two sons (having written off Jason), is unbearably protective. Gibby is still coming of age and isn’t sure who he wants to be. When Jason comes back into his life after his release from prison, their parents fear that Gibby wants to become Jason. While Jason repeatedly tells Gibby not to follow in his path, he sends mixed signals, including bringing Gibby along to spend a raucous day with two young women, Tyra and Sara. Tyra teases prisoners on a bus during that trip, rude behavior that eventually brings Jason back to X’s attention.

When one of the women is tortured and murdered, Jason becomes the prime suspect, setting up the rest of the story. After the other woman disappears, some police detectives suspect Gibby’s involvement. Jason’s father is torn between his duty to the police and his love of his sons. Gibby never falters in his refusal to believe that Jason committed the murder. As Gibby and his loyal friend Chance begin a search for evidence to clear Jason, they face danger from the police and from the killer. Gibby’s father is then torn between his love of Jason and his need to protect Gibby from the man he fears Jason has become.

The story seems like it might be far-fetched, but John Hart makes every page seem real. This is a textured story, filled with small moments that evoke a variety of responses. The horror of discovering a woman who has been tortured and hung from chains is seen from the perspective of cops (and we’ve seen that before), but the aftermath is seen from the perspective of a troubled child who first discovered the body — a discovery that will likely shape his life. Those small moments help make the story memorable.

Hart’s ability to create conflict through the interaction of characters while avoiding melodrama is one of his strengths. The growing desperation felt by Gibby’s father, coupled with his growing realization that he’s not been a supportive father to Jason, is emotionally agonizing. Gibby’s internal struggle with his feeling about Jason and Chance’s struggle against life-defining fear are captivating. Hart deftly balances atmosphere and characterization with a plot that builds pace and tension until it races to a conclusion.

John Hart has grown as a writer over the years. Of the Hart novels I’ve read, The Unwilling stands as his best effort.

RECOMMENDED

3.25 stars

I think it’s time for me to give up on John Hart. It’s not him; it’s me. Others love his books. I keep trying and they don’t quite work for me. I know why I keep trying. The settings and atmosphere are alluring. But the stories always end up feeling overwrought. I liked Unwilling more than [book:The Hush|31450687], but I still found the emotions and story to be a bit much. The story is set in 1972, and focuses on two brothers, Jason and Gibby. A third brother, Robert, was killed in the Vietnam war. Jason is a Vietnam vet and just out of jail for drug offences. He has lots of dark secrets. And Gibby is 18, just graduating from high school, and trying to decide which of his older brothers to model himself off. Great set up, right? But it’s all shot to pieces by some crazy storyline involving over the top psychopaths lurking in the background. Enough said. I didn’t hate it, but I wish Hart toned it down. Thanks to Netgalley and Edelweiss and the publisher for giving me access to an advance copy.

The Unwilling is John Hart's newest book, published last week. Hart's books reliably offer deftly crafted, often stark landscapes, character-driven stories, heartbreaking situations and compromises, and enough protagonists' strength and grit to stick with you.

The Unwilling offers all of those elements and more, unraveling the workings of a family in the South during the Vietnam War, including brothers at odds; as well as complex issues regarding corruption, prison, war, money, power, and violence; and a brother's unfailing loyalty in the face of terrible conflict and danger.

Hart tells a captivating story of broken boys and men, battered by experiences of wartime brutality or frozen by the fear of their potential involvement in battle; the destruction of drugs and other desperate attempts to forget; limited choices and bad decisions; deeply felt loss; and crushing familial and societal expectations.

There are intensely grisly elements here--deeply upsetting, excruciating torture and willful cruelty; a shockingly corrupt prison system in which inmates' reaches extend disturbingly far beyond the walls; extensive page time spent with a sociopathic serial killer on death row; and a complicated wartime-hinged flux of feelings about duty, destiny, and death.

But Hart also offers the hope of young love, the bedrock of true friendship, and brothers and their father who are earnestly trying to heal rifts that threaten to split them forever.

The twists and turns here are excellent, with interestingly layered motivations and complications. One moment is shown to turn multiple situations and lives on their heads.

The book is set in Charlotte, although the setting is not pivotal to the plot.

I mentioned my love for Hart's book The Last Child in the Greedy Reading List The Six Best Mysteries I Read Last Year. He's written many other books, including The Hush, the second in the Johnny Merrimon series, and the wonderfully written, often tough-to-read Redemption Road.

I first mentioned The Unwilling (along with The Loneliest Girl in the Universe by Lauren James and Beneath the Keep by Erika Johansen) in the Greedy Reading List Three Books I'm Reading Now, 1/28/21 Edition.

I received a prepublication copy of The Unwilling courtesy of St. Martin's Press and NetGalley.

Unwilling
John Hart
Fiction
Nancy (NancysBookNook on Facebook)
5


The French family is only one of tens of thousands to have given up a son to the war in Vietnam, but losing Robert is somehow magnified by the return from the war of the second son, Jason. The horror of Robert’s death is mitigated by his heroism, the horror of Jason’s life magnified by the drugs, the crime, the physical scars so much less painful than the secrets he carries, the void his life has become. Now, after serving three years in prison, Jason is back in his hometown where only one member of his family still matters to him: his brother Gibby, now a highschool senior confronted by his family’s demons and facing the fear of every teenaged boy of the era, the military draft. Jason is determined not to lose his chance for a relationship with Gibby, despite the kind of life he knows he’ll be showing him, even though the day he has planned has the potential for innocence, a potential that vaporizes with Jason’s inclusion of two young women (young, but certainly too old for Gibby). It’s obvious that Tyra and Jason are a couple, leaving Gibby and Sara to get to know each other. From the beginning, the day unravels in a tangle of the sex and booze Jason and Tyra are focused on, and on a country road, a new and ugly future begins as Tyra, partially naked and completely drunk, torments a busload of convicts.

There is little surprise that when murders happen, ex-cons are among the first suspects so Jason’s arrest is not unexpected. When the violence continues, though, and the range of victims widens, Gibby is caught up in trying to prove his brother’s innocence while trying at the same time to keep himself alive.

My thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read Unwilling in exchange for my honest opinion.

John Hart is an author that can take some of the most difficult situations and twist them until you are left heartbroken and aching. I have so many thoughts as I have closed the last page and set the book aside. The book is set during the Vietnam War and I would have to stop myself and remember that this was a different time period. Family relationships is a major focus in this book. And how those relationships can be twisted and the characters misunderstood or judged is disheartening.

There are some twists and you learn some of Jason’s background story and how he has been misrepresented. He is NOT who you think he is. His life has been destroyed and he is having to make decisions based on what others assume to be true.

The younger brother, Gibby, is a teenager who is confronted with a family that is falling apart, wants to have a relationship with his older brother, Jason, endures his mother’s over-the-top protectiveness, interacts with a father who is struggling to deal with the changing family dynamic, and discovering his sexuality and developing relationships with females.

There are two serial killers. And their extreme evil is disturbing. The ugliness of their lives and deeds was appalling. And how it affected the lives of the other characters was disturbing.

Even with all of the negative aspects of the story, there are some positive things to take away. Family and friendship are precious and should be protected and treasured. The fragility of our lives and the time we have together should be cherished.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

The Unwilling, is a compelling story difficult to put down. At its' heart, this novel is about the centrality of family in our lives, a fact that has shaped the lives of the French family, with a focus on the father, a police detective and his three sons. Two of those sons' lives have been shaped in large part by their experiences in Vietnam, with one dying there and another, Jason, losing much of his soul because of his experiences there. The youngest son, Gibby, has been deeply affected by what has happened to his brothers, and at the age of 18, stands on the precipice of adulthood.
Outside of the interactions within the French family, are the experiences and relationships which have resulted in Jasons' criminal record and dangerous companions, including X, the wealthiest and best connected killer imaginable.
All of this comes together in a brutal but honest story that kept me on edge and made it difficult to stop reading until I was done. John Hart is a great writer but for me, this book was easily his most exciting and compelling. I'd love to read more about the characters in this novel and so will you once you've read it.

I'll start by saying I'm a fan of everything by John Hart and this was no exception. This a book about family, war, tragic loss and crime. You'll feel the pain of each character and be on the edge of your seat with anticipation. The French family has experienced so much pain and loss - Robert lost his life in the Vietnam War, Jason returns from a prison term after 3 tours of duty in the Vietnam War, Gibby the youngest struggling with adulthood and the losses of both brothers. Their father, the policeman, trying to protect his family and still do his duty. There are 2 stories - that of the family and also a murder investigation and some serious criminals. Not one part will disappoint.

4 stars

You can read all of my reviews at Nerd Girl Loves Books.

This is another great mystery/thriller by John Hart. I always look forward to his books because they are so well written, and the stories are so original, that it's an immense pleasure to read them. This book is set in the South during the Vietnam War and follows one family as they struggle with the invisible wounds of PTSD and the growing pains of coming of age.

Gibby has twin older brothers. Both went to war. One died in combat and the other, Jason, came back completely changed. After serving 3 years in prison Jason returns home seeking a connection with 18 year-old Gibby. Warned to stay away from Jason by his parents, Gibby nonetheless goes on a day trip with Jason to the lake with two older women.

One of the women is murdered and Jason is immediately considered a suspect. Gibby desperately tries to investigate the crime, but when the second woman is kidnapped while Jason is in jail, the police turn their eye on Gibby. Gibby and his police officer father race to establish Jason's innocence and discover the secrets Jason tried so hard to hide - what happened to him in the war, why he was framed, and why the most dangerous man alive wants him back in prison.

This book is a wild ride. The main characters are well-developed. Their interactions with each other are hard to read sometimes, but they are so dynamic and raw that you feel like you're in the room with them. Just when you think you know what's going on, the author unravels another secret and your opinion changes. I was just a baby when the Vietnam War was going on, but from everything I've read and seen, it seems like it was a devastating thing to endure. It's no wonder it left so many young men scarred for life. It's a shame that PTSD was not understood as well during this era so that people could have been given better treatment.

The book is a rollercoaster of emotions and action and it's hard to put down. The ending is bittersweet, but fitting for the storyline. I highly recommend you read this book. You won't be disappointed!

I was given a complimentary copy of this book by NetGalley and St. Martin's Press. All opinions in this review are my own.