Cover Image: The Wrong Good Deed

The Wrong Good Deed

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Member Reviews

"The Wrong Good Deed" by Caroline B. Cooney is a thought-provoking tale that masterfully explores the complexities of intentions and consequences. Cooney's narrative is both engaging and insightful, drawing readers into a story where every choice has weight and every action ripples through lives. With its compelling characters and moral dilemmas, this book not only entertains but also invites reflection on the nature of doing good. A must-read for those who appreciate stories with depth and heart.

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This was an interesting read but I left me wanting more. I liked that the characters were older and seeing ageism through their eyes

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I have been a Caroline Cooney fan since the 90s, and this work fits right in with my feelings about her previous work- plot driven, realistic, alluring. I appreciate her ability to set historical fiction in such a way to make it feel like present time.

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The Wrong Goodbye" is a young adult mystery novel by Caroline B. Cooney. It follows the story of a teenage girl named Laurie Stratton who becomes entangled in a web of deception and danger when she witnesses a murder and decides to investigate it on her own. As Laurie delves deeper into the mystery, she uncovers shocking secrets that put her own life at risk. With its suspenseful plot, intriguing twists, and relatable protagonist, "The Wrong Goodbye" is a gripping read that keeps readers guessing until the very end.

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This book was unexpectedly good. It was a solid read. The plot was definitely different with the use of elderly women involved in a mystery. Their personalities were different and I loved their names. Thank you NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this sneak peak.

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This one was a little slow and you don't even get to the mystery part of the book until the end. I like how things from the beginning tied to the end nicely, but I was left wondering what Clemmie's secret was. Did I miss it somehow???

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The story is told in two time frames - and I found one to be more interesting that the other. I wanted more of the story set in the early 1960s - I wanted more detail and more of the thoughts and emotions of Christphene.
The story ends on a sad note but it does make you think of how doing a good deed can affect the trajectory of your life.

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I’ve had this title sitting on my shelf for quite a while and decided to give it a read. I have to say I really enjoyed Clemmie and Muffin’s story. I mean … who could resist character names like Muffin and Clemmie?
Each of these ladies had their own pasts that were coming back to give them some trouble. Muffin finally opened up and told Clemmie about what she did back in the 1960s, which Clemmie had a hard time understanding. Clemmie herself had her own secret that she kept buried and didn’t even tell Muffin about. These events were only triggered by a rare sighting on Muffin’s part. A random act that had her scared.
Clemmie and Muffin came across in this tale as so lifelike, so realistic, even though they are characters in a book. I like the fact that I could feel Muffin’s fear. I was shocked and saddened a bit by what happened to Muffin. Clemmie … I don’t even know how to explain her character, but the author drops random ‘Clemmie thoughts,’ if you will, that are so spot on I felt myself relating to her so much. These thoughts seemingly came out of nowhere and added just that little bit more to this story.
Muffin’s history seemed pretty spot-on to what happened back in the 1960s. She’s quite an intriguing character herself.
And the title of the book? That is spot-on as well. If you like a little bit of history that comes crashing into the present, with a bit of humor tossed in for good measure, give this one a read.

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I liked the characters okay in this one. Thanks for the review copy. The relationships did not feel realistic.

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I’ve tried multiple times to pick this one up. I’ll read a chapter or two and then put it down but for some reason I’m just not connecting with it. I initially enjoyed the older characters, but I quickly lost interest. Perhaps it was the back and forth from past to present that just didn’t work for me. I’m chalking this up as a DNF. Thank you to the publisher for letting me try…

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This is part of a series and I don’t want to read them out of order, so will go back and start from the beginning.

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When one of Clemmie’s neighbors ushers her out of church quickly one Sunday saying she saw someone from her past, Clemmie realizes she might not know her neighbor as well as she thought and that whatever she’s hiding from must have dire consequences.

This is definitely a bookclub book as it will definitely lead to active discussions on what choices would you make in the various situations that were presented in the book.

I enjoyed the story but I felt like I read half a book. There was so much more that could’ve been added to bolster the story to make it even more impactful than it already was.

Thank you publishers and @netgalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

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THE WRONG GOOD DEED
By Caroline B Cooney

I am loving these books now with the protagonists in their late years in life - In this novel, our main characters are in their 70's Muffin and Clemmie with a past that is now haunting them. In a dual time line story, we are slowly learning about what happened 50 years ago when a horrible crime was committed in South Carolina.

I really felt all the emotions especially reading about the segregated south, the racism and the injustice. This was a quick read that I found reading and flipping those pages to discover the mystery.

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Not really my cup of tea. I couldn’t really connect with the characters hitch just didn’t seem to flow very well and I had a hard time finishing it.

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I really enjoyed reading this book. The way it was written really kept things suspenseful. I never would have guessed the ending or tied the ending together like this

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I really enjoyed this book, the flip between the present and the 60s was well done, and it tackles the racism that was rampant in the south tactfully. A glimpse into the lives and actions of those people vs how they felt in the present was interesting to witness. Lots of plot twists I didn’t see coming, and wondering which would be the wrong good deed kept me reading! It was also fun for me because I live just a few miles from Sun City, and I enjoyed trying to figure out where some of the made up areas are. I started reading this a chapter a day, but soon I couldn’t put it down!

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This book follows Clemmie and Muffin both running from the their past and trying to live out their years in a sunny retirement village. It had some twists that I definitely didn’t see coming but I still felt like some things weren’t cleared up for me. It is part of a series and I have not read the first book so maybe some of it was that for me. I still over all enjoyed the book even if some of it ended up falling flat for me.

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First of all, thank you @poisonedpenpress for the ARC!

The Wrong Good Deed by Caroline B. Cooney grasped my attention from the first page. I love Southern historical fiction novels where the story told might seem like it actually happened. The reader gets to hear from the main character's past as if it were told by a friend. You fall in love with the characters and root for justice... and a happy ending, if the two happen to coincide.

For anyone who loves a good straightforward mystery book should check this one out! Out not in paperback :)

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I was excited to read this book, but even more so when I found out the author is the same one that wrote one of my favorite books from when I was in middle school "The Face On The Milk Carton." I adored that one and read it many time! Sadly I could not get into The Wrong Good Dead. I struggled to keep the characters separate and half the time didn't know if I was listening to a flashback from someone or was in the present of the book. I got half way through it and had to stop reading I just couldn't get into it.

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Two septuagenarians, Muffin and Clemmie, living in a retirement community are enjoying their day at church until Muffin is haunted by a ghost from her past sitting a few pews ahead, causing them to flee out of church. This sighting sparks flashes of Muffin’s past to return, resulting in a story that is told in alternating timelines, 50 years apart.

Maybe the concept of this one is intriguing (cmon I LOVE stories featuring elderly main characters!) but the execution was poor. I understand it was book #2 in a series, but there was no point in devoting chapters delving into Clemmie’s past for it to have no impact on the plot. There was also heavy topics involving desegregation in the south in the 1960’s that didn’t feel like it was handled very well, and left me feeling a bit icky at the redemption and conclusion of the white characters. The “plot twist” at the end was bizarre and added nothing valuable to the main storyline, and made the story seem like absolute chaos that never fully comes together. Also both of our main characters had two names. Why?? I already have a hard enough time keeping track of one. I could probably keep going but you get the idea…skip this one.

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