Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an eARC of this book.
2.5* rounded to 3.
Well written with almost lyrical prose that one does not typically expect in a thriller, murder novel.
At the 3/4 mark, I had about decided that I would like to un-read the book, bleach my brain and go on with my life. Most all of the characters were dysfunctional and warped and sick. The premise of the plot made no sense and was barely believeable and none of them had any hope. Somehow the author turned this around in the last 25% and I ended up liking DeMarco enough that I might have to pick up book #2 to find out what he does. Lots of violence, blood and gore and language that may offend some.

Terrific thriller with intricate and complex characters. Very well written. I loved the main character Demarcos. And with enough plot twists to keep you guessing. Will definitely recommend to a friend!

Started out strong but my interest waned by the end.

Two men – Huston and DeMarco. Huston is a writer, a family man, a celebrity, and from all indications, has gone off the deep end and killed his wife children. DeMarco is a semi-stereotypical cop, a loner, a wounded man, but a good guy. The two were maybe friends by now DeMarco’s job is to find Huston, who is on the run, or not. It’s a decent set-up. Huston’s thoughts are rambling, he doesn’t let us know what happened. DeMarco thinks Huston is probably innocent, but the majority of the book is about finding Huston, other suspects barely enter the picture until late.

I struggled through this one. I didn’t get a chance to care about Huston because you never really know him, you just know the him that is shattered by the murders of his family. DeMarco I could almost like, but it’s not just his dark moods and drinking and stalking his ex, he’s not really a good cop. Lots of fictional cops fail to call for backup or don’t give their superior the whole story, I can overlook that, but he makes a couple of decisions that seem just wrong, even for a rogue cop.

The writing was uneven for me. Sometimes it was lush and descriptive and atmospheric, sometimes it seemed overly detail and melodramatic, trying too hard to be a “literary” mystery, like being a thriller wasn’t good enough.

As a mystery, it worked well. The clues were there even if we got one important one rather late, but I didn’t put them together. The secondary characters were fleshed out well.

Maybe it just needed to be a bit shorter or a bit less wordy. I didn’t find it as engrossing as I had hoped.

I looked forward to reading this novel, then really struggled to 'get into' it. Mulling it over, perhaps it was because we didn't get to know the murdered family before they exited stage left.
I thought I had found my pace at around 18%. Ryan DeMarco is an appealing character, although seemed to be a bit of a one man band - no investigation team, no whiteboard, no support team. I read on until 39%, trying to convince myself that it was worth my time but hit a wall again and at 41% gave up. Suddenly realised that I really didn't care what happened to Thomas Huston.
Described as 'literary suspense' this was too literary with not enough suspense for me. I'm on to tackle a more enjoyable read which will capture my imagination in a way this failed to do.

Two Days Gone

This is a dark, fascinating mystery thriller that won't fail to entertain and draw the reader on. There are lots of layers and twists in this fast paced thriller, you won't fail to be entertained.

I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book with thanks to Netgalley and the publisher. 4*

Sadly this book and I did not get along ATM all.
I could not get into the story or could have cared less about what was happening throughout the story so I decided hat I prefer to not post a review on any other sides since anything I could say would be very negative and I prefer to not write mostly negative review.

Thank you for giving me the chance to rad this book anyways, even if I told did not work out as we hoped.

Another thriller, this one focuses on a grizzled, life-beaten, middle-aged detective in a small college town on Lake Erie. A famous best-selling author, who happens to be a writing professor as well, is missing while his wife and three young children are found butchered to death in their home. Nope, not a book for the faint-hearted. The story plays out through both men's eyes. Tom Huston, the author, plays 'catch me if you can' in the woods, attempting to get to get food, shelter, and some assistance as we see his mind devolve. Detective Ryan, who had a past friendly relationship with Huston, follows every lead, realizing as he pieces the story together, that perhaps the police have the wrong killer. Ryan's past with his wife, the death of his son, his time on the vice squad all influence his actions. Author Silvis uses his own prodigious knowledge of writing skill and poetry to imbibe this book with legitimacy as well as beautiful writing. It is a solid page-turner, with some great twists throughout. My only complaint is the following: why, oh why, must we continue to be bombarded with all-male stories, continuing the myth of strong silent males who do all the saving, and weak females who are seen as good only for office assistants, mothers, or sex workers? Seriously? It is 2017 - I think we can move beyond the stereotypes. Just my two cents:)

What I Thought:

I have to admit to being disappointed by this book. The description sounds like just my sort of read but I struggled to make it through to the end.

The book is focused around two main characters, Thomas Huston, the local author and professor who becomes the main suspect in the murder of his wife and children, and Ryan DeMarco the local trooper who becomes the lead officer on the case. I found I couldn't really connect with either of the characters. Both Huston and DeMarco have suffered tragedies in their personal lives prior to the beginning of the story: Huston's mother was killed and his father committed suicide not long after and DeMarco lost his young son in a car accident involving a drunk driver, and his wife left him shortly after. I know I should feel for both characters but I just don't. As a result I didn't feel that urge to keep reading that I normally do, I wasn't desperate to find out if Huston really was guilty or not.
I also struggled with the style of writing at points. Huston spends much of the book on the run, unsure of who he can trust, there are several sections of the novel where he attempts to distance himself from reality and acts as though he is a character in one of his own books. To me this came across as the author trying to be clever for the sake of being clever. There was also two points within the novel where a significant paragraph was dedicated to talking about a brick path and apartment that DeMarco had started to work on for his wife but never finished after his son's death. I found it strange that it was focused on twice within the story, I don't feel it was crucial to the plot, to me it read as though the author had decided to move it to a different section of the story but had forgotten to remove the original paragraph.

Would I recommend it?

Would I suggest you hurry out and buy it? No. However the plot is interesting, if crime fiction is your cup of tea and you're stuck for something to read check out your local library for a copy. Maybe you'll connect with it in a way I couldn't.

I was provided a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest and fair review. This book is about the murder of Claire Huston and her three children: Thomas Jr, Alyssa, and little David Ryan. The small town is shocked and grieving, and Detective Ryan DeMarco is determined to find out what happened to the family. Ryan doesn’t believe his new friend Thomas, Claire’s husband and the children’s father, could really be responsible, but since he disappeared from the house the same night as the murders it’s hard not to consider him as a suspect. Thomas was a local college professor and a best-selling author, the pride of the local community and by all appearances a committed husband and father and part of a happy family. But as Ryan starts digging into the events that led up to the tragic event, he realizes there was darkness in Thomas’s life that no one knew about. And unless Ryan can find Thomas quickly, there is a chance that more will die.
Overall I really liked this book. The book is told through two alternating points of view, Thomas and Ryan’s. I think the author did a great job of creating a well layered story line and an intriguing mystery. The story itself was so very tragic, even two days later I feel bad for everyone involved and I am still struck with sadness over the pain that these characters endured. The ending overall was very fitting for the story, just very sad. The only part that felt a little off to me was the additional party’s involvement at the end (I can’t really be more specific without giving away parts of the end). That part still doesn’t feel like it fit with the rest of the story line for me personally. Other than that though I really liked this book and I would recommend it, especially for anyone who likes a good thriller/suspense.

From my blog: Always With a Book:

My thoughts: Every once in a while Netgalley has some "Read Now" options that catch my eye - well, this one certainly did and I'm so glad that I took a chance on it. This one kept me hooked from start to finish - though not necessarily in the way you might think!

This is a twisted, crazy book! It's dark and strange - definitely one of the crazier psychological thrillers I've read in a while, which is a good thing, because it was so very different and is definitely set apart from all the others. It almost comes across as if two writers wrote it at times...though that's not the case. You have two different points of view from time to time, and let me tell you, when Huston is telling us the story - it gets a little nuts! But, I loved it! I loved the writer's perspective, getting inside his head and all the literary references. Which was so very different from DeMarco's chapters - so very to the point and on target, very straight-forward. I think this was my favorite part of the story - the unlikely pairing of these two characters telling the story - it's a bit disjointed at times, but I think it's brilliant!

Both men are flawed, troubled, emotionally damaged men. They have their demons, particulary DeMarco, and that makes them so very real and believable. The despair Huston feels is palpable, and DeMarco just can't quite believe his friend would be guilty of such a savage act, but nevertheless demands to be put in charge of the case. This is tough for DeMarco, but it shows his strength and determination.

There are quite a few twists and turns in this book and some that left me quite speechless. I was desperately trying to figure out just what happened to Huston's family - was he or was he not involved in their deaths - and the answer is definitely not what I was expecting. Bravo Mr. Silvas!!! And on top of that, to find out that this is not the last we have seen of Ryan DeMarco - I'm one very happy reader :)

I was tentative at first reading this novel, because I have not heard of the author or novel on any blogs or youtube channels. I was pleasantly surprised by the author's devotion to the writing and novel itself. The scenery, individuals, and every circumstance the main characters where in were described in beautifully written descriptions that made the reader feel as if they were in the novel right beside the characters. One of the drawback to the writing though was the tendency to use uncommon words that needed to be looked up to understand the content of the novel. This language was unnecessary and took away from the plot and descriptions in the novel.

Overall, I really enjoyed this thriller. Usually thrillers turn out to be overly hyped or not really all that thrilling, but this novel kept me turning the page trying to figure out what would happen next (I could not even fathom a guess). It was really suspenseful and enjoyable. I loved the backstory on the detective, and the constant hints and clues into the lives of the two main characters. The momentum from these hints kept me reading and the shift between the detective and professor created interesting viewpoints. Speaking of viewpoints, the professor envisioning his life as if he was a character in a novel was brilliant. I have not seen that perspective or take on a novel and loved it.

I would like to thank NetGalled, Randall Silvis, and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing me with an advance reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I would not have picked up this novel otherwise, and would have missed out on an amazing thriller that I loved more than the overhyped The Girl on the Train novel.

Thank You NegGalley!

I finished this book in a couple of days - and really did enjoy it.
What makes someone snap? What causes to give up an destroy everything you have?

The plot was enough to keep me totally interested in the book. It was full of possibilities, was fast paced and had a great cast of characters.
Some scenes are very disturbing, but it works in the story.

What could have been a been there/read that story, was really well written and did not disappoint. I found I kept reading until the end because I genuinely wanted to know who and why.

Author Spotlight Join Me, Blog Tour Jan 15 Giveaways, Excerpt, Author Interviews + More

Readers who take their novels strong and dark will savor Randall Silvia’s skillfully-written latest literary thriller-contemporary crime noir: TWO DAYS GONE with the introduction of his new series and intriguing character (Ryan DeMarco Mystery).

The best part is the connection and relationship between writer and reader. The Author’s Acknowledgement "Writer/Reader relationship" earns a 5 Star +. An added bonus following the book. For every author and reader.

If you’re seduced by the darker, deeper, grittier side of literature, with vivid descriptions, you will be drawn to the grisly, moody, atmospheric, graphic, disturbing, and unsettling tale, with a clever thought-provoking literary twist. A book within a book. Not for the faint hearted.

A bold powerhouse novel and author. The cover, copy and book description: A "bullseye." Right On. Gripping, taut, sensitive, and astute. Even the inner musings of the characters have a poetic power. A haunting character-driven study of two deeply flawed and troubled men protagonists (alternating narratives). Both solitary men in their own way.

DeMarco lived alone and of course Huston did not. Both had complicated relationships with others. DeMarco had no center. He ventured out to relationships from emptiness and to emptiness he returned. One case of tragedy after another, puzzle after morbid puzzle to solve. What if he had made better choices twelve years ago on that rainy night?

Sergeant Ryan DeMarco of the Pennsylvania State Police has seen his share of despair, violence, and malicious acts. From college students to strip clubs, the woods, the streets- there lies a murderer. Hiding. A man, gone mad in the blink of an eye. A man turned into a beast.

A murderer is in their midst. A community. One of their own. Someone they all trusted. a bestselling author. The education of sons and daughters. They had seen his smiling face in local bookstores and watched him with Katie on Good Morning America.

Claire Huston, one of the prettiest women in town is dead with a slash across her throat. Thomas, Jr, twelve, a sixth grader also dead, same way. Sister, Alyssa, fourth grade, also murdered. Little David Ryan Huston, asleep on his back in his crib. A blade thrust in his heart. A second one. A chef’s knife.

The perfect family. The perfect house. The perfect life. All gone. Snap your fingers five times, that’s how long it took. Five steel-edged scrapes across the tender flesh of night. Why was the baby killed differently than the others in the family? Stabbed in the heart twice.

The bodies of the Huston family had been discovered. From family, neighbors, and friends. All stunned and grief-stricken. All eyes turned toward the husband, the father, the accomplished writer, the professor. He had fled.

DeMarco had met Thomas Huston previously. He had read all his books. A reader. He was a friend. He reminded him of a young Jack Kerouac. Thomas Huston was a professor. A writer. He loved his students. He was working on a new book. A trooper was one of the main characters. They had met on several occasions and connected on several levels.

There was Huston’s tragic past. The bungled robbery of the family hardware store. The blast that tore out his mother’s throat. His father’s suicide two weeks later from an overdose. The horrific images still haunted Thomas. The memories overwhelmed him. Now, his own family. Was he the murderer? Or someone else?

DeMarco had his own demons. A ruined marriage, his son’s death, his anger, his aggressive behavior, and the subsequent demotion. His drinking. The accident that took his son’s life. He and Huston had connected.

How could this man have killed his entire family? He loved them. He was a good and decent man. He spoke so fondly of them. He was not a violent man. Did something set him off? Now Huston was out there. He had fled. Maybe he is amnesic?

Ryan begins researching Thomas Huston and his parents, his books, his reviews, articles and his latest novel, The Desperate Summer. A book released three and half years after his parent’s death. Other profiles from Poets and Writers. Interviews. Characters.

It was clear that Thomas Huston, like his character, suffered some very dark moments. But dark enough to cause him to slaughter his own family? The rage and grief. What would have gone through his mind for him to do this to his family?

Huston was a writer, teacher, and student. It was his job to make order out of disorder. To find the meaning in metaphor.

DeMarco is on the hunt, digging for each piece of evidence. The woods, his students, and strip clubs (Whispers). Strippers, hookers, an abortion, dancers, bouncers. Research for his books. Did he have enemies? Were all the associations for his book, or personal?

Was Hutson’s life idyllic as it had seemed? He was the primary suspect and DeMarco took no pleasure in that discovery. Marco could drink himself into a stupor, but he needed a clear head. He had to figure out who murdered this family. He liked this man. He owes him to find out what happened. He goes back and forth with his suspicions.

The more he learns, he wonders if the writer had become the characters in his book? Had the murder and suicide of Huston’s parents loosened something in him or spawned a rage he struggled with, and finally lost?

Who was Annabel? Bonnie? Tex? Were these relationships an integral part of the slaughter at the Huston home? After the murder, Huston had been spotted wandering through the dawn in a daze. Where else would he go? Could he have been cheating on his wife?

DeMarco had to find him. As he digs deeper, with the homicide investigation, time is of the essence. Four people are dead and three of them are children. If Thomas is running because he is innocent, who is the guilty party? DeMarco wanted Hutson to be better than this. Someone he could admire. Had the equation changed? Was it infidelity, madness, lust, weakness? He had to know!

Who could Thomas trust? Who can he turn to for help?

Complex characters. It’s the contradictions in a personality that make for conflict. Did he take the qualities for each of these women to build his characters or was it something else?

In the meantime, we hear from Thomas hiding out. Like some character out of a Flannery O’Conner story. Hiding in a shed. A misfit. Hunted. Hates. Will his life ever get better? The events leading up to the murder. The book is in his head. Is this all a dream? The lines are blurred.

From literary references to Poe, Hemingway, Steinback, Faulkner, MacBeth, Wolfe, O'Connor, Nabokov and Poe’s Annabels, Poe’s poetry. A trinity of troubled men. A kinship. Misery. What parts are made up and what is real?

“To the casual observer, Huston’s life would have appeared blessed. But this was the illusion Huston had created and maintained. A man patient and generous with his students, a picture-perfect wife and family, shirts and chinos always neatly pressed, fame and financial success; a man respected envied; a man with a life each of his students longed for.

Was it all a construction meant to conceal in himself the same dark urges that drove Huston’s characters? His life had seemed a sunlit lagoon, but what currents made the blue water shimmer. A lifetime of struggle and ambition. Parents, taken away by violence. Professional jealousies. The stresses of fame the loss of anonymity. The pressure to live up to the hype, to always be better, brighter, more successful, more worthy of praise.

Was it as simple as that? The façade as thin and brittle as all facades are, shattered? Had Huston snapped? Was he deliriously happy in his insanity? Weightless and free? No shame, no remorse, no obligations, no sin?"


Does the life of novelists show up in fiction, thinly disguised as somebody else’s life? Portions of the journal were totally fiction; others not? Discerning the difference would be the hard part. Were the character’s desires actually Huston’s desires brought to the surface?

Did Thomas dream of these events, or did they actually occur? The knife. How could he go home? All is gone.

Entries:

“If a book is filled with love, it is because the writer longs for love? If the book drips of violence, it is because the writer burns to levy justice, to decimate his enemies? A means of survival. Otherwise, his psyche would unravel. Pitiful or disastrous.

Does a guilty man hide his deeds behind his words and hide his thoughts behind his smile? Others behind other deeds? Doesn’t the pedophile hide behind the Little League team he coaches or the school bus he drives or the Masses he conducts?

And doesn’t the wife beater hide behind the sidewalks he cleans for the old lady next door, and behind his punctuality and efficiency at work? The pornographer, the rapist, the serial killer; .the predatory stock broker, the ambulance chasers, the Medicare-bilking physician—the congressman, the senator, the president—don’t they all cloak their evil behind silk ties and thousand-dollar suits?


The man and woman he is referring to? DeMarco wonders as he is reading-desperate to solve this puzzle. Huston had reached out to him. Will he be so desperate to commit suicide or seek revenge, if, in fact, he was not the killer? He may have nothing to lose.

Between pressure at the station to find Huston and his need to help this man, the author keeps the suspense high, while readers slowly learn what went down that fatal tragic horrific night. His family had been butchered.

Did helping someone with a simple choice in life - set the stage; putting things in motion, for a string of deadly events to unfold, with devastating consequences?

TWO DAYS GONE is like no other book I have ever read and surely it will be at the top of the bestseller list. Silvis grabs you from the first page to the last, with the introduction of this new series, and anxiously awaiting the next!

Ferocious storytelling that makes you think, and feel with an array of emotions. From the dark and ugly pit of the human psyche. Sadness, pain, suffering, tragedy, love, and loss, sprinkled with a heavy literary flair. The relationship and narrative between the two men sealed the book. Both equally strong and powerful. The relationship between writer and reader, priceless.

Other readers have asked me about a similar author or book to compare. I can honestly say, this work is unique. In regards to the crime thriller genre, the one which comes to mind is possibly Paul Cleave (New Zealand), Of course, his Trust No One is a book within a book, as well. Cleave's crime writing is also gritty and dark, with twisted humor, and his cop leads, tend to become emotionally connected. Fans of David Bell and Dennis Lehane will also enjoy. With Silvis, you receive the crime + the literary fiction in one package, a rare find.

"The poet's, the writer's, duty is to write about these things. It is his privilege to help man endure by lifting his heart, by reminding him of the courage and honor and hope and pride and compassion and pity and sacrifice which have been the glory of his past." -William Faulkner

This one will stay with you. Chilling. A murder mystery, both absorbing and entertaining, from an experienced author drawing from his own experience as a writer and academic.

Connecting with readers and writers: My favorite part: (Acknowledgements) this is only a small portion:

“A writer’s job is to love his readers and to want nothing more than to pilot them from experience to experience, emotion to emotion. The best fiction is a voyage of feeling, and the writer’s job is to generate sentipensante for his readers, those feelings that give rise, not to an intellectual kind of knowledge but an emotional knowledge, a deeper connection with what Faulkner called “the old verities and truths of the heart.” (love William Faulkner: Nobel Prize Speech Stockholm, Sweden 12/10/50).

“Another way of looking at this relationship between writer and readers is through its intimacy; the reader comes, to a story wanting to be wooed, desirous of seduction. If the writer’s inducements are successful, the voice sufficiently tempting, the promises sufficiently alluring, the reader gives herself over to the story not for minutes but hours, and for days at a time, melding her own imagination with the writer’s while falling into step with the characters, hoping for the best, giving them her heart. What greater gift can a writer receive than this?


A special thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Also purchased the audiobook, performed by Graham Winton; currently listening. (great)

"Next time someone asks you how you’re feeling, dig a little deeper, find that emotion, that story behind it."

JDCMustReadBooks

I COULD NOT PUT THIS DOWN!!!!

I started reading this earlier tonight and was immediately hooked. It was so good I found myself reading the story in the parking lot then had to take my tablet into a board meeting so I could keep reading right up until it started. After I drove to Starbucks and ordered an espresso to make sure I could stay up to finish it. Now at 1:30a I finally did and don't regret my exhaustion or burning eyes.

The story is about a murdered family, who did it, why and the detective who has his own struggles impacting his investigative work.. If only it was that simple then I could've put this book down and gotten some decent sleep. The author is so descriptive not just in how he lays out a scene but in the dialogue between the characters. It is also the first time I've ever read a mystery book that drove me to tears as my heart broke for one of the characters when the story began to reveal itself.

You must read this book but start early on your day off or be prepared to lose sleep.

Two Days Gone by Randall Silvis is a dark and disturbing novel with bleak characters, dank setting, shocking plotline and I loved every minute of it. I thought the writing was fabulous. It was descriptive and intelligent and I loved the references to literary texts. The author breathed life into the characters by slowly revealing their past demons and deepening the relationship between author/murder suspect and police sergeant.
Thomas Huston, college professor and author has disappeared after the brutal murder of his wife and three children. On the run, he desperately searches for answers to the murder of his family. Sergeant Ryan DeMarco is assigned to the case. He knows Huston, respects him as a man and as an author. How could he have killed his family? DeMarco sets out to find Huston before he or someone else hurts him and to prove his innocence.
There are so many things going for this novel. For one, the pacing is fabulous. Although it is not an action-packed mystery, it is a suspense-filled mystery and it is completely unpredictable. I questioned the reliability of many of the characters and suspected several of them while reading. The writing had me guessing until the very end, and I was not disappointed! Finally, the characters are fabulous, from Huston and DeMarco, to several of the minor characters. They are all well-defined and relatable. I felt drawn to Huston and DeMarco and found myself desperately pulling for their well-being and wanting the best for them.
This book is a must read.
4.5 / 5 stars

2.5 Stars. I'm beginning to think that I have a bias against books centered around college professors! (See also: Listen to Me, All Things Cease to Appear) I didn't dislike Two Days Gone. I just couldn't get into it. The writing was lovely, but the story and characters were just okay for me.

Tom Huston's wife and three young children were stabbed to death and he's on the run. Could the beloved college professor and bestselling author have slaughtered his family? Sergeant Ryan DeMarco leads the search for the missing professor. Perhaps Tom’s latest manuscript holds the answers to this mystery? The investigation takes DeMarco from the campus of Tom's university to seedy strip clubs.

RYAN DEMARCO

Amazon calls this book a Ryan DeMarco Mystery, so I'm assuming it will eventually be part of a series. DeMarco is the character we spend the most time with. He was the inspiration for one of Tom's fictional characters, so they had previously become acquainted during Tom's research. DeMarco is disdainful of academics, but he immediately identified with Tom despite their many differences. He is shocked when the picture perfect Huston family is found murdered, presumably by Tom's hand.

The banter between DeMarco and his boss (his former subordinate) at the station was sometimes amusing, but I felt like I'd missed an earlier book in a series. I liked DeMarco most when he was doing fieldwork because the investigative interviews allowed me to know Tom from different perspectives. The two worlds that Tom was traveling between couldn't have been more different: (1) a university campus filled with grudges and professors fighting to make a name for themselves & (2) the strip club with tight-lipped employees who would rather stay off the grid. The closer DeMarco gets to finding Tom, the more he has to look to the literary greats to get a view into the suspect's psyche.

DeMarco suffers from a lonely and empty home life. His personal life slowly takes over the narrative, which might have been why I wasn't overly enthused by the story as a whole. He and his wife Laraine separated after the tragic death of their only child. Laraine lives in a cottage where she entertains random lovers. DeMarco sits outside her home and watches, occasionally becoming one of his wife's nighttime visitors. (Their story would have been right at home in Roxane Gay's Difficult Women!) While I wasn't that interested in DeMarco's personal life, the description of his relationship with his estranged wife had a good mix of the intimate and the everyday that made their relationship feel authentic.

THE HUSTON FAMILY

When we first encounter Tom Huston, he has just disposed of a large knife and is on the run. Unable to process what happened to his family, he begins to disassociate and think of himself as a fictional character. He decides to contact the mysterious Annabel, the only person who can help him piece together what happened. I was disappointed when his frenzied perspective became less frequent as the story continued!


The death of Tom's entire family was objectively horrifying, but I never got a real sense of Tom as a family man so I had a hard time linking into his grief or caring whether he was guilty or innocent. The humanizing parts where there (victim intros and the Huston/DeMarco interviews), but I wasn't completely sold--maybe because the family was just a little too perfect. At round 75% there’s a picture of family life which gave me inklings of emotion, but it was already too late.

Tom's beautiful wife Claire is such a perfect extension of him that her portrayal, as minor as it was, irritated me. She felt more like wish fulfillment than a real-life person. The most interesting thing about her was that she and Tom used to spend nights in abandoned buildings, "places where their only real concern was how far through the night Claire’s cries and moans might carry." I was rolling my eyes by the time she murmurs "Baby, make love to me again. I can never get enough of you."

I liked what I assumed was the dramatic finale, but the story just kept going and added an unnecessary complication. It was beautifully-written. Even the acknowledgments were a pleasure to read! I just didn't care about the characters enough to care about the other elements. Since what makes a character and their relationships compelling differs for everyone, I'm going to end with links to two positive reviews from Kirkus and Publisher's Weekly.

This story is exactly what it claims to be, a page turner. But I'll go one step further by saying it was unputdownable. Thankfully I started over a holiday weekend because I truly could not stop. I had to know the If's and Why's and What's and sticking with it was easy because the writing is wonderful; lyrical and smooth, well plotted, and with characters that grab a hold of you.

The story is delivered in dual points of view, that of the professor Thomas Huston and the investigator Ryan DeMarco. Randall Silvis is an accomplished author but his is the first by him that' I've read. Yes, I'll be digging into more of his work. He uses prose and imagery that make this story unforgettable. I'm primarily a reader of romance; romantic suspense, romantic comedy, Contemporary and historical romance, the entire gamut. Two days Gone has none of that. But love drives the plot line ~ it's about what we will and won't do for our families , romantic entanglements included.

The dual point of view is so well executed and I became equally invested in both characters. I needed their backstories, I need to know Ryan DeMarco personally, what makes him tick, what hardships and tragedy has befallen him? What compels him to work 20 hour days and fall asleep only by the hand of a tumbler of whiskey? We learn about Huston mostly through DeMarco's investigation but while in his head all I could think was ...well, I wonder if he did it. Is that a man who had a psychotic break? Silvis skillfully skirts the evidence, making this a mystery that was both about character and how none of this tragedy makes sense. Just when you think you have a sense that Huston is a good guy, you'll find yourself second guessing the facts. Maybe he has fooled the world but maybe there's other motivations at play. The story is filled with clues and red herrings and hidden agenda's and at times it's dark. Depending on the situation the brutality can be both subtle and stark.

I don't often recommend books to my husband ( again, I focus on the romance genre) but Two Days Gone is one that I can't wait for him to read. I highly recommend to any readers of the murder/mystery suspense genre. I would love to see this one made into a film which is something I don't say that often. 5 Stars!!

I have conflicting opinions on this book. It started off really exciting and mysterious. I enjoyed reading from two perspectives; the detective and the father/possible murderer. I was deep into this book for the first 75%. There were so many characters and so many theories on what happened - I was hooked. But around the 75% mark; I guess you can say I lost interest and I wanted it to be over. Kind of like the last Lord of the Rings book - it just kept going on. There were more bombshells to be dropped. I think that too much was packed into the book. I also had a problem with the writing tones; the father/husband absolutely loved and adored his wife, then was talking about getting his c*ck sucked. I enjoyed the lead detective and if this was going to be the first in a series with him, I would probably continue reading.