Book Review: Bring Me Back by B.A. Paris

Purchase on Amazon: $12.99 Kindle / $16.17 Hardcover

“The disappearance, the suspicion, the fear.”

Published: June 19, 2018

Number of Pages: 304

My Copy Came From: St. Martins Press/NetGalley

Read Via: Hard copy (Advanced Readers Edition)

My Like Level: 2 out 5

Publishers Summary from Amazon:

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THE NEW TWISTY, GRIPPING READ FROM B. A. PARIS, THE AUTHOR OF THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES AND USA TODAY BESTSELLING NOVELS BEHIND CLOSED DOORS AND THE BREAKDOWN

“We’re in a new Golden Age of suspense writing now, because of amazing books like Bring Me Back, and I for one am loving it.” ―Lee Child

“[An] outstanding Hitchcockian thriller.” ―Publishers Weekly (starred review)

She went missing. He moved on. A whole world of secrets remained―until now.

Finn and Layla are young, in love, and on vacation. They’re driving along the highway when Finn decides to stop at a service station to use the restroom. He hops out of the car, locks the doors behind him, and goes inside. When he returns Layla is gone―never to be seen again. That is the story Finn told to the police. But it is not the whole story.

Ten years later Finn is engaged to Layla’s sister, Ellen. Their shared grief over what happened to Layla drew them close and now they intend to remain together. Still, there’s something about Ellen that Finn has never fully understood. His heart wants to believe that she is the one for him…even though a sixth sense tells him not to trust her.

Then, not long before he and Ellen are to be married, Finn gets a phone call. Someone from his past has seen Layla―hiding in plain sight. There are other odd occurrences: Long-lost items from Layla’s past that keep turning up around Finn and Ellen’s house. Emails from strangers who seem to know too much. Secret messages, clues, warnings. If Layla is alive―and on Finn’s trail―what does she want? And how much does she know?

A tour de force of psychological suspense, Bring Me Back will have you questioning everything and everyone until its stunning climax.

My Thoughts:

The first book I read by B.A. Paris (Behind Closed Doors) shook me to my core. I loved it and loved all of its creepy twisted plots turns. Her second book, The Breakdown was a little less loved but I really enjoyed it.

Past Blog Post: From the writer of Behind Closed Doors B.A. Paris…

Her latest book Bring Me Back, is my least favorite of the three. I should mention, These books aren’t connected in any way. They aren’t the same stories or the same characters, but they are all driven by plots twists and unreliable, “Who is the bad guy?” type of narration. Bring Me Back relied on this same story line throwing us curve balls as we tried to figure out the mystery behind Layla’s disappearance. Finn was our main male character and he was often times portrayed as volatile and having a bad temper. Red herring alert! Throughout this book, my overall feeling was disappointment. It was honestly just boring to me. B.A. Paris has written three books in three years now and I am left wondering if she should hold off a bit on the next one? Give the story a bit more time to grow and develop? With that being said, I will continue to read whatever she writes because her first book was, in my mind, her masterpiece. I hope she is able to find that magic again so she can shake me as hard as I was shaken while reading Behind Closed Doors. B.A. Paris, if you read this review, know that I love you and think you are wonderful! I hope you don’t want to shake me like Finn shakes Layla in the book! 🙂

Thank you to St. Martins Press, NetGalley and B.A. Paris for the Advanced Readers Copy in exchange for an honest review.