BOOK REVIEW + GIVEAWAY: No Turning Back by Tracy Buchanan (Mystery/Thriller)

This was a truly compelling thriller that had me intrigued from the very beginning, especially given my fascination with reading anything serial killer related. I was also really intrigued by the idea of Anna’s profession as a radio producer and how that would play into the story. I kept picturing a character like Roz from Frasier, but ultimately, the main focus is definitely on the backlash Anna receives from the media and the dark and vicious side of its scrutiny even towards one of its own.  

The many twists and turns throughout the story make it incredibly difficult for both you as the reader and Anna to trust anyone or predict where the story is going to go. As an unreliable narrator, Anna can’t even be trusted because she is filled with so much self-doubt and questions everything about herself, her own actions, and the past. Not to mention that almost everyone has secrets of their own that once exposed only add more layers of suspicion and distrust to what Anna thinks she knows and what readers should believe.  This sense of unknowing is even more enhanced by the fact that while the vast majority of the story is told from Anna’s perspective, there are small glimpses from the killer’s perspective that provide details about the murders, but nothing in the way of clues that could lead you towards figuring out or even preparing for the big reveal.  I never saw the ending coming and it was certainly different than anything else I’ve read in thrillers!

I really enjoyed how the author was able to pair the seemingly disparate types of killings, self-defense and serial murder, into a story that attempts to put them on the same level, especially in terms of how reactions are shaped depending on what information is revealed or kept hidden. One minute Anna is hailed as a hero, only in the next to be pursued as a pariah.  There were many times that I was left speechless by the response of some within Anna’s family to how she handled the situation in protecting her daughter, as though she was no better than the serial killer preying on the community.  This aspect really heightened the storytelling and made it impossible to put down!

This was my first experience reading one of Tracy Buchanan’s novels and I am definitely excited to check out her others!  Thoroughly entertaining and hard to forget, this is a book you shouldn’t miss!

Many thanks to Tracy Buchanan and Great Escapes Book Tours.  It was pleasure providing a review!