On the (Audio) Bookshelf // The Pocket Wife & Where They Found Her

You all know that I love mysteries and thrillers, particularly in fall. There’s something about a chill in the air and crunchy leaves that just screams “time for mysteries!” to me. It’s also my favorite time to listen to mysteries during my morning commute, since it’s dark when I get started and light by time I arrive at work. Here are a couple that I have listened to recently.

THE POCKET WIFE by Susan Crawford

THE POCKET WIFE is about Dana, a woman who learns that she was the last person to see her neighbor Celia alive before Celia was murdered. Dana can’t remember everything that happened that afternoon and as she tries to piece it all together, she starts to question what took place that day.

There are a lot of mysteries/thrillers coming out these days that have an unreliable narrator–one whose version of events can’t necessarily be trusted. Dana definitely fits that definition! I often get somewhat frustrated with these narrators, but Dana was different. What drew me to her and helped me connect with the character is she knew just how unreliable she was and that terrified her. I also enjoyed getting to know many of the other characters in the novel and loved how much of their personal lives were fleshed out.

The mystery was compelling and I was wrapped up in it and wanted to know it would end, however I’m not sure I would recommend listening to this one. It had a decent narrator, but I felt like I was missing details and there were times that I wished I was actually reading it.

WHERE THEY FOUND HER by Kimberly McCreight 

This novel also has a great narrator. Molly works for a newspaper, but is called upon to branch out from her usual articles to cover a murder in her small college town when the editor and another reporter are unavailable.

What I liked about Molly is that she’s a vulnerable character who is still recovering from a loss in her life, which could influence how she views the situation. I was wrapped up in the mystery in this novel. There’s just so much to this novel that I really liked and appreciated, but I don’t really want to go into details because I don’t want to give too much away. I read RECONSTRUCTING AMELIA last year and enjoyed that one, but this is definitely my favorite from McCreight so far.

HAVE YOU READ EITHER OF THESE? WHAT HAVE YOU READ (OR LISTENED TO) RECENTLY?