ARC Review: Thicker Than Water



Title: Thicker Than Water
Author: Brigid Kemmerer
Series: No
Genre: Young-Adult, Romance, Mystery, Paranormal
Publication Date: December 29, 2015
Publisher: Kensington Books
Pages: 432
My Rating: 4 Stars





Thomas Bellweather hasn’t been in town long. Just long enough for his newlywed mother to be murdered, and for his new stepdad’s cop colleagues to decide Thomas is the primary suspect.

Not that there’s any evidence. But before Thomas got to Garretts Mill there had just been one other murder in twenty years. 

The only person who believes him is Charlotte Rooker, little sister to three cops and, with her soft hands and sweet curves, straight-up dangerous to Thomas. Her friend was the other murder vic. And she’d like a couple answers.

Answers that could get them both killed, and reveal a truth Thomas would die to keep hidden…

When I started reading this book, I had absolutely no idea what it was about. I remember reading the synopis when I requested it, but I read the synopsis of other books as well and they kinda got jumbled enough that I didn't even remember the genre. I think that worked in my favour.

This book has a very emotional beginning. So emotional, in fact, that I started to wonder if maybe the whole book would be just me trying not to cry and failing. I thought it was a contemporary with a pinch of mystery.

Then came the romance element and it was really good so I thought it was perhaps a romance. Then the mystery came back stronger and something happened and I was like "Whaaa...?" Then came the supernatural element which I was very happy with. So this book was a Paranormal Murder Mystery Romance and somehow, everything fit.

I enjoyed this book very much. I loved the chemistry between the protagonists and the nerve-racking tention that was quite consistent. I liked the sudden revelations and the emotion. The writing was good and had me really invested in the story and the characters.

By the time I reached the 75% point, I was prepared to give it five stars. But the grand finale... it wasn't grand enough.

There was a lot of build-up and the ending kinda fell flat compared to it. There were also some things that needed more explanation or an explanation but were just mentioned vaguely. The end was... hurried. And the paranormal aspect wasn't explored enough. Or much at all, really.

I'm aware that this is a standalone with many aspects and only so many of those could be gone into depth with in just one book, but I still feel like we need more. More information, more answers. And preferably another book. I would love that.

So yeah, this is a really good book that could have been better. I still recommend it, though. The flaws won't stop you from loving it.

I do have one question though and that is, What's up with the name? I mean, why this name. I couldn't really connect it to the story. The name could have been something like Empathy, which would give a pun-like quality. But if anyone does find out why this name was chosen, be sure to tell me.

Last but not least, thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this copy in exchange for my honest review.


4 Really-Want-A-Sequel Stars


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