It was totally crazy, it had a good story, but it was poorly executed.

Nothing causes trouble in a family faster than the addition of a new member…especially when that new member is a woman!

The Channing siblings own Magnolia House, a beautiful bed and breakfast that the sister—Ruth—runs. Her brother brings home a mysterious woman and turns everything upside down.

This was a very entertaining audiobook with a great narrator.

Thank you to netgalley for the complimentary copy of this audiobook. I’m leaving this review voluntarily.

#passerby #britneyking #netgalley #bookreviewer #inexchangeforreview #orangeskyaudio #justfinishedreading #psychologicalthriller #audiobookreview

2.5 stars

The beginning was good and promising. But it started to fade out pretty fast and there is a little twist half way through it that missed it's mark for me and made the book feel less interesting.

We have the story of a few siblings. One of the brothers is bringing home his new girlfriend that is like by some and not at all by others. She is extremely beautiful, but not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed. On top of everything she seems to be hiding quite a few things and her lies catch up with her.

The ending is a bit violent for me but it does have some positive aspect to it.

Thank you NetGalley and OrangeSky Audio for allowing me to read this book!

The beginning of this book was hard to follow and slow. I had a hard time keeping track of what was going on. The story picks up the pace around the halfway mark, but it was to late for me to really get into it and like it.

There are three things that make or break a psychological thriller:

1. The beginning
2. The middle
3. The end

Basically you have to nail it from start to finish for it to be any good…and Britney King does this every. single. time.

I cannot stress enough how quickly this book sucked me in. The beginning? Captivating. Intriguing. Grabbed me hook, line, and sinker and put me front and center with the main character, Ruth, whose voice—I swear—had to have been inspired by my own. She speaks in the sarcasm that I live by and within a couple chapters, I already loved her. So, beginning? Check!

The middle—laid the groundwork for what was sure to be an explosive ending. It’s the beginning of the end, the calm before the storm, the coming undone of the Channing family.

The end—riddled with unexpected twists, fast-paced and keeps the reader turning pages until the very last one.

I simply cannot say enough good things about this book, or the fabulous author who wrote it.

Thank you to the incredible, Britney King, for the gifted eARC! Passerby releases 7/22!

Passerby is centered around the Changing family and their family run bed and breakfast, Magnolia House. The story is mostly told from Ruth Channing’s point of view. Britney King portrays Ruth as a sarcastic, quirky woman. The type of character anyone can relate to. I was immediately drawn into the book in the first chapter by Ruth’s narration. There is something so relatable about the way the author writes Ruth and how she deals with life’s ups and downs. When Ruth’s brother brings home Ashley Parker, a woman he picked up on the side of the road, things get strange. Ruth is immediately suspicious of Ashley and sets out to prove to her brother that Ashley is bad news.

While I really enjoyed Ruth’s voice and character, the parts written from the Passerby’s point of view left me a little confused. I wish the entire book had just been written from Ruth’s point of view—possibly because I was just so drawn to her as a fully developed character. Meanwhile, the Passerby remained a mystery for most of the book. For this reason, I give this book 3.5 stars. Throughout the story Ruth’s narration kept me on the edge of my seat. I also really enjoyed the ending twist. Trust me, it’s an ending you won’t guess. I can’t wait to read more books by Britney King!

New Britney King Book Alert! ⁣⁣

This was a rather odd story. I spent the first half being confused about who is who and what was happening. Can't say it got much better by the time I finished.
I found Ruth somewhat insufferable, and considering she did most of the narrating, it was not the most enjoyable experience.

Tigger warning: SA

I thought about not reviewing this one, but I'm going to just to offer a nod of support for anyone else who gets triggered reading stories involving sexual assault.

I hate how sexual assault is presented in this book. I tried to give it the benefit of the doubt, as I know SA is something people don't want to "have to deal with" and of course that's self preservation. But it's still unacceptable. Having characters discuss the woman who was assaulted so... without care, really set me off. The spectacle of the event - the setting when shes found and how the main character spoke to her were all completely terrible. The moment reads as if nothing else except the main character and her stupid parade is all that matters.

Wow, this book made me so mad.

I understand this book triggered me, and I know a lot of my anger is because of my own trauma, but survivors and victims of sexual assault deserve better. I think the tone was made worse because our protagonist was not the girl who was assaulted. Had this book been written that way it would have been better.

I DNF the book at 20%. The hints at some kind of "passerby" revenge hunter isn't it for me. To me, as a survivor, that is incredibly disrespectful.

The only way I could attempt picking this back up again is if I got confirmation that the assault isn't continued to be used so pathetically.

Thank you to the publishers for the advance copy, sorry it didn't work out this time.