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I haven't read many current mysteries. The mystery seemed very simple to me. We knew who was going to be killed (except Sarah), who did it and why; there weren't really any surprises or complexity to the plot. Is this common? I watch a lot of murder mystery TV shows (Criminal Minds, Law and Order, CSI, etc.) and they are much more complex than this.

This book almost felt like more of a novel portraying relationships with a murder thrown in. What do you think?

Yes it was simplistic because everything most of the chatacters did was too predictable...a mystery story should have lots of suspense in it to make it more enjoyable to the reader.

In the end my impression wat that the mystery was an excuse to develop the characters' personal stories and write about the Irish setting.

NetMassimo wrote: ↑08 Apr 2020, 05:04 In the end my impression wat that the mystery was an excuse to develop the characters' personal stories and write about the Irish setting.

Interesting point! I hadn't thought about that. I wonder if wanting to develop the characters' stories is more prominent when an author is writing a series.

AlexisLib wrote: ↑09 Apr 2020, 20:50

NetMassimo wrote: ↑08 Apr 2020, 05:04 In the end my impression wat that the mystery was an excuse to develop the characters' personal stories and write about the Irish setting.

Interesting point! I hadn't thought about that. I wonder if wanting to develop the characters' stories is more prominent when an author is writing a series.

I guess it depends on what the author wants to tell. My point is just a guess based on this novel only, as I haven't read the other novels in this series. I'd be curious to read opinions from other people who read all the series to understand whether this novel is typical of this series or is more focused on its characters than the previous ones.

Complexity and surprises is an added advantage to any plot of a novel. This novel has a simple mystery which is common and it should contain a complex content that will capture a reader more than it is now.

Yes it was. Complexities sometimes destroy the beauty of things

NetMassimo wrote: ↑08 Apr 2020, 05:04 In the end my impression wat that the mystery was an excuse to develop the characters' personal stories and write about the Irish setting.

I wholeheartedly agree with you. The character development seemed to be more important to the author than the mystery aspect throughout the book.

Yes, it was simplistic. It wasn't much of a mystery. I also didn't think there was much character development.

I think it was very simplistic, yes, but that in this case is not a bad thing. I've always found the straightforward is the best way to go in some cases. Having too much plot twists in a mystery can distract you from the storyline itself.

I agree with you, the mysteries were really simplistic as I could predict what was to happen. I wish the author would have thrown in mystries that were a little complex to make it more intriguing.

Sharon2056 wrote: ↑12 Apr 2020, 14:32 I agree with you, the mysteries were really simplistic as I could predict what was to happen. I wish the author would have thrown in mystries that were a little complex to make it more intriguing.

Mysteries that were a little more complex were what I expected from a novel that's part of a series labeled as mystery. Possibly that's why in the end I wasn't satisfied.

I also had the same feeling. The mysteries were really less complex and predictable. I think the author could have tried to at least make them a bit complex.

I also felt that. I have a knack for these things, even more than other people.Even in movies, most of the time I am able to predict the real antagonist. In the same way, I could predict the next few lines. However, I couldn't predict everything.Thus, in my opinion to say that it was too simplistic is not so correct. I liked the book overall.

Yes! Nothing happens until halfway through the book. Lots of slow build up. We went on vacation with the family and then something horrible happened. It didn't really feel like a mystery to me. Great writing though. I really enjoyed it.