So, Can I Blame Stormi for This One????

 

TITLE: In My Dreams I Hold a Knife

AUTHOR: Ashley Winstead

PUBLISHER: Sourcebooks Landmark

PUBLISHING DATE: August 3, 2021

PAGES: 345   

SOURCE: Hoopla

FROM GOODREADS: A college reunion turns dark and deadly in this chilling and propulsive suspense novel about six friends, one unsolved murder, and the dark secrets they’ve been hiding from each other—and themselves—for a decade. 

Ten years after graduation, Jessica Miller has planned her triumphant return to southern, elite Duquette University, down to the envious whispers that are sure to follow in her wake. Everyone is going to see the girl she wants them to see—confident, beautiful, indifferent—not the girl she was when she left campus, back when Heather’s murder fractured everything, including the tight bond linking the six friends she’d been closest to since freshman year. Ten years ago, everything fell apart, including the dreams she worked for her whole life—and her relationship with the one person she wasn’t supposed to love. 

But not everyone is ready to move on. Not everyone left Duquette ten years ago, and not everyone can let Heather’s murder go unsolved. Someone is determined to trap the real killer, to make the guilty pay. When the six friends are reunited, they will be forced to confront what happened that night—and the years’ worth of secrets each of them would do anything to keep hidden.

MY THOUGHTS: So many people rave about this book and love it dearly so when Stormi recommended we buddy read it, I jumped at the chance to finally get it off my TBR.  Maybe I should have just jumped???

So it's been 10 years since a college group of friends knows as the East House Seven return for their college reunion.  The only problem though is there is one who can't attend because she tragically was killed during their senior year.  Everyone has their own agenda for returning, and everyone seems to be hiding something. The reader gets alternating timelines and slowly the author reveals exactly what played out and who was to blame.

This book didn't work for me. All the characters are highly flawed and unlikeable.  I don't have to have a likeable character to enjoy a book, but I hated all of these characters so much, I found little to enjoy.  The book is full of pretentiousness, infidelity, lying, addiction, and oh and how can I forget, murder.  I'm surprised these characters even made it 10 years past graduation.  The main character has so many "daddy issues" and I get it, your childhood had issues.  But a lot of other people are in the same boat so deal.

My main complaint with this book is not enough people died.  I know that sounds horrible but in all honestly, I would have enjoyed it much better if they were each getting picked off one by one. Even the one character I came close to trusting turned out to also be a slimeball in the end.  Please don't let my review keep you from reading this if you are interested.  I know my thoughts are in the minority.  I do plan on picking up the author's newest release but if it doesn't work for me, I might just have to give up and move on.

MY RATING: 2 Paws