This Chick Read: The Beautiful and the Wild by Peggy Townsend

Liv Russell is being held hostage in a shipping container turned storage shed by the man she once loved, and the father of her child, her husband Mark. After faking his own death, Liv happens upon a clue that makes her think her husband Mark is still alive. Leaving their home behind, Liv packs up the car with her belongings and her son, Xander and drives to Alaska to the small town of Cohut where she finds Mark shacking up with a young woman. Confronting him, he tricks her into the storage container and locks her in, where she remains for days, trying to figure a way out.

The pace of this novel is very slow and methodical, which fits with the actions taking place. There is a bit of set up and flashbacks to Liv and Mark’s previous life, but in present time, locked in a container, there isn’t a lot of action. This may bother some people but I must’ve been in the mood to read a psychological thriller because this pace helped me settle in and get into these character’s heads. While Liv isn’t the heroine that I normally root for, her situation of being trapped and separation from her special needs child, Xander made me curious to see where this author was going to take this story. I will admit, I didn’t expect it to head in the direction it did.

Usually flashbacks annoy the heck out of me, but it was a great tool to show the difference between Liv as she was when she and Mark met, and the woman who came to Alaska and found herself in this situation. The flashbacks also showed contrasts between what Liv thought of as charm but should have been warning signs in the man she came to love. Mark’s slow dissolution from loving husband to what he becomes later in this novel was deftly written and if you have the patience, I think worth the slow build up to the conclusion.

This was not the type of thriller where people are in chases, fights, etc. This is a true psychological thriller that was slow paced and very well written. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review and it was honest.

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