Review: Providence

Title: Providence
Author: Caroline Kepnes
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Random House
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Release Date: June 19, 2018
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

From the acclaimed author of YOU comes a novel that is part love story, part detective story, and part supernatural thriller.

Growing up as best friends in small-town New Hampshire, Jon and Chloe are the only ones who truly understand each other and their intense connection. But just when Jon is ready to confess the depth of his feelings, he’s kidnapped by his substitute teacher, a discredited scientist who is obsessed with H.P. Lovecraft and has a plot to save humanity.
After four years in captivity, Jon finally escapes, only to discover that he now has an uncontrollable power that endangers anyone he has intense feelings for. He runs away to Providence to protect Chloe while he searches for answers. Across town from Jon, Detective Charles “Eggs” DeBenedictus is fascinated by a series of strange deaths–young, healthy people whose hearts just . . . stop. Convinced these deaths are a series of connected, vigilante killings, he jeopardizes his job and already strained marriage to uncover the truth.
With heart, insight, and a keen eye on human frailty, Kepnes whisks us on a journey through New England and crashes these characters’ lives together in the most unexpected ways, exploring the complex relationship between the powerful and the powerless, love and identity, self-preservation and self-destruction, and how the lines are often blurred between the two.

Review:

This is a great thriller. Throughout the book, I had no idea how it would end, but I was satisfied with the final pages.

This was quite an emotional story. Both Jon and Chloe struggled with the loss of each other. It was heartbreaking to see them apart, because they really were meant to be together.

Jon’s condition reminded me of the main character in the Joe Hill book Horns. In that book, the character grows horns, like the devil, and people tell him their worst secrets. He can’t escape it, just like Jon.

I have never read any Lovecraft stories before, but now I’m tempted to. Have you read this book? What did you think of it?

Author: jilljemmett

Jill lives in Toronto, Canada. She has studied English, Creative Writing, and Publishing. Jill is the creator and content producer of Jill’s Book Blog, where she has published a blog post every day for the last four years, including 5-7 book reviews a week. She can usually be found with her nose in a book. View all posts by jilljemmett