3.5 stars ( )

Dual review with Swedish first and then English!

SWEDISH REVIEW

Sharon Bolton är en av mina favoritförfattare och jag har ivrigt väntat på att denna bok skulle släppas på svenska så jag kunde få läsa den. Bolton har en otrolig förmåga att skriva thrillers som verkligen griper tag i en och fängslar en från början till slut. Dödsdömd är inget undantag.

Jag måste erkänna att inledningen, ballongfärden är en av de mest spektakulära jag har läst. Att komma på en sådan idé. Att handlingen i boken varvades mellan nutid samt tillbakablickar på Jessica och hennes systers barndom ökade mitt intresse och jag hade svårt att lägga boken ifrån mig. Jag verkligen älskar tillbakablickar som är lika fängslade som det som sker i nutids handlingen och speciellt gillar jag när man börjar förstå varför författaren har med tillbakablickar.

Genom boken gång så var det saker jag misstänkte och fick rätt i men Bolton visade samtidigt att hon är en mästare på att lura läsaren att tro att den har rätt för att sedan twista till handlingen rejält. Speciellt mot slutet då flera saker skedde som överraskade mig.

Dödsdömt är en superb thriller, fängslade rakt igenom och jag verkligen längtar efter nästa Sharon Bolton bok!

Tack till Modernista för recensionsexemplaret!

ENGLISH REVIEW

Sharon Bolton is one of my favorite writers and I have eagerly been waiting for this book to be released in Swedish so I could read it. Bolton has an incredible ability to write thrillers that really grabs hold of your interests and captivate one from start to finish. Dead Woman Walking is no exception.

I have to admit that the introduction, with the hot-air balloon trip, is one of the most spectacular I have read. To come up with such an idea. That the story in the book was switching between the present and flashbacks to Jessica and her sister's childhood increased my interest and I found myself unable to put the book down. I really love flashbacks that are as captivating as the present story and I especially like when you begin to understand why the author has added flashbacks to the story.

Through the book, these were the things I suspected and later found that I had guess right about, but Bolton showed at the same time that she is a champion to trick the reader to believe that one has figured everything out and then turn the table on you. Especially towards the end when several things happened that surprised me.

Dead Woman Walking is a superb thriller, utterly captivating straight through and I really long for the next Sharon Bolton book!

Thanks to Modernista for the review copy! ( )

A brilliantly complex crime thriller, possibly with more and better twists at the end than Harlan Coben!! 13 people in a hot air balloon witness a murder, and the killer manages to crash the balloon; however, one of the passengers manages to escape, setting off a mad dash by the killer to eliminate the last eyewitness, who flees. Has she panicked or are there other reasons for her disappearance? Bolton does a great job, keeping everyone guessing why the murder took place, who is hiding what, and who can be trusted. The backstories are tantalizingly revealed over the course of the book. 4.5 stars. ( )

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I have read most of Sharon Bolton’s stand alone novels and the first in the Lacy Flint series and can tell you that she is wonderful writer. I don’t know if it is fog, the rain, the ancient cities and folklore, or the great literary tradition, but most of my favorite mystery writers are female and from England.

This story starts with a bang—quite literally—and in the lofty and completely vulnerable basket of a balloon floating over the largely deserted countryside of northern England. From then on it is cat and mouse all the way to the surprising conclusion, with several abrupt plot twists along the way. The pacing was taut, the action believable, the characters well drawn. I particularly like the way the Bolton inter-meshed the past and present, often from chapter to chapter, to slowly unveil important plot points and character history. It could have been confusing and detract from the story but in Bolton’s hands I think the structure, which must have been difficult to map out perfectly, only created more tension and made several of the reveals even more surprising. I just never felt that I could trust my judgments about characters and was often proved to be correct in this view.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a well told mystery/thriller. I would also take the time to recommend Ms. Bolton’s other novels. She’s one of the really good mystery writers working today.

5 stars. Loved it. ( )

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I have read most of Sharon Bolton’s stand alone novels and the first in the Lacy Flint series and can tell you that she is wonderful writer. I don’t know if it is fog, the rain, the ancient cities and folklore, or the great literary tradition, but most of my favorite mystery writers are female and from England.

This story starts with a bang—quite literally—and in the lofty and completely vulnerable basket of a balloon floating over the largely deserted countryside of northern England. From then on it is cat and mouse all the way to the surprising conclusion, with several abrupt plot twists along the way. The pacing was taut, the action believable, the characters well drawn. I particularly like the way the Bolton inter-meshed the past and present, often from chapter to chapter, to slowly unveil important plot points and character history. It could have been confusing and detract from the story but in Bolton’s hands I think the structure, which must have been difficult to map out perfectly, only created more tension and made several of the reveals even more surprising. I just never felt that I could trust my judgments about characters and was often proved to be correct in this view.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a well told mystery/thriller. I would also take the time to recommend Ms. Bolton’s other novels. She’s one of the really good mystery writers working today.

5 stars. Loved it. ( )