I’ve seen a lot of hype around Jennifer Hartmann, specifically her book Still Beating. And while I’m not one to always go with the grain, the book sounds bomb as hell, and when I saw a call for ARCs with her PR agency, I thought OK, well… let’s give her a go before I dive into what everyone else has – and boy, am I glad I did.
Highlights:
Ripped from her husband and her life, Everly clings to the only hope she can – the mysterious man who shares a wall in the hellhole that has become her home.
What I thought:
This book really hit me in the feels – like, live tweeting (threading?) and major book hangover feels. It’s not often that I read a story that starts you right off at the mountain peak – you know what I’m talking about, right? The whole pyramid of structure shenanigans – rising action, climax, falling action – it kind of looks like a mountain? Anyway … most books give you a great lead up then drop you into the good stuff before bringing you down nice and slow. NOT IRREVERSIBLE. No, Ms. Hartmann and Ms. St Clair catapulted us into the fucking wilderness to fester in an instant climax, ONLY THEN did they bring us down nice and slow through a two-part epic that honestly had me emotional as hell the entire time.
All that unexpected nonsense being said, this story was truly well constructed. I was sucked in from page one, and when I was finally able to take a breath about halfway through, it was only for a split second before being brought right back into the action. The characters were as lovable as they were infuriating, and I honest to god think I had like 30 heart attacks throughout the book. It’s a slow burn, but jfc when it burned.. it BURNED… like Katniss Everdeen on fire (yes, I’m rereading The Hunger Games, why do you ask?). After a secondary climax that was quicker, but no less INSANE, than the first, we got a conclusion that made my heart weep, and like I said, a solid hangover that so far has not gone away. Highly recommend – but maybe don’t read if you’re on any kind of heart medication, idk, I’m not a doctor…
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