Books Say Goodbye
Books and Publications Average Rating:

Rating: - Unbelievably disturbing.
I can't give a fair complete review of this book, because I didn't finish reading it. I got to chapter 13 (p. 94) and decided to stop. Pretty much because chapter 12 was one of the most disturbing, upsetting things I have ever read. I couldn't stop crying. And let me tell you I'm an AVID reader and have read many horror/thrillers. (This author's other books included.) Some -okay, many- of those have made me cry also, but never have I actually wished I could erase them from my memory. The sexual child abuse scene that I just read was horrible, the details put me right there. Does this make Lisa Gardner an amazing author for being able to bring out such emotion in me? Maybe. But I for one can do without that detailed kind of grief/stress/horror in my mind. Thank GOODNESS I didn't take it to work with me to read on my lunch break! If you have a tougher skin than I do, this might be a good book. Although, to be honest, I didn't find the main character -Kimberly- to be very likable, and the plot seemed to jump around a lot. I just didn't care for it...or at least what I read of it. Just wanted to give fair warning to other sensitive parents, or anyone who loves children...this book is really rough.

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Rating: - I thought it was good.
I'm a reader/listener. While I'm reading a book I also listen to books on tape as I drive. Most of the material is from the library, researched through Amazon. I chose to listen to "Say Goodbye". I really liked the readers. There are two. Ann Marie Lee read most while Lincoln Hoppe read the part of the killer. It is disturbing but not awfully graphic.

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Rating: - Her best since The Perfect Husband
This is a very disturbing book, but it's well written and hard to put down. More disturbing is the similarities to crimes that have been reported on in the media.

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Rating: - A Poor Attempt
I hate to say avoid this book but I must. I was very intrigued when starting this novel. The story line seemed very interesting and I had read the many comments here about the child abuse aspect and knew I would be alright with it as long as it was handled well. I was looking forward to a mature, intelligent read. Seemed like Lisa Gardner might have been trying to step it up to another level.

Boy, was I disappointed. Lisa Gardner is totally out of her league here. She does attempt a character driven psychological suspense thriller and instead produces a disjointed lackluster poorly written old school try. The story is told from many different character's point of view and travels over different story lines. If done well, this can be very exciting and only add to the intrigue for the reader. Instead you have to remember what the cjharacter was last doing when they were last in the story and it gets confusing as to what is past and present. The child abuse aspect did not bother me but it was out of place with the rest of the novel. Those scenes belonged in a deeper, much more detailed novel.

I also had a problem with our main character Kimberly Quincy. She is pregnant here and her relationship with her husband is a big part of the book but the way they interact doesn't always make sense. The book does wrap itself up adequately but I did not enjoy the journey to get there. For a much more intelligent, psychological thriller I recommend Lisa Unger's Black Out.