Customer Reviews

Too Close to Home: A Thriller

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

I hadn't even heard of Linwood Barclay less than a month ago but after discovering his sensational novel No Time for Goodbye I eagerly looked for everything else he'd written. Too Close to Home is another sensational Harlan Coben style novel with a totally different plot but written in the same way that No Time for Goodbye was.

Like with No Time for Goodbye we the reader are initially inside the head of not who will become the main character of the book but one of their family members in their teens. This time around we've got Derek whose got a plan to climb into his next door neighbours, the Langley's wallspace, so when they lock their house and depart on a trip he can unlock the backdoor and let his girlfriend Penny in for a few days of alone time and the action he's been waiting all his life for. Problem is his plan starts falling apart when the Langley's unaware he is in their house open the front door and are gunned down. Derek is undiscovered and spared as obviously no one expected him to be there, only he can't tell his parents or anyone else he was there or they'll punish him.

The main character of narrator of the book is Derek's father Jim Cutter. Jim has no idea why the family next door was gunned down but theorises his family is safe due to even if being a totally random killing the killers wouldn't come back to the same area twice. Promise Falls is a small town after all. It is only when he discovers some of his son's activities with the neighbour boy before he was shot, and his son is in fact in possession of something the killers may have been after, and is also reminded of the fact that many people including the postman have mistaken the Langley's house for his address that the question dawns on him, what if the killers went to the wrong house?

This is a can't put down thriller with a mystery angle as we the reader ponder until the final pages why were the Langley's murdered? Jim Cutter is an extremely likeable character as well. The book also has its fair share of unlikeable villains too which makes it that much more enjoyable. Plus Barclay while telling this story, gives a few brief paragraphs of a novel called A Missing Part, which is quite interesting. Hopefully like Dean Koontz did with Santa's Twin which we saw glimpses of in his earlier novel Mr. Murder, we'll one day see A Missing Part written in full as well.

Too Close to Home is a great book, can't wait to see what else Linwood Barclay has written! If you haven't read Barclay yet but like Harlan Coben, Joseph Finder, James Siegel, Matthew Klein and the other masters of this genre, then you'll love Too Close to Home!

This is the second book I've read from Linwood Barclay and there are certain common elements in each of them. The bottom line is Barclay is a far better storyteller than writer. The characters are shallow and the dialog in this one, as well as "No Time For Goodbye" is banal and unrealistic; however, the plot itself keeps the reader engaged and turning the pages. The story is generally well-crafted; however, the "twist" in the plot is a dead-giveaway for anyone paying the slightest attention. The problem, to me, is that characters just relate to each other in ways that seem forced. An educated, artistic couple swear repeatedly in casual conversation with their teenage son. A woman has an affair with a man and, not only does her husband manage to get over this transgression, but he is actually accepting of her working for the same man she cheated with. The main character is intelligent enough to figure out complex aspects of the mystery, yet he is foolish enough to let his son work alone with a mysterious stranger, who happened to show up just after several murders were committed in town. And, as seems to always be the case in pop culture, the evil intolerant politician here is once again a "right winger". It would be refreshing if writers and movie producers made the bad guys left wingers from time to time. Lord knows, there are plenty of real life examples to use for reference.

Overall, this is a decent read, even if the ending is a bit predictable and far-fetched at the same time.

Jim Cutter is shocked when his neighbours, the Langleys, are murdered, but even more shocked when it turns out that Derek his teenage son is keeping a secret about the crime and that all the evidence points to him. As suspicion turns on his family, Jim starts to do some investigating of his own into who might have committed the murders. As he starts to uncover some long-buried secrets, his own life comes under risk.

This is the second book by Linwood Barclay that I have read. I enjoyed No Time for Goodbye, but felt that the ending let it down. Too Close to Home is just as readable but also hangs together better. It's an accomplished mystery that grabs you early and keeps you turning the pages late. Linwood Barclay's writing style is similar to that of Harlan Coben's and the cliffhanger endings to each chapter keep you wanting to read just one more. There are a lot of different strands to the book (at least one of which is a total red herring), and while parts of the mystery are quite predictable, there were a couple of twists that I definitely didn't spot in advance. The final resolution is somewhat far-fetched (so often the case with this genre), but overall it's a clever story that's been well thought through. The central narrator is likeable and the relationship with his teenage son feels very believable.

I do have one significant criticism of this book and it's hard to explain it without giving anything away, but there's one central secret that someone has kept because they thought they would be compromised and I just didn't believe that they would have felt the need to do that. However I still really enjoyed Too Close To Home. I read this book when I was in hospital recently and it was the perfect lightweight diversion. If you like Harlan Coben's books, I'm pretty sure that you will enjoy this too.

I can't believe this book got such high ratings. I bought it because according to the people that bought this book, it was great...a very suspenseful page turner. It was not a thriller in any sense of the word. And the so called twist, was dopey. The characters were not any that I could root for. From the way the husband acted, punching out the mayor, its no wonder his son wound up in jail. The wife was ridiculous and the husband was even more ridiculous for putting up with her bull. I found it hard to believe this story. I bought his other book "no time for goodbye" based on the rave reviews for this one. I'm only hoping its better than this one (which won't be hard).

I bought this book after seeing a review on the cover saying something like, "If you like Harlen Coben, you'll love Linwood Barclay". This book is nothing like Harlen Coben. Harlen Coben thrillers keep me interested. This book fizzled after the prologue. As soon as the story switched to first person writing in Jim's point of view, the story went downhill. For some reason, I didn't like Jim or Ellen for that matter.

Last year when I read an earlier Linwood Barclay, the story was pretty good, but a bit too contrived; I felt a little manipulated. Lately, I've read several books where, halfway into the story, I've wondered if it would ever be possible to become enthralled.

TOO CLOSE TO HOME by Linwood Barclay (2008) captured my attention within the first few paragraphs, and had thrown the first whammy by the end of Chapter One.

The plot moves, mutates, and continues to surprise. By the time the story is into its final arc, tall tales are being told, but I never felt disconnected. The twists in the plot provide continuing, and captivating, interest.

The protagonist is my favourite kind: fallible, quirky and kinda loveable.

TOO CLOSE TO HOME was a very satisfying story.


Theresa de Valence, Reviewer, [...]

Too Close To Home was fantastic. One of the best books I have read, and I read about 3 books a week. You cannot stop reading this as you can't wait to see what will happen next. I read this in 2 days.

Experienced and excellent best describes narrator Christopher Lane. He has read more than 150 audio books - thus, you name the genre and he can personify it. He's taken home an Audie Award and an Audiofile Earphones Award - with Too Close To Home he takes listeners on an 11 hour journey as psyches are probed and the unthinkable happens.

Promise Falls is a small town in upstate New York. It's unlike other towns in that area as a triple murder has just been committed, a family is shot to death in what should have been the safety of their home. It was a hot, steamy summer night when the Langley's and their son, Adam, died. Despite the proximity of their homes and the stillness of the night their next-door neighbors, Jim and Ellen Cutter did not hear a thing.

The Cutters believed they knew their neighbors; their sons had been friends; they shared neighborhood gatherings. All of Promise Falls was shocked by this heinous crime, unable to comprehend how it could have happened. If the entire populace is stunned, think how the Cutters might have felt? What is going through their minds?

Author Barclay has crafted a compelling psychological journey. Might Jim Cutter be wondering if the killers had gone to the wrong house, fearing what might happen next? As for Ellen, what of her? Has she kept things from both Jim and herself?

Another explosive page-turner from Linwood Barclay.

- Gail Cooke

I am an enthusiastic fan of Never Look Away: A Thriller and Fear the Worst: A Thriller my first two Linwood Barclay books. This book continues in the tradition of many film noir thrillers - the regular guy who gets his whole life overturned by some sort of crime and how he reacts to it. Unfortunately, "Too Close to Home" was not the equal of those two books.

In "Too Close to Home" we meet the Cutter family, a mom, dad and a teenage son. The neighbors are brutally murdered one night and the family skeletons start to come out of the closet in a big, big way as the police begin to investigate everyone who even might be connected to the victims.

This was precisely the problem with the book in my opinion. This family has too many skeletons. Every few pages there is a major plot twist with a "sit down, I've got to tell you something moment."

I am still giving the book 3 stars out of 5 because Barclay makes you want to keep pushing on - even though you know it is just going to get more complicated to the point of being silly.

Not knowing what to expect, I didn't get just one, but I picked up two books by Linwood Barclay based on an opinion by a good source. I'd heard two things about Barclay. Number one, that he can be pretty funny. Number two, he's a great writer with great stories lying between the pages. Well, let me add a number three. He can be disgusting, and obnoxious when he wants to be like that. At times, he likes to be perverted, but at other times, it actually adds to the story.

Join the Cutter family, a family with a lot to swallow. It starts with murder, and wanting to get laid, and keeps going on because of some dumb choices. Neighbors are murdered, and a young man is at the scene of the crime. That young man is Derek, son of the Cutters. Jim and Ellen Cutter will do anything to get the heat off of Derek. And they both know that Derek is innocent.

But people want answers, and not getting those answers leads to desperate actions. Cops want answers, the mayor wants to snoop around, and it just isn't getting any easier.

Have you ever punched somebody in the nose, knowing you didn't break it, but really wanted to break it? Well, perhaps this is partially the story of that second chance. A lot of cheap shots add up in this one as well, combined with the great writing and humor that Barclay brings to the table. A couple of times, I was shaking my head at the potty-mouth stuff when it wasn't required. But in the end, I really broke out in a big smile. And I was smiling because despite those cheap shots, there was some worthy redemption in the end, and that's not giving anything away! I'm just saying I really enjoyed the first experience I had with a Linwood Barclay thriller!! Can't wait for the next go-round.