A Slow Fire Burning

Score: 3.75/5 Bookmarks

Thank you to Libro.fm and Penguin Random House Audio for gifting me a review copy of A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins.

I had a really hard time getting into the story for at least the first third because there are so many characters and they are all so, so unlikeable. Once I got all the characters straight and the interconnectedness of everyone’s stories started to emerge I began to get more sucked into it though.

I will say upfront that I don’t enjoy books where all the characters are unlikeable, so that impacts how I feel about this story. So if you’re ok with not having any one person to rally behind you might like this one.

Essentially, a young man is murdered on a houseboat, and there are several potential killers. As the story unfolds we learn how each of them is connected to the others, as well as to the victim.

By the end of it, I had decided that Irene was the only really likable character, and maybe Laura, who was treated so badly throughout her life and had so much trauma to overcome. I will say I enjoyed this one more than the last book I read by the same author, The Girl on the Train. We discussed this one on a zoom with The Read Rover Book Club and it was certainly a spirited discussion.

Buckle up, because there are themes of mental health issues, murder, dog killing, kidnapping, cheating, child death, car accidents, physical abuse, emotional abuse and more.

The audiobook is narrated by Rosamund Pike, who is phenomenal. Her performance is definitely the reason I finished this one, because it was getting pretty grim there for a while. The audio is 9 hours and 19 minutes long and you can download it via the button below or get a physical copy here.

Synopsis:

When a young man is found gruesomely murdered in a London houseboat, it triggers questions about three women who knew him.

Laura is the troubled one-night-stand last seen in the victim’s home.

Carla is his grief-stricken aunt, already mourning the recent death of yet another family member.

And Miriam is the nosy neighbor clearly keeping secrets from the police.

Three women with separate connections to the victim. Three women who are – for different reasons – simmering with resentment. Who are, whether they know it or not, burning to right the wrongs done to them. When it comes to revenge, even good people might be capable of terrible deeds. How far might any one of them go to find peace? How long can secrets smolder before they explode into flame?