Review: Careful What You Wish For by Hallie Ephron

 

Title: Careful What You Wish For

Author: Hallie Ephron

Published: August 6th 2019, William Morrow

Status: Read July 2019 courtesy William Morrow/Edelweiss

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My Thoughts:

 

Emily Harlow is a professional organiser whose new business, Freeze-Frame Clutter Kickers, has just taken on two new clients. One is an elderly widow, Mrs. Murphy, who feels incapable of clearing away her late husband’s things, the second is a young woman, Quinn Newell, looking to purge her pre-marital belongings. At first glance, neither job seems complicated…until the body of Quinn’s husband is discovered in the storage locker that once belonged to Mr. Murphy, and Emily’s tidy life begins to unravel.

The irony inherent in Emily being a professional organiser, as her husband, Frank, hoards piles of useless ‘treasures’ in their basement works well as a hook into this well paced, entertaining tale of suspense.

It’s evident from Emily’s first meeting with Quinn which direction the story will take (there really isn’t anything at all subtle about their interaction), however the plot isn’t entirely predictable. Emily finds herself the victim of more than one deception, placing her at the center of a complicated web of greed and betrayal. I thought the plot worked well overall, and it provided enough moments of tension and surprise to keep me interested.

I found the character development to be somewhat lacking though. As the heroine, Emily is rather bland, and the motive for her husband’s behaviour is weak. Additionally, Quinn lacks subtlety as the villainess, and at least one minor character proves to be entirely superfluous.

Careful What You Wish For is a *neat domestic thriller from Hallie Ephron.

*see what I did there 😉

 

Read a Sample

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