The Breakdown by B. A Paris

Cass is having a hard time since the night she saw the car in the woods, on the winding rural road, in the middle of a downpour, with the woman sitting inside―the woman who was killed. She’s been trying to put the crime out of her mind; what could she have done, really? It’s a dangerous road to be on in the middle of a storm. Her husband would be furious if he knew she’d broken her promise not to take that shortcut home. And she probably would only have been hurt herself if she’d stopped.

But since then, she’s been forgetting every little thing: where she left the car, if she took her pills, the alarm code, why she ordered a pram when she doesn’t have a baby.

The only thing she can’t forget is that woman, the woman she might have saved, and the terrible nagging guilt.

Or the silent calls she’s receiving, or the feeling that someone’s watching her…

Review

The Breakdown by B.A Paris is one book that I couldn’t wait to read this year. Behind Closed Doors is one of my favorite thrillers and so when I saw that Paris had written a new book, I just knew that I had to get it. The story begins on a cold stormy night when Cass is driving home through a wooded, scheduled road when she sees a ‘stranded’ woman in a car. A series of events occur leading her to leave the woman behind only to wake up the next day and the woman is dead.

The entire story revolves around Cass whose world quickly disintegrated after the encounter with the murdered woman. A lot goes on including a possible stalking and an early onset-dementia. With her failing memory, Cass became an unreliable narrator. She did things that didn’t make sense and her memory kept slipping. I thought her character was quite sympathetic but I just couldn’t figure out what was real and what wasn’t around her. I knew that there was more to the story but couldn’t guess what was happening.

This book wasn’t twisty. As a matter of fact, it felt like nothing much was happening especially since most of the story revolved around Cass and her thoughts about events around her and the murder. Another thing that bugged me was the coincidences. I really wasn’t convinced by some of the things that happened around the big reveal. They felt a bit convenient. Nevertheless, I couldn’t stop reading the book. I know that sounds confusing but it is true. The writing was addictive such that the issues that bugged me didn’t affect my reading experience much.

The final 100 pages were even more addictive especially after the big twist. I had accurately guessed part of the reveal and motive but not the entire twist. Certain characters changed from the role of victims to the avengers which I thought was exciting. In the end, the reveals were not shocking as in BCD but this was still an entertaining read.