Hairpin Bridge

After reading No Exit and finding it completely gripping, I was excited to read this new release by Taylor Adams. I was hoping for the fast paced, nonstop thrill ride I got from the previous book, but unfortunately, this one does not pack the same punch.

In this thriller, Lena is searching for answers in the death of her twin sister. The official report is that her sister Cambry killed herself by jumping off of Hairpin Bridge. Lena does not believe this version of events. She decides to confront the trooper that found her sisters body on the same bridge and get the answers she needs in order to move on from this event. Unfortunately, things do not go as Lena had planned, and she finds herself in a dangerous situation that could lead to her own demise.

Lena believes she is smart in her planning, but she is actually quite naïve, which is frustrating. I found myself shaking my head at several of her choices. The flashbacks to her blog from the previous day add some context, but they also involve a some overly emotional confessions. Her emotions about her sister seem a bit overdone considering they were not even close. As for the trooper, he is an annoying character who is completely untrustworthy. Some things that come to light toward the end just make him pathetic as a character.

The pacing of the first half of the book is stilted by the frequent flashbacks to the blog. The plot jumps from the current day with Lena and the trooper on the bridge to Lena's blog from the previous evening. Mingled in there is also Cambry's story from June, which is really being told by Lena after the fact. The reader cannot tell at times if the details are real or just Lena's fantasies about what happened. I suppose this is meant to add to the suspense. By the second half of the book, the pacing picks up substantially and barrels forward toward a climax.

Overall, I'd say the first half of the book is interesting, but a little choppy; the middle is quite suspenseful; and the end is very fast-paced and adrenaline-filled, but a bit far-fetched in its conclusion. It is hard for me as a reader to believe that things would have realistically ended as they did. I would recommend the book to fans of No Exit but with the warning that it is not as constantly thrilling as that one.