Galt Niederhoffer

Things I hated about this book:

1. Inconsistency: For example, at the start of the book both parents are said to have brown eyes, but later in the book a reference is made to the mother's blue eyes.
2. The youngest daughter was made to be a monster. I get it, she is supposed to be the unlikable one, but she is unbelievably awful. Emphasis on unbelievable.
3. Unnecessary plot twists: For example, one paternity issue is interesting, two is excessive. This is especially true when it comes out of nowhere, does nothing to move or thicken the plot, and is not mentioned again.
4. Choppy writing: For example, "[Barry] inched slowly out of the dining room, forcibly removing his daughters from his path... Bella moved quickly from her chair and took the seat next to Barry. She covered his hand with her own and nodded encouragingly." (p. 357-358). These location sentences are on either end of a paragraph that is about emotions, with no re-locating sentences in it to account for Barry's apparent return to the dining room.
5. All the resolutions came at once. In one night the contest is over, Latrell's father is revealed, and the relationships between Bell, Bridget, and the Finch brothers are decided. Too much at once, it felt rushed.

I liked this book until about two-thirds of the way through, when it fell apart. It felt like the author simply got tired of writing this story and so did everything she could to wrap it up. The result was not good.… (més)

I really enjoyed the first half of this book. Cass presented as a strong and intelligent woman who had faced some tragedy in her life but been able to move on. She had little to no emotional support from either of her parents yet still grew into a compassionate and capable woman and mother.

The problems in her marriage, although supposedly subtle at first seemed glaringly obvious to me. There was a lack of respect from her husband that to me seemed apparent from the start. He gave off a general feeling of ill will and derisiveness. An insult said with a smile is still insulting, Overriding of a woman's parental authority done with an air of fun, is still disrespectful.

Towards the halfway point of the story and beyond I just found that it strained believability. I can't say much without giving away the plot but I just found it hard to believe a woman of her intelligence would make such choices, or give out personal information so easily to people she had no reason to trust. There were also some medical and safety issues with the children that if faced with in reality a person would seek immediate help. Since Cass was a journalist I would have expected her to have better sense.


I received an advance copy for review
… (més)

3.5 stars.

Poison by Galt Niederhoffer is an inventive domestic mystery about a woman who is being gaslighted by her husband.

At first glance, Cass and Ryan Connor have the perfect marriage. The couple relocated to a suburb of Seattle with Cass's two children from her first marriage, seven year old Pete and ten year old Alice, along with their son, two year old Sam. The children adore Ryan, who is spontaneous and playful, but Cass finds these traits a bit annoying since he sometimes disrupts the kids' routines. Ryan is the family's main breadwinner but Cass also works outside the home as a college professor. Despite their outward happy appearance, their marriage has deep cracks that widen after Cass begins to suspect Ryan is having an affair.

Cass is an award winning journalist who sometimes yearns for the career she willingly gave up to raise her children after her marriage to Ryan. She is still strongly attracted to Ryan and even after she catches him in a lie, this never changes. Cass is stunned by the sudden changes in Ryan's behavior but even in the aftermath of a shocking threat, she remains under his spell. As the tension mounts between them and her health rapidly deteriorates, Cass gradually begins to realize she has completely ignored rather unsavory aspects of Ryan's personality.

As her marriage takes a dark turn, Cass becomes more isolated and rather helpless as she becomes a victim of both Ryan and the legal system. Her judgment is seriously skewed as she puts her trust in the wrong people then makes questionable decisions that endanger not only herself but her children. With her situation becoming increasingly dire, Cass finds herself in the crosshairs of a diabolical man who will do absolutely anything to win.

While the plot is unique, Poison is a slow-moving novel that quickly becomes bogged down in long passages of wordy narration that lacks much action or dialogue. Galt Niederhoffer brilliantly highlights societal issues regarding crimes against women and how they are often victimized as they attempt to seek justice. Readers will have to suspend disbelief as the novel wends its way to a somewhat dissatisfying and abrupt conclusion that does not completely wrap up all of the dangling threads.… (més)