By Tessa Pulyer Posted on

Rock, Paper, Scissors by Alice Feeney #BookReview #Thriller #MustRead #RIPXVI

Think you know the person you married? Think again…

Things have been wrong with Mr. and Mrs. Wright for a long time. When Adam and Amelia win a weekend away to Scotland, it might be just what their marriage needs. Self-confessed workaholic and screenwriter Adam Wright has lived with face blindness his whole life. He can’t recognize friends or family, or even his own wife.

Every anniversary the couple exchange traditional gifts–paper, cotton, pottery, tin–and each year Adam’s wife writes him a letter that she never lets him read. Until now. They both know this weekend will make or break their marriage, but they didn’t randomly win this trip. One of them is lying, and someone doesn’t want them to live happily ever after.

Ten years of marriage. Ten years of secrets. And an anniversary they will never forget.

Rock Paper Scissors is the latest exciting domestic thriller from the queen of the killer twist, New York Times bestselling author Alice Feeney.

What I Loved

This is one of those stories that I’m going to tread very carefully in this review to avoid giving anything away, so please excuse the brevity.  First, I absolutely am crazy for all the twists and turns this story took.  The first one caught me by surprise and made me want to go back to the beginning and reread the story knowing this bombshell that was just laid at my feet – it was that shocking.  And that was just the first twist.  It was quickly followed by many more that each was even more jaw-dropping than the last.

The narration is superb.  Three different first-person unreliable narrators are clearly marked at the beginning of the chapter. The narration is interspersed with a letter to the male narrator, Adam Wright, by his wife each year on their anniversary.  This makes the timeline a bit erratic, but I didn’t have any trouble following along and feeling confident that I knew the when and the who.

The whole book has a very pervasive creepy atmosphere that turns slightly scary at various junctures.  The atmosphere kept the suspense level high, and the short chapters kept my focus and the pages flipping rapidly.  And considering Adam wrote screenplay adaptations for scary thrillers, it is totally an appropriate setting.  It would have been a much different book if it had not been told in just that precise location.

What I Wish

My only wish is the Alice Feeney keeps writing these wonderful psychological thrillers.

The Characters

I can’t really say that I had a favorite character though I also did not dislike any of the characters, per se.  My feelings changed for each of the three main characters during the story.  Adam is a screenplay writer who adapts books for the screen.  Amelia is his wife, and she works at a dog shelter.  And later in the book, Rachel comes on as a third narrator.  She lives near Amelia and Adam’s vacation spot.  Each character is developed enough that no secrets are given away before their time but not so well that I felt like I knew them.  I was good with this very focused development because I understood it was the price for those deliciously wicked twists and turns.

Reminds Me Of

It reminded me of Alice Feeney’s last book before this one, His and Hers.  Feeney has a very distinctive style that I just love.

My Rating:

Rating: 5 out of 5.

To Read or Not to Read

If you love dizzying twists and sharp, angular turns, this latest book by Alice Feeney will have you throwing your hands in the air in unabashed joy.

30 Replies to “Rock, Paper, Scissors by Alice Feeney #BookReview #Thriller #MustRead #RIPXVI”

      1. Sheri Dye says:

        Well, you’re doing a wonderful job! And that’s good to hear, I’ve been really curious about this one, and Feeney does great work!

        Liked by 1 person

  2. dinipandareads says:

    Great review! I still need to read one of Feeney’s books but I’ve heard really great things about them, mostly about how well she writes her twists. This is another one to add to the TBR, me thinks! 😂

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Lady Tessa says:

      You definitely do. You will be amazed at her twists. I don’t know how she does it. ❤️

      Like

  5. Mae Clair says:

    I SOOO want to read this one. I’m still waiting on approval from NetGalley. If it doesn’t happen, I’ll purchase it when it’s released. Loved your review. It has me wanting to read this book all the more!

    Liked by 1 person

  6. Mani says:

    Great review Tessa!! Haven’t read any books by this author as yet but she is on the list to checkout. Will also add this book onto the already very long library list 😂

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Lady Tessa says:

      This is a very good one as are her other looks. She’s an excellent writer of the twists!

      Like

  7. Carla says:

    I really liked His and Hers, so already had this on my TBR, but your review has me moving this up the mountain. It sounds great and I am ready to get to it. Wonderful review and thanks for not giving anything away, Tessa.

    Liked by 1 person

  11. Teri Polen says:

    I remember when you first mentioned this one. I’ll bet that face blindness played into the story somewhere. And now I want to read it for all the shocking reveals!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Lady Tessa says:

      Oh, it definitely does and it’s so interesting. If you are going to pick up a thriller, Alice Feeney and especially this book is definitely what you want to read.

      Liked by 1 person

  12. WendyW says:

    I’ve seen other very postitive reviews, but now that you also enjoyed it, I’ll have to look out for it. Thanks! I love the BAT word cloud too!

    Like

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  14. Grab the Lapels says:

    I’ve mentioned on here before that I enjoy audiobooks because I have a 50 minute commute one way to school. Thrillers tend to work better for me, as they can be complicated but not convoluted, so I don’t miss anything. This book sounds really cool! However, I’m wondering if it would be clear in audio version that there are letters. Any thoughts?

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Lady Tessa says:

      I’ve seen wonderful audio reviews on it and I think it would be easy to distinguish the letters. If I remember correctly it’s part of the chapter title or, like, in the first sentence.

      Like

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