The advantages of speed-reading

I like to finish books even if I don't enjoy them. They become case studies to analyse, exploring what I wouldn't want to do in my own writing. I also make sure I speed through them.

"The Roommates" could've been a good book, but the technique wasn't right. Mystery/thriller books need a very careful deployment of clues, reveals, and secrets. From the get-go, these characters had too many secrets... to themselves. Each chapter was from the perspective of one of the four main characters (plus a few "Daisy" chapters). I would've liked to know about the traumatic "incidents" and "accidents" when I was introduced to everyone. Instead, the information was revealed too late, when I had already lost interest. On the other hand, the mystery of a roommate's disappearance was revealed too soon for me. I knew she was alive and held hostage. No surprise when she was found.

However, I did enjoy the whole puzzle with people changing their identities and names. That was a very welcome plot twist. Also, most of the deductions were realistic, which can be a bit complicated to balance, in my opinion. So, here's credit where credit is due.

Well... keeping the mysterious vibes... I can't wait to reveal my next read! 😮