A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins

A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins
on June 21, 2022
Genres: Fiction / Literary, Fiction / Thrillers / Suspense, Fiction / Women
Pages: 400
Format: Paperback
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“She glimpsed, opening up in front of her, the possibility of a quite different life from the one she currently led, a far richer (in the cultural sense), more peopled life.”

“Everything is material. And comedy equals tragedy plus time. Isn’t that how it goes?”

This book jumps between the characters Laura, Miriam, Carla, Theo, and Irene. Laura, a young woman who suffered a traumatic brain injury when she was ten, is the prime suspect in the murder of Daniel, a young man who is found dead on his houseboat. Miriam, an elderly spinster, lived next door to Daniel on a different houseboat. She was also the one who found Daniel and reported his death to the police. Carla and Theo are a couple who suffered a terrible tragedy early in their marriage. Carla is also the aunt of Daniel. Then there is Irene, the neighbor to Daniel’s mother who recently passed away from falling down her stairs. Irene was the one who found Daniel’s mother dead. Each one of these characters are connected to Daniel and each other in some way or the other. As the novel switches point of view, you start to uncover all the secrets each character is hiding. How long can secrets smolder before they explode into flame?

Out of all of Paula Hawkins’ novels, I liked this one the least. It was a good read, and I was not able to guess who the actual murderer was, but it had trouble keeping my attention. It was difficult for me to get into because the point of view switches each chapter that I had trouble remembering who was who and what had happened in their last chapter. I found myself always going back to the previous chapter that they had to remember where they left off. The story was interesting and mysterious, so it was still worth the read, but it was slow moving for me.

I gave this book a three-star review based on the aspect that it was not very memorable to me. I would have enjoyed it more if there were not so many points of view that I would have been able to remember what was all going on at the same time. Though it was a good read, it did not excite me to the point that I was eager to turn the next page.