Book review: Home Before Night by JP Pomare

Sunday, April 23, 2023 Permalink

I’ve been increasingly enjoying JP Pomare’s work over the years. His latest release is actually a re-release of an audiobook (via Audible) from late 2022. I noted a few authors were doing something similar – releasing audiobooks or even novellas in the form of ebooks. It probably means this is a little shorter than usual. It’s very much in his style though… some slightly devious storytelling that has us making certain assumptions only to find out later that we were duped.

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three-half-stars

Book review: The Last Guests by JP Pomare

Saturday, August 14, 2021 Permalink

The Last Guests by JP Pomare is the fourth book by the NZ born, Australian dwelling writer who’s deservedly building a reputation for being one of the region’s go-to authors of thrillers and novels of suspense.

This is probably my favourite of Pomare’s novels. It starts with a bit of a surprise before settling into something a little more familiar and then suddenly takes readers somewhere we didn’t expect, casting doubt on everything that came before.

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four-stars

Book review: Tell Me Lies by JP Pomare

Tuesday, December 22, 2020 Permalink

Tell Me Lies is JP Pomare’s third novel and there’s always a level of uncertainty and suspicion about the unfolding plot. In the first of his books, Call Me Evie, readers were presented with characters offering different perspectives and unsure who to believe and trust. In the second, In The Clearing Pomare does someone quite clever with the timing and here… well, we know someone dies at the hands of someone else but Pomare cleverly includes snippets from media clippings and court testimony that could come from anyone at any time at all.

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three-half-stars

Book review: In the Clearing by JP Pomare

Wednesday, December 25, 2019 Permalink

JP Pomare’s Call Me Evie, released in 2018, was set in New Zealand (and Australia) and centred around a young woman with quite a complex ‘before’ and ‘after’ story to share. It didn’t flow quite as seamlessly as I would have liked, but I certainly didn’t find it predictable.

Pomare’s followed his popular debut with another kinda creepy and suspenseful tale that’s more polished and the ‘unknown’ more deftly handled than his debut. There is however a similar theme around identity; and its fragility when our spirit or psyche is threatened.

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four-stars

Book review: Call Me Evie by JP Pomare

Thursday, December 27, 2018 Permalink

This debut novel (set in New Zealand and Australia) by JP Pomare is meant to keep readers guessing. It’s meant to have us doubting ourselves and our perceptions of the book’s characters; and it certainly does that. Indeed, even when things become clear(er) I still wasn’t sure who to believe.

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three-half-stars