Violet Is Nowhere - Faith Gardner - ★★★★.¼

AUTHOR: Faith Gardner

SERIES: The Jolvix Episodes #2

GENRE: Psychological Thriller.

RATING: 4.25 stars.

In a Nutshell: Once again an outlier, but this time, I am on the positive side! Enjoyed this book far more than ‘Amen, Maxine’. Better if read as a slowburn psych thriller than as a sci-fi thriller.

Story Synopsis:

Violet, an up-and-coming rockstar, wakes up in a strange cabin with no memory of what happened the previous night. There’s a mysterious note and a burner phone that has been pre-programmed to dial only one number.

When Bud, a construction worker, answers his phone, he has no idea whether to believe the stranger who tells him that she’s been kidnapped and doesn’t know where she is.

As per the instructions on the note, Violet and Bud have exactly one week to figure out the connection between them, else their lives might be in danger. With absolutely no clue of how to begin, will Bud be able to locate Violet and rescue her?

The story comes to us in the alternating first person povs of Violet and Bud.

While I had liked the first book of the Jolvix Episodes series – ‘Amen, Maxine’ – a lot, it still needed some improvement in its use of clichéd tropes and the OTT ending. Glad to report that this book didn’t have those issues, at least for me.

Where the book worked for me:

😍 Every single one of my friends here loved ‘Amen, Maxine’ and found this okay in comparison. To me, it went the other way around, probably because I wasn’t reading this as a sci-fi thriller but as a general psych thriller. I remember how ‘Amen, Maxine’ began as a drama and slowly increased the sci-fi and thriller elements. This went somewhat similarly. The sci-fi elements are minimal this time around and only appear in the final quarter or so, but that was more than enough to keep me happy.

😍 There is no build-up to the story, no prologue or background to tell you how Violet landed in the cabin. The book begins with her waking up there. So we also feel caught in the action right from page one. This approach ensured that the story had my attention from start to end.

😍 I liked Violet’s and Bud’s portrayals. Both of them weren’t shown as perfectly good or bad but as flawed. I always like stories better when the characters seem human but with some hope for redemption. Violet is sassy and selfish and vulnerable in turns. Bud is not the brightest spark in the room most of the times and is quite impulsive. As both of them were somewhat opposites in nature, each brought a different energy to the story. The connection between them goes through varied emotions and feels genuine rather than forced. Though the story is set within a single week, their rapport doesn’t feel rushed.

😍 No unreliable narrators – Hallelujah!

😍 It is quite fast-paced, easy to complete within a day. (Don’t confuse this feedback with ‘slow-burn’. The writing is fast-paced, but the suspense takes its own sweet time to unravel.) Despite the first person, there are no needless inner monologues.

😍 While the identity of the guilty party is clear the moment they make an appearance on the page, the rationale behind the crime and the aftermath aren't obvious at all.

😍 The ending is all kinds of freaky! While it is (almost) unbelievable, it creates a massive impact. I still don’t know how I feel about it, but I was blown away for sure as I had NOT seen that coming. If you are the kind of reader who wants all things tied neatly at the end, be warned: not gonna happen!

😍 The book offers a lot to introspect about our approach towards life, a lot!

Where the book could have worked better for me:

😔 The biggest negative is knowing that the story is set in the Jolvix universe. So you already know the guilty party much before the characters do, and really need to keep your patience until they figure it out. This spoils the fun of discovery that is so crucial in a thriller. I think I'd have enjoyed my journey even more had I not waited for Jolvix to make an appearance

All in all, I loved this novel much more than ‘Amen, Maxine’. This works wonderfully as a standalone, though you have some Easter Eggs from the first book. The stories in the two books are quite different, so better if you go in expecting a distinct tale than ‘Amen, Maxine’ version two.

Definitely recommended if you want a slow-burn psych thriller with realistic characters, sci-fi elements, and a mindboggling ending. I'm looking forward to more by this talented indie author.

My thanks to Mirror House Press and NetGalley for the DRC of “Violet Is Nowhere”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

The book is also available on KU.

To read my review of ‘Amen, Maxine’ (Jolvix Episodes #1), click HERE.