I absolutely devoured this book but will admit that I felt like I was coming in halfway through the story. Turns out, that feeling was not unfounded.
Memo to me: check before starting a series in the middle.
First, the good parts (and there were a lot of them). I loved the grittiness of the world that the author created. The atmosphere was apparent from the very beginning, and the characters matched the world in which they lived. The author has established a fully-realized setting where everything and everyone fits in their place.
From the central players down to the minions of the “family,” the characters were realistic. I got an excellent sense of Anna’s sorrow and determination, of Freddie’s tension, even of Ethan’s uncertainty as he seems to understand more than adults give him credit for noticing.
The plot itself is good for this installment, and this is totally my fault, but it is also where I bogged down a little bit. It is gripping (two brothers get out of prison and return to their “family business”). But not having read the first books, I was missing all of the set up that really would have brought everything together.
It’s a strange thing because I “got it.” I mean, I understood the characters’ motivations, and I wasn’t lost in the plot at all – the story for this book is clear. But without the backstory, it was simply a story instead of the continuation of an epic family story. I found myself debating whether or not I should stop reading and go back to start at the beginning of the series, which pulled me out of the story. I hope that makes sense.
I think it’s a testament to the author to be able to create this kind of conundrum.
It’s aI want to be clear that this is totally on me – as mentioned, the author has created a gritty and hard-hitting world filled with unique characters, and this was a great read. I would definitely recommend picking it up – but learn from my mistake, and 100% read the others in the series first. You will enjoy it so much more.
P.S. It can be read as a stand-alone (I did it) but would be much more enjoyable with the other stories under your belt first.
Author Bio:
Emma Tallon is a British, gritty crime writer, adventurer, Londoner and mother to a young son. Starting her career a few years ago as a ghostwriter, Emma crafted some of the most adventurous, edgy and heart-wrenching stories you can find on the shelves today.
In March 2017 Emma stepped out of the literary shadows and self-published her first book, Life Game. The book was an instant success, the results far exceeding anything she had expected. As news of Life Games popularity spread, she joined forces with W.F.Howes and the audiobook was launched in October 2017.
In December 2017, Emma signed a book deal with publishers Bookouture. This included Life Game which was changed, re-edited and re-released as Runaway Girl.
Drawing inspiration for her books from a mixture of her own observations and an active imagination, the characters Emma paints are colourful and larger than life. Her story lines are an interesting recipe of deep emotion and violent grit, that keep her readers engrossed.
With more books in the works for this series already, Emma has many more stories planned out for the future.
