The In-Between Place

I figured out pretty quickly that this book was just not for me. There were many points where I was tempted to give up on it, but once I start a book, I feel like I need to finish it.

The summary of Whatever Doesn't Kill You sounded promising: a girl tracks down her father's killer and confronts him about it. However, this confrontation didn’t happen until 3/4 of the way through the book. The reasons that Travis Bingham had for murdering Jenna’s father were surprising, though the fairly easy way with which she accepted this information led to an anticlimactic ending.

When it comes to writing, I’m of the opinion that characterization is more important than the actual plot. You can have an interesting premise, but if your characters fall flat, it’s (most likely) going to be a dull read. Such was the case with Whatever Doesn’t Kill You. Try as I might, I just couldn’t connect with any of the characters. There was only one character that I actually liked – Henry, a five year old boy who was by no means a main character and only made a few appearances throughout the book.

Overall, this book was just not my cup of tea. That being said, everyone has different reading tastes, so don’t let that discourage you from giving it a shot.

This review can also be found at The In-Between Place.