Jar of Hearts Book Review

Hi everyone! Welcome back to Cover to Cover! I have ANOTHER book review, and I have so much to say about this one! Jar of Hearts by Jennifer Hillier is so good! As I said in my last blog post, I have been on a reading grind lately which is kind of unusual for me since I’ve been in a standstill lately with reading. But hey, I’m not complaining. I have a looooooooong TBR, and I need to get through it. Only so I don’t feel major buyer’s remorse when I pick up a new book. You know how it is. So, let’s get right into it.

***Disclaimer: spoilers in the last paragraph! Read with caution! ***

I don’t even know what to start with this one. There is a lot to unpack. This is a thriller novel about a woman who is arrested fourteen years after she supposedly helped kill her best friend while they were both in high school. This book is a short read at only 350ish pages. I had one of those half-size book copies (like the really really small copy), so it felt like I was flying through this book. I read it in four days which with everything else going on in my life is pretty good. It’s a thriller novel. And I do have to say though, this book is graphic. I would definitely give this an R rating ESPECIALLY if you have trouble reading about sexual assault. I really wish this book came with a trigger warning because when I got to one of the first scenes that had assault in it, I was completely taken aback. So, if that’s something that makes you uncomfortable or something you find triggering, I would precede with caution if you decide to pick up this book.

On a lighter note, this is a very well written thriller. I never wanted to put the book down; I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. The story is told in flashbacks, so you find out more about what happened 14 years ago little by little. It really builds up the suspense and adds to the overall eerie tone of the story. Sometimes, flashbacks are hard to follow, but I think Hillier did a really nice job of writing them that they ended up being easy to comprehend. There is also a time jump towards the beginning of the story, but it’s not hard to follow what happened before, during, and after the jump.

I also think the characters were really well developed. There weren’t too many where you begin to lose track of who is connected to who. I think the main character Geo has a really interesting psychology to her. And throughout the book, we see the lies the characters are telling and so that makes you think who you can actually trust. Which I feel like is kind of a must when it comes to a thriller novel. The characters have to be sketchy.

Also, the plot/story line of the book was actually believable. Sometimes, in thrillers or mysteries the big “why” is stupid and underwhelming. But in this book, it felt like it was a long time coming once you get all the pieces to the puzzle. The ending and climax made sense. It didn’t seem far-fetched, and it was plausible.

*** Spoilers start here****

The ONLY thing I do have a question about is what happens to Calvin James after he escapes from prison. The police can’t catch him, and if he wasn’t doing what the detectives thought than what was he doing? Where was he? Knowing his past, why did he lay low and not come to Geo sooner? And what was with the tattoo on his wrist of a heart with her initials in it? You never get the reasoning for that other than to assume Geo had a lasting impression on Calvin. And maybe he actually did love her. But with the way things were left between them, part of me doubts me. Who knows?

*** Safe to read again!! ****

Alright folks, that’s all I have for today! Thank you for reading if you made it this far! Come back next Tuesday for another blog post!!