This is what happens when a blurb sells you dreams.
After Alice Fell by Kim Taylor Blakemore is a historical thriller whose plot summary promises a more thrilling tale the book delivers. The meandering plot left me in an extended and unsatisfactory state of anticipation that eventually led to boredom and a month-long slog through a book I really wanted to like.
After Alice Fell was released officially in early March but I started the book in February thanks to Amazon First Reads, a new service in which Amazon Prime customers are given early access to new releases across different genres for free on Kindle with an option to purchase a physical copy at a discounted print price. The synopsis of After Alice Fell caught my attention right away and so the choice was made easy for me.
Blakemore’s novel is set in New Hampshire in 1865. Marion Abbott’s sister Alice has died after falling from the roof of the asylum that she was committed to by her brother. The circumstances of Alice’s death, which is ruled a suicide, are immediately deemed as suspicious by Marion who seeks to discover the truth of her sister’s death. Then a stranger approaches Marion in the street and tells her she saw her fall which opens Marion’s investigation by proving that her questions about her sister’s death are warranted.
As a protagonist, I liked Marion. Her self-awareness that her concern for Alice may have come too late was refreshing and her bravery in pushing for the truth was admirable. Blakemore’s characters are mostly believable, with each character having realistic motivations for their actions. The plot itself was a great concept and allowed for a lot of suspense that created the haunting atmosphere we all love in our thrillers.
Just when the search for the truth seems hopeless, a stranger approaches Marion with chilling words: I saw her fall.
Kim Taylor Blakemore, After Alice Fell
However, the pacing made it tough for me to get through the book. The event of someone admitting to Marion that they witnessed Alice fall, which is included in the synopsis, occurred nearly fifty percent of the way through the book (49% to be exact – I checked). What was she doing before that, you ask? I don’t remember, probably because it took me so long to get through it all and I was so frustrated. The most disappointing part for me was that instead of being thrilled by the plot twists and big reveal at the end, I was only relieved that it was finally coming to an end. The book picked up after the halfway point, but by then the damage was done.
Another thing that contributed to the slow pacing was the dialogue, which at times felt either too stiff or too packed with exposition. I found myself wanting to roll my eyes far too often.
Upon reflection, it was not a bad book at all but feeling like I was forcing myself to get through it tainted my reading experience. If you’re up for a thriller with a slower pace, read this book. If not, maybe give it a miss.
I would give After Alice Fell a 3 out of 5 stars, which I had already decided about halfway through reading. The ending did not improve my decision, but I also don’t feel able to give it any lower, since the pacing is the main reason I didn’t like it.
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