Boring, boring, boring. I had liked Brad Meltzer's previous books, so I stopped about 30 chapters in to look up other reviews to try to figure out what seemed so off to me in this book and why. Turns out this one has a "co-author." What that generally means is that the co-author wrote the story and the main author agreed to have it go out under his name. Big mistake. This usually turns out to be noticeable to the author's fans, and in this case it led to a bomb. Bottom line: it's not worth your time, energy or money.
This is my least favorite of Meltzer's works. The premise was good but the writing was forced and the plot never quite got on track. Meltzer had a writing partner for this book, so that could account for the floundering writing style and lack of plot development. This book was a disappointment for me and I really cannot recommend reading it.
Book Description
A secret worth killing for.
A woman with no past.
An act of treason that changed America.
#1 bestselling author Brad Meltzer returns with
THE HOUSE OF SECRETS
When Hazel Nash was six years old, her father taught her: mysteries need to be solved. He should know. Hazel's father is Jack Nash, the host of America's favorite conspiracy TV show, The House of Secrets.
Even as a child, she loved hearing her dad's tall tales, especially the one about a leather book belonging to Benedict Arnold that was hidden in a corpse.
Now, years later, Hazel wakes up in the hospital and remembers nothing, not even her own name. She's told she's been in a car accident that killed her father and injured her brother. But she can't remember any of it, because of her own traumatic brain injury. Then a man from the FBI shows up, asking questions about her dad-and about his connection to the corpse of a man found with an object stuffed into his chest: a priceless book that belonged to Benedict Arnold.
Back at her house, Hazel finds guns that she doesn't remember owning. On her forehead, she sees scars from fights she can't recall. Most important, the more Hazel digs, the less she likes the person she seems to have been.
Trying to put together the puzzle pieces of her past and present, Hazel Nash needs to figure out who killed this man-and how the book wound up in his chest. The answer will tell her the truth about her father, what he was really doing for the government-and who Hazel really is. Mysteries need to be solved. Especially the ones about yourself.
My Review
This is a conspiracy mystery with lots of suspense and history. It was a little slow in the beginning and seemed to jump around too much. It had lots of twists and turns that keep you turning the pages once the story picked up. I like Meltzer's writing but felt like the co-writing was not working in this story. The characters were too convoluted at times and not fully developed. I do look forward to reading more of Meltzer's books but found this book somewhat lacking.
A secret worth killing for.
A woman with no past.
An act of treason that changed America.
#1 bestselling author Brad Meltzer returns with
THE HOUSE OF SECRETS
When Hazel Nash was six years old, her father taught her: mysteries need to be solved. He should know. Hazel's father is Jack Nash, the host of America's favorite conspiracy TV show, The House of Secrets.
Even as a child, she loved hearing her dad's tall tales, especially the one about a leather book belonging to Benedict Arnold that was hidden in a corpse.
Now, years later, Hazel wakes up in the hospital and remembers nothing, not even her own name. She's told she's been in a car accident that killed her father and injured her brother. But she can't remember any of it, because of her own traumatic brain injury. Then a man from the FBI shows up, asking questions about her dad-and about his connection to the corpse of a man found with an object stuffed into his chest: a priceless book that belonged to Benedict Arnold.
Back at her house, Hazel finds guns that she doesn't remember owning. On her forehead, she sees scars from fights she can't recall. Most important, the more Hazel digs, the less she likes the person she seems to have been.
Trying to put together the puzzle pieces of her past and present, Hazel Nash needs to figure out who killed this man-and how the book wound up in his chest. The answer will tell her the truth about her father, what he was really doing for the government-and who Hazel really is. Mysteries need to be solved. Especially the ones about yourself.
My Review
This is a conspiracy mystery with lots of suspense and history. It was a little slow in the beginning and seemed to jump around too much. It had lots of twists and turns that keep you turning the pages once the story picked up. I like Meltzer's writing but felt like the co-writing was not working in this story. The characters were too convoluted at times and not fully developed. I do look forward to reading more of Meltzer's books but found this book somewhat lacking.
