S. M. Thayer

I Will Never Leave You falls somewhere in between a soap opera and a reality TV show about spoiled housewives with an extra dash of crazy for good measure. I was hooked from the beginning when affluent, barren Trish, who has tried for years to become pregnant, is lavishing attention on the new baby… her husband fathered with his mistress!

Enter Laurel. Trish’s opposite in about every way imaginable, this social climbing waitress grabbed on to Trish’s husband, Jimmy, and gave him the one thing Trish couldn’t, a daughter—Zerena or Anne Elise, depending on whether you take Jimmy’s baby naming or Laurel’s. It’s a simple squabble that illustrates the vastness between Jimmy and Laurel in age, experience, and circumstance.

Jimmy, of course, isn’t who Laurel thinks and as ultimatums fly, the consequences of all three of the main characters’ choices spiral out of control.

Overall, this was a fun, fast read. There’s a strong hook and the stakes are high as Trish and Laurel negotiate the terms of their futures with Jimmy, BUT the book isn’t without fault. From early on something didn’t sit quite right with me, and when I got to the acknowledgements it became clear that the author is quite likely a man. Men write women differently. Also, this author claims to have come from a more literary background, which might excuse the overly-formal and often ludicrous dialogue. More than once I shook my head, saying, “Who talks like this?” The real issues I took are with the author’s attempt at dipping toes into medical waters. Unfortunately for him, anyone who has worked in a hospital knows how inaccurate he is with everything from HIPAA privacy violations to the actual treatments themselves, and the inaccuracies damage the plot and author’s credibility. I had trouble with the legal and police procedural angles as well. S.M. Thayer writes neither medicine nor the law with authority, and that affects how I feel about I Will Never Leave You overall. A decent, fast and implausible read, I put this one in the category of shameless guilty pleasure. Dialogue excluded, the writing is good. The author is clearly talented and has crafted three-dimensional characters with constantly evolving stakes. Maybe, though, he needs a more experienced fact checker.
… (mehr)

I really enjoyed the first half of this book. I was holding my breath and gasping at every turn. I enjoyed the premise and the writing style, the only issue I had was with the characters. You see I'd say half of the book from Trish's point of view, and then you get like a quarter from James and a quarter from Laurel. I really liked Trish and almost wish the entire book was from her perspective. I hated James from the beginning. He didn't seem to know how he felt, and as more of his feelings and reasons were revealed to us, it was almost as if it were also revealed to him. Like he didn't know how he felt until he told us, which is ridiculous. I hated Laurel as well. She was so naive and so horribly aggressive, when she literally pursued a married man? Just so he could help pay her debts? I was not a fan of how they pursued the insanity course with Trish, and how none of the police were willing to believe she had anything to do with it. I think this had a really good beginning and just fell short of my expectations for the ending. I still enjoyed reading it however.… (mehr)

A rich couple can't get pregnant. Enter the mistress. On the day she gives birth, the husband introduces his wife to her and the child in the hospital. Everyone assumes the wife is the grandmother and the birthing nurse gives her a baby ID bracelet which allows her to sneak the child out of the hospital. But she hasn't planned anything and things go downhill rapidly. Meanwhile, the husband can't decide which woman he wants to be with. He definitely wants the child. Improbable and not well written. Glad I didn't pay anything for this one.… (mehr)