Member Reviews

I am so sorry I just did not enjoy this book. I did not post a negative review on Goodreads. Thank you again for the opportunity netgalley provides.

Was this review helpful?

3 stars for the twist at the end, but I would have to stick with a 2 for reading pleasure. Originally titled "Annie's Story" The Girl on Mill Street is told through the lens of 19 year old, Annie Taylor, as she recounts the disappearance of her mother and the case that eventually sees her father, a Freudian doctor, being named as the killer and brought to trial many years later.

I am feeling so-so about the way in which the story was written. So many fantastic reviews that talk about suspense or thriller and yet I felt none of that. In fact, I actually kept thinking "When exactly is this story going to get interesting?" It's not until the trial that I felt invested in the story and that isn't until half of the book has been read. Secondly, the relationship between Annie and her father had a weird vibe that I just couldn't shake. Even if your dad is completely okay with all types of discussion, I cannot believe that he would want to know the details on his daughter's sex life. Seems a bit stereotypical for a doctor who follows Freud.

I might be in the minority, but this book didn't work for me.

Was this review helpful?

A great psychological suspense. The book is well written with great character development. The plot had many twists and turns to keep me guessing.

Was this review helpful?

The Girl on Mill Street
By Peter Gilboy

Reviewed by Heath Henwood
www.books-reviewed.weebly.com

A different twist on the traditional murder mysteries.

Although it took a little while to hook me, the different perspective of this book did hook me into reading right to the end, to determine who the killer was and if they would be caught.

Gilboy builds tension in the book, slowly laying the story, while developing the depth of the three main characters.

The story is told by Nineteen-year-old Annie Taylor, who retells of her beautiful and well-loved mother disappearing, while her father, a famous sex therapist and loving husband, was charged with the murder.

What follows in the unravelling of people’s pasts, their secret lives, their fears, and somewhere the truth.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing a review copy in return for an honest review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Was this review helpful?

This book is about 200 pages long. Freud is mentionned 92 times. I checked. That's about once every two pages. It drove me insane.

This was the storie of Annie, a 19 year old girl who tell us about what happened to her mother and her dad, a famous freudian therapist.
The way it was told was interesting. It was truly Annie telling us her story, she was conscient of the reader which I really liked.
I also enjoyed reading all about the trial and the testimonies, it was pretty entertaining.
But I couldn't relate to any of the characters and they mostly drove me crazy, either by their thoughts or their actions. A lot of sexist things were said / thought. A lot of Annie's thoughts started with "Freud says" or "Freud explains" or "Freud..." etc...

My biggest problem though was that whenever a new character was introduced, if it was a woman, a sentence saying whether she was attractive or not was almost always added but never when male characters were introduced.

So, I guess it just wasn't what I was expecting. I was expecting something more thrillery and less about psychology...

Was this review helpful?

WOW! Such an intense, thought provoking story. A story that takes readers through a time where a crime is figured out. I would have loved to see this book in letter or journal entry format. However, it was great! I can picture how beautiful Sunny was. How her daughters will be just a beautiful. I can see a woman who is determined and will never give up. A woman who does not see the bad in anyone or anything. A woman who always believes the best and expects the best will happen.

This would be a 4-star read. I took off 1 star for the problems I had with this book. Problems are below.

April 13, 2017 –
44.0% "How hard is it for authors or editors to check something? The following was in the book.
"She called it an Ardās, the Sikh word for “prayer,” and it began, Pritham Bhagauti simari kai Gur Nanak lain dhiai."
The author stated it means 'First this of God, then think of Guru Nanak." Which is not anywhere close to the true meaning. Look at the following page: http://www.unp.me/f15/ardas-and-english-translation-18238/"

April 13, 2017 –
38.0% "Having handcuff's in a drawer does not equal S&M. When I think about handcuffs in a night stand drawer I think about B&D (Bondage & Discipline). Would be nice if the author or editor checked into this instead of assuming that S&M is the same as B&D. There is a very big difference. People can practice/play in B&D without even coming close to S&M."

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley.

Was this review helpful?

The voice of the narrator seemed too young for the age and subject matter. I would have guessed a preteen and not a college student. It was hard to take her seriously and all the psychological babble was too much for me.

Was this review helpful?

Good story with an intriguing plot. I liked the suspense of the story but the ending fell flat. The innocent father needed to be explored more. Certain things were hinted at, but the ending was never developed.

Was this review helpful?

This book looked like my kind of book. A family of outsiders in a small town, a dad with a controversial self-help-sex book and a little-explored past in a hippie commune, a mom who disappears without a trace one morning. But I only made it half way through before deciding that I would rather read something else. The "outsider-ness" wasn't really explored, and the narrator didn't make me care about her family, or her. This just got a shrug from me.

Was this review helpful?

Amazing, and deep! The writing was well done plot was well thought out, proper execution

Was this review helpful?

The Girl on Mill Street is a classic crime story of who-dun-it, but instead of focusing on the classic detective, it follows the story of Annie recounting her own experiences of the loss of her mother and subsequent charging of her father. Gilboy takes the reader on a fast-paced journey which leaves us guessing as to whether or not Annie's father is as innocent as she believed, and whether our fears truely define us.

Smattered with Freudian quotes, The Girl on Mill Street is also a lesson in psychology, whether you agree with Freud or not. It is clear from the first page that, if Gilboy doesn't have a background in psychology himself, he has at least done a reasonable amount of research into the topic for this book. It lends a sense of authenticity to his writing of both Annie and her father, as well as some of the actions in the book.

At just over 200 pages, The Girl on Mill Street is a quick but satisfying read, perfect for any readers interested in crime stories, psychology, or courtroom suspense novels. My only problem with the story was one event quite central to the plot that was left open by the end.

Was this review helpful?

When she was nine years old, Annie Taylor’s mother disappeared and her father, a prominent therapist was charged with her murder. Now, at age 19, Annie has followed in her father’s footsteps, studying the human mind in hopes of deciphering what really happened to her mother. From the start, Annie has championed her father and looked for ways to exonerate him, but now she’s uncovered a police record she never knew her mother had. Even more disturbingly, there’s the matter of the other woman in her father’s past, another woman who disappeared from the face of the earth. As she uncovers her family’s past, Annie will doubt everything she ever believed.

Was this review helpful?

Interesting story about a young girl and her father accused of murdering her mother. A lot of judicial and psychological detail which was interesting but too much at times. I wanted a more satisfying ending.

Was this review helpful?