its always a wild read with this author. She pushes me outside my regular read. Different and thought provoking.

4 Stars

Jon and Chloe are friends that have grown up in together in a small town in New Hampshire. Jon and Chloe are about to share their true feelings for each other when Jon is kidnapped by a substitute teacher. Four years later, Jon wakes up from a coma with nothing but a copy of HP Lovecraft's The Dunwich Horror. Chloe has changed and made her into the popular crowd. Jon has changed too, but his change makes him a danger to be around.

I think people are probably going to be mad because this isn't You. Kepnes went in a different direction this time, and I think she did a great job. I was a little hesitant going in because I am not familiar with a lot (any) of Lovecraft's works. This didn't stop me from enjoying the story in any way. Kepnes employs some expositional characters to fill us in, and I learned alongside Jon. I liked the tragic love connection between Jon and Chloe, the fight that Jon has with what he has become and how that dictates how he relates to people around him, and I enjoyed the character of Eggs. I also love how her characters use pop culture so naturally. Kepnes has a very captivating writing style that had me invested the entire time I read this.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

As a fan of Caroline Kepnes previous books, You and Hidden Bodies I was beyond excited to receive an early review copy of her latest book, Providence. My expectations were unrealistically high which definitely worked against this book. This book is not JOE, which is fine but it’s not even a quarter as good as YOU. The wit and acidic sharp tone I love from Ms. Kepnes was completely missing. The humor fell flat as did the dozen different plot points. This book was trying to be so many different things and in my opinion none of them worked. I’m pretty sure not being a Lovecraft fan or never reading Dunwich Horror probably blew this book for me as well.

I truly appreciate the chance to read this book and I am sorry it was such a big miss for me. Perhaps others will approach this read differently and enjoy Providence. I am curious to see if Caroline Kepnes returns to Joe or if she will let him go and continue on her new path. Whatever she writes next, I will still be interested in reading.

[3.5 stars] I know many readers are excited about Providence because they loved You, which I haven’t read. I’ll be honest: I mainly requested this from NetGalley because I live in Providence and wanted to read something set where I live. I enjoyed the many PVD in-jokes. Rhode Islanders will definitely get a kick out of seeing the city woven into this book. If you’ve lived in Providence, you’ll recognize various streets and venues (Lupo’s, that gas station on Wickenden, etc.), and that’s definitely fun.

I found the story compelling, but the writing itself was a bit tedious, so I’ll get the most critical part of this review out of the way. The style is often clipped and silted, and the tone quite dry. Physical settings are under-described, which makes it a bit difficult to follow certain scenes in which characters move through space. All three of the first-person narrators are given the same stylistic quirks: fused sentences, excessive comma use, and a habit of repeating the same thought two or three times in a row. There were SO MANY references to real-life things and people (some obscure, some Kardashian-level) that it took me out of the narrative. I frequently had to look things up to determine whether they mattered to the plot/would contribute in any way to my understanding of the novel. They almost never did. (One major exception: it is helpful to have at least a passing familiarity with Lovecraft—references to his life and work abound.)

Providence is told through three alternating first person narrators, Jon, Chloe, and Eggs. Jon is a lonely boy, harboring early-pubescent love for his best and only friend, Chloe. After Jon is kidnapped, Chloe betrays Jon in the worst way he can imagine—by dating his bully, the truly vile Carrig, who is Jon’s foil throughout the novel. Jon is eventually freed by his kidnapper, but something has changed about him. He isn’t unhealthy and weak. He doesn’t seem to have any mental deficits from his four years in captivity. He’s big and handsome, and he has no memory of the years spent in a basement—but he does have a copy of a Lovecraft novel, containing a note from his kidnapper, and a strange effect anyone he feels strongly about. A couple years later, a detective called Eggs is obsessed with the deaths (by apparent heart attack) of a handful of twenty-somethings. His wife, Lo, and boss, Stacey, are desperate for him to let these odd but seemingly innocent deaths go.

The alternating perspectives keep the novel moving at a nice clip, but if you’re expecting the pacing of a thriller I think you’ll be disappointed. Aside from the ongoing question of what, exactly, was done to Jon in that basement, there isn’t much mystery or suspense here. The deaths are, of course, suspicious, and similar cases follow Jon wherever he goes. For me, the most gripping thing about the novel was seeing the ways in which these deaths affect Jon and Eggs, from opposite sides. This really is a compelling read, in spite of my issues with the writing! I have a feeling this will make a great audiobook—the awkwardness of the writing would likely be smoothed over by talented narrators.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Oooh, so creepy. Absolutely compelling and readable, and very different from You. Great read but disappointing appearance of the dad...out of the blue, without lead-in and with no real impact.

This book proves that Ms. Kepnes is not a one-hit (er, character)-wonder. Providence is a gripping story from start to finish. I highly recommend this book!

Told from three different perspectives, Caroline Kepnes'Providence is an unusual story that weaves together threads of obsession, mystery and H.P. Lovecraft.

Kepnes seems to specialize in unlikable narrators, yet somehow she still makes them accessible and engaging. You can't help but love them despite their flaws. Well . . .most of them.

Kepnes also does a great job keeping the reader immersed in the world of the story. I very nearly missed my subway stop on more than one occasion because I was so engrossed in the book, I didn't want to put it down.

In the end Providence leaves us asking the question, "Who are the monsters, really?"

Overall, I enjoyed this book immensely. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoyed her previous books, people who like super dark mysteries, fans of H.P. Lovecraft and weird fiction in general. I would not recommend this book to folks who can't deal with an unlikable narrator.

I absolutely loved Kepnes’s first book You, but since then have been disappointed. I wanted to like this book, it seemed like she was trying to hard to write something unique and it fell flat.

I expected to rate this a little higher because I did enjoy my time reading it, thing is I wanted to know more. It’s a story that doesn’t fit any contemporary genre. It’s not a thriller, or a coming of age, it’s got some romance but not really. This is what makes it tricky to recommend
Kepnes is a talented author, no doubt about it, she is creative and wrote a wholly original novel. It’s nothing like You so that will disappoint her fans but Providence is a good read and worth your time.

Teenagers doing what teenagers do, hanging around and having fun. Throw in a bully and a meek victim, a strong connection between boy and girl, and the sudden disappearance of one of the boys. What you have is a riveting story of loyalty, suspense, and the tragic consequences of an experiment gone wrong.

This is the first book I have read by Caroline Kepnes so I had no expectations of the type of story it would be. I found myself captured by the premise of the story, the strong development of characters, the denial of what could have been, and the heartbreak of the man whose life was changed by one fateful event.

The writing was strong and compelling, the events well described, and as the story developed I could feel the joy, frustration, desperation, and hurt of the characters as the tale progressed. I’m not going to describe the plot, others have done that very well. Suffice to say I loved the book, the story, and the author’s ability to bring the characters to life. Well done, Caroline Kepnes, I’ll be reading more of your work.

I received a free advance copy of this novel from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I read Caroline Kepnes' first book "You" and she masters the voices of the characters so well that I couldn't wait to read this one too. Although this book is very different from her others, she masters her characters here with Jon, the main character, who is kidnapped one morning on his way to middle school. His best friend Chloe is heartbroken and leads a half-hearted search for Jon that doesn't last long because Jon isn't one of the popular kids and no one is overly worried about him. He eventually comes back years later, but he doesn't stick around long once he realizes he has powers that cause him to hurt anyone he gets too close to.

Overall I really liked this book, even though some parts of it were a little uneven. The chapters go back and forth between Jon, Chloe and a detective named Eggs who is investigating a series of deaths that he thinks are suspicious.

Jon's chapters are the most interesting and authentic. He tries to figure out what happened to him when he was kidnapped and as a reader I was totally with him on his journey, wanting to know how he stays away from people all the time so he doesn't hurt them. Chloe tries to move on with her life as Jon comes in and out of it and while I wanted to find out what happened with her and Jon, I didn't find her love for Jon, her best friend, to be entirely convincing. Maybe it's because the book starts when Jon is kidnapped and then jumps forward a few times (skipping 4 years, then a year, etc etc). I wish there had been more in the beginning, before Jon got kidnapped, to really show their relationship and why they were so close.

Overall though, this was a solid read and definitely worth picking up!

I was seriously disappointed with this book and I really tried to love it. I flew through Kepnes' YOU and had very high expectations for her next thriller. Providence started out well but then took a turn downhill for me with the supernatural element. It was a strange read for me in this respect as I do not normally gravitate toward sci-fi or fantasy. The author's writing style was still strong for me despite my loss of interest in the story line and she's still on my favorite thriller author list, but I hope that she reverts back to her (strictly) thriller ways.

I burned through this one in under a day--what an amazing read!

It's so hard to review because there are so many parts to this book. It's a supernatural tale with elements of gothic/cosmic horror, but it's also a bittersweet love story that burrows so deep in your heart, you'll be thinking about it for days after you finish. It's billed as somewhat of a thriller, but its roots go much deeper than that, and I would advise readers not to go into it thinking it's going to be a fast-paced action book. It's much more, and if you read it with the same mindset you would a straight literary fiction novel--as something to be savored--you won't be disappointed.

There are a lot of intertextual references here, most notably The Dunwich Horror by HP Lovecraft. I'd never read any Lovecraft before, but I stopped reading halfway through this book to read Dunwich. (You don't need to do that to enjoy this book, but it definitely gave me more context--and also turned me into a Lovecraft fan!)

A lot of people are saying this is a scary story, but I didn't find it very frightening. Most frequently, I was sad--sad for the characters and their circumstances, and praying that things would turn around for them. Jon is one of the most heartbreaking, endearing characters I've ever read. I ached for him to be reunited with Chloe, and I hoped against hope that he'd find a cure for what was done to him.

Oh, and the VOICE of this book. All the characters were so clear on the page; Kepnes made it so easy for us to feel for them after reading their thoughts and funny observations about life. To be honest, I was hooked during the very first paragraph, when Jon says: "Nobody can kick your ass for what you think in your mind, not even your mom." That sentence is like most of the book--real, relatable, and so refreshing it makes you laugh out loud.

My only problem with this book was how long it took for Jon and Chloe to reunite. I don't think we were given enough time to see them together, and after all the yearning and hardship they both went through, it still didn't feel resolved by the end. I'm not sure if the author plans a sequel to this book, but I would totally read one. At the conclusion, I was left feeling hopeful, but also a little disappointed. Maybe that's by design, though.

I will be telling all my reader friends about this book; it's so well done that I'm also going to buy the other books by Caroline Kepnes. Her voice and observations are simply too good to miss!

The story begins with Jon being kidnapped by a man who was a substitute teacher at his school. He uses Jon to undergo some form of experiment to save humanity giving Jon uncontrollable powers. With this beginning, I pictured a completely different read from what I actually read. This story was nothing what I envisioned.
Jon and Chloe are friends who never find the words to express how they feel about each other, yet they are the only ones who truly understand each other. They have a solid connection with each other, yet they drift apart from each other. Even though Jon and Chloe started off as friends and Chloe showed immense effort in trying to find Jon I never felt more than friendship between them. When Jon returned I couldn’t understand why he didn’t reach out more to Chloe. They occupied a parallel universe of time living in the same vicinity, yet apart. They had an odd connection of which they understood and I couldn’t understand the connection.

The timeline was choppy going from four years to one year to another just living life. I wasn’t in favor of the way Kepnes delivered the information in this book. There were many components to this story: Jon’s superhuman powers, the cop building a case against Jon, and Chloe the love interest. Yet for me they didn’t flow. These components felt like separate stories.

This story reminded me of a comic book character with these strange powers. The weirdest thing about this story was the comparison to the Dunwich Horror book about Wilber. Wilber was a deformed boy with special powers that grew at an abnormal rate. I felt like Kepnes was using this platform to write her thesis about the Dunwich Horror story referencing Jon in comparison to Wilber. It felt like an unoriginal topic to compare Jon with Wilber.

I didn’t like this story, not one single part of it, but that’s okay. I gave Kepnes a second chance to wow! me, but it didn’t work out that way. I was bored by the Dunwich Horror comparison. The cop known as Eggs wasn’t very relevant to Jon’s character as far as helping his situation and his character was disappointing.

Kepnes is fast becoming a favorite psychological suspense author for me. She's honing her voice very clearly, and this story definitely has some shades of early Stephen King, but also focuses on some of the same themes as You, like how obsession can impact your life. I appreciated the fresh spin on a child kidnapping plot and while I would've liked a little more on the "how" end of things of what happened to Jon, I was really moved by the heartbreaking, but hopeful ending. As a Providence native, I also appreciated the local references and flavor.

I really tried to like this. I was mostly interested in the author since her book "You" has been on my TBR for some time now; however, I just couldn't get into it. I quickly disliked the characters, and even though they are teenagers, I still couldn't justify the way they behaved. It was actions and speaking that contradicted itself and being whishy washy. I started to skim early on and once I hit the shift to four years later, I just couldn't care anymore. I really felt like it was trying to be too many things at once with a lack of likable substance. I hope this isn't an example of her work. I am sure there is an audience out there for this book, it just isn't for me.

When the newest book, Providence, by Caroline Kepnes became available, I excitedly requested and downloaded it on NetGalley. Her first book, You, is one of my favorites, and her second, Hidden Bodies, was very strong. I rushed through Providence this week turning the pages and watching a strange story unfold before my eyes. There are many parts I enjoyed, a few I thought were just okay, and in the end would give it about 3.5 stars.

Let's start out with a little bit about the story... two teenagers are best friends in love with one another but unwilling to tell the other. We see why they click and what is appealing in both. Then Jon goes missing. The book jumps several years later and Chloe is now dating the guy who picked on Jon when they were younger. We have no idea what happened to Jon. More time passes and we find out Jon was kidnapped by someone at their school, and when he wakes up, he's been in a medically-induced coma for years. He's physically matured and somehow developed a bit of a supernatural power. This is where I got worried... I'm not a fantasy or sci-fi reader, but I'm trying to branch out, so this was a really great opportunity to check out another genre.

I wasn't disappointed. It was exactly what I thought it would be. I love how the 'other worldly' talents integrate into the story, but I had tons of questions like a two year old: why, how, when, where, what... yet I believe it's important as a reader to hold your own questions at bay and read with an open mind. I never got the answers, but then again, you don't always get them in sci-fi or fantasy (from what I understand). It just happens and you go with the fun aspects of something new or different. That said, I found ways to enjoy the book for what it is. A coming-of-age story where the main character is a bit older than normal because of everything he's gone through. And you end up questioning what is right and wrong. Is one bad or evil action able to be redeemed, or should someone suffer / die because of it.

Throughout the course of the ~400 pages, Jon struggles to balance his love for Chloe and his inability to control the powers when he gets emotional. It's a love story, a suspenseful drama, a mystery chase, and a bit of a reflection on life. Kepnes is fond of (and strong at, too) developing characters with obsessions, social media-frenzied anxiety, and over-indulgence in human emotional needs. I mean this in a positive way, too. She gets right to the core of what makes some people tick or focus on the little details that sit within a person's mind all day long. It helps pull you in to the story and the characters.

Many readers will compare this to You, and if they aren't sci-fi or fantasy genre buffs, they may struggle a little. I am not familiar with HP Lovecraft's books, which are a central theme in this one. Although Kepnes does a good job and explaining what you need to know, it would be better if you had read Lovecraft. I hope readers will see this as something similar yet purposely different to both books, as it stands out as an interesting and quick read where you see a different slice of humanity and psychological rhythm. Character development is spot on. Plots are woven well. Settings are very clear. And there's a subtle page-turning push you feel trying to understand where it's all going.

For me, it's a good book. I'm glad I read it. I'd recommend it only to folks I think would be willing to cross all the different genres and go for a peculiar and crafty ride. Thanks to NetGalley, Kepnes and her publisher for getting me an early copy.

Providence is not your everyday love story. While some see hope, Providence brings you to a realization that with every passionate thought, there is a negative. This story grabs you from the very beginning and is a heart racing page turner.

Good, but . . . If I had been handed this manuscript with no cover sheet, I would have said with 1000% certainty that it was Dean Koontz’s latest. Having read You and Hidden Bodies, I would never have guessed that Caroline Kepnes was the author. So Providence is a fun read, but not at all what I was expecting when I requested the ARC from NetGalley/Random House.

The story is about two childhood best friends, Jon and Chloe. Chloe is pretty and popular, while Jon is a bit of a misfit, with Chloe as his only friend. One day on his way to school, Jon is kidnapped by a substitute teacher and spends 4 years in captivity in a medically-induced coma. When he reemerges, he finds he has been instilled with a power that it makes it impossible for him to live a normal life among people. He relocates to Providence, RI, and lives a life of solitude, but it is there he comes to the attention of a dogged police detective nicknamed Eggs, who is obsessed with a series of suspicious deaths. The novel is told, in turns, by Jon, Chloe, and Eggs.

Kepnes is a talented author, and she brings all of the characters in Providence to life. As a reader, I felt great affection for Jon, Chloe, Eggs, and Eggs’ wife Lo. Kepnes’ writing is exceptional, which is why I loved her previous books and liked this one well enough. My biggest problem was that I couldn’t buy into Chloe’s never-dimming love for a childhood crush well into her adult life despite having no physical contact with Jon and ever-decreasing virtual contact (through texts). It just didn’t ring true for me. Would a successful artist really carry a torch like that? I don’t think so. Additionally, while the supernatural aspects of the plot were interesting, a recurring reference to H. P. Lovecraft and his novels lost me. Perhaps if I had been familiar with his work, I would have enjoyed Providence more than I did.

So, in summary, Providence was good but not up to Kepnes’ prior gold standard. Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for providing me this ARC in return for an honest review.

I do not want to spoil too much, but this book is kind of like The Shape of Water meets X-Men but inspired by H. P. Lovecraft. There's romance and drama and mystery and supernatural elements as you follow the story of a teenage boy who loses four years of his life and must reassemble the pieces, but he isn't QUITE the same. Definitely a unique read, and Kepnes as usual writes compellingly.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.