I have to admit I wasn't a fan of Kepnes's earlier works. Providence changed my mind about this author. I cared about Jon and Chloe from the first paragraph. The characters were so real. It was as if I was eavesdropping into their world. I was the voyeur who saw everything that they did and what they felt. It has romance and it has elements of science fiction and suspense. Kepnes kept me guessing and I was riveted. I will read her future books from now on. I am glad she wrote this. She got a new fan in me.

This book is definitely not my book. I could not finish, as I was very confused.

Providence was a book I was really looking forward to reading since I LOVED Caroline Kepnes's previous books. She has a way of writing characters that may not be good but you want to pull for them. And this was no exception. Our main character was no Joe Goldberg, but I found myself rooting for Jon Bronson because he was ultimately a good guy put in a bad place.
Chloe and Jon's story begins when they are young teenagers. Jon is a bit of a loner and Chloe is his one friend. She has other friends but her connection with Jon is very different yet strong from the very beginning. So when Jon goes missing, Chloe's whole world is turned upside down. She doesn't know who she is without him. This story turns into a tale of acceptance, love and obsession for Chloe.
Jon returns a very different person 4 years after his kidnapping. But Chloe's thoughts and obsession were never far from him this whole time. The person she became was because of his absence. With his return, they can now admit their feelings and make a step forward in their friendship that hopefully will turn into more. But with a thriller/mystery, life cannot be that simple. Jon finds out he can't be around people because of his kidnapper and it all stems from a HP Lovecraft novel. This is where a little science is brought into the plot.
Having not previously read Lovecraft, I didn't feel that I was missing a plot point. Sure, it would've helped with my understanding of what happened to Jon more, but Kepnes educated her readers enough to make you be able to follow the plot in a cohesive enough manner.
Now we fast forward another 6 years and our story takes us to Providence and NY. We have an added character that feels so needed to balance our story. Told in 3 POVs, we get the three elements of love, acceptance and obsession from 3 different perspectives. From Chloe, Jon and Eggs (who is an older cop ignoring life in front of him for his obsession of some mystery surrounding deaths).
I felt for Jon so much throughout the story. His pain and love was real and tangible. He wanted to be good and was innocent, but someone made him into someone he did not want to be. I wanted to find that person and strangle him and have him fix Jon. How could he do that to such a defenseless person that only wanted to love is childhood sweetheart? He wanted to only be accepted by her, loved by her. How could you not root for him?
Then we have Chloe. She was a character that I never fully connected with, but she also was someone I wanted to have a "happily ever after". She always held a part of Jon close to her for her own sanity and obsession. She held onto it like a life raft through everything, even when she gave up and looked for happiness elsewhere.
And then there is Eggs. He was not a perfect man and he never really knew how to be one. Life had handed him and his wife, Lo some hardships, but they both handled life in different ways and eventually life handed him answers that could help him be a better man for his family.
Overall, the story was cohesive and I think would appeal to someone that is interested in mysteries and that likes a bit of a twist. But if you are a Kepnes fan, don't expect the same story you got from Joe. Caroline Kepnes went way different than You and Hidden Bodies. She keeps you on your toes when it comes to the characters and the way you should feel about them. What is right and what is wrong? Sometimes science and love confuses our obsessions in life. Miss Kepnes familiarity of a part of America and with Lovecraft held this story together for me. Even with not having read HP Lovecraft, the underlining part of who Jon is stems from those stories. Love, Acceptance and Obsession. THAT is this story.

ARC provided by #netgalley for an honest review

ARC provided by publisher and NetGalley for free, but this does not influence my review.

I didn't hate this book, but I didn't love it either. I just don't think I am smart enough or experienced enough with H.P. Lovecraft to get all the references. I will say Caroline's character development pulls me in. She writes with such realism. I was rooting for Jon all throughout the book. Chloe, on the other hand, was flat, bland, and not very likable. The beginning of this book gripped me and had me turning pages, until midway I was scratching my head wondering what in the heck I was reading. By 90% it picked up and had me engaged.

Although there is a science fiction element to this novel, I would say it's more about people and how they deal with their different obsessions of other people. I wouldn't classify this book as a thriller. If weird was a category that is where I would place it.

2.5 Stars

For me, Providence was one of my most anticipated reads of 2018. There was so much pre-release buzz surrounding it and I've been dying to read something by this author, so I took the leap and dove into Providence. 

Jon and Chloe were the best of friends. They understood one another in ways that no one else seemed to get. They shared an intense connection. However, on the day that Jon is supposed to confess his true feelings for Chloe, he goes missing. I was so intrigued by this. I was dying to know more. I needed answers. I wanted to know what happened with Jon....4 years later, Jon finally returns home, but life has changed a lot in the time that he was away. He is convinced that if he can change himself; get better, he can finally have what he's always wanted with Chloe...In addition to Jon and Chloe's storyline, we also have the one of Detective Eggs. Eggs has been consumed by a string of deaths and will stop at nothing to solve the case. How can people who are healthy just have their hearts stop beating? Eggs is convinced that all of these murders are connected and will risk everything to find out the truth....

I'm going to be 100% honest with you. I wanted so much to love this book. I really did. But, it just didn't work for me. I was really intrigued by the story in the beginning. I wanted to know what happened to Jon and couldn't wait to see where the story would go once he returned. That intrigue lasted about 25-30% into the story. After that I just felt confused and lost. This book has a heavy H.P. Lovecraft presence and that was just totally lost on me. I've never read anything by Lovecraft, so all of those references were over my head. I Am Providence and The Dunwich Horror were seriously huge themes throughout the book and they just left me with a giant question mark over my head. Maybe if I had a better understanding of HP Lovecraft and those stories, this story might of clicked for me, but it just didn't. 

Providence is one of those books that you're either going to get or you're gonna be left in the dark, like I was. It's going to be a hit for some and a miss for others. From mystery and suspense to supernatural themes, this book certainly had a lot going on. I think this author is a very unique story-telling and has a great writing style. Even though this book was a total miss for me, I'm still glad that I gave it chance and checked it out.

I really enjoyed this book by Caroline Kepnes. I haven’t been able to get through her previous books, so I was leary to try again. But I’m so glad I did. Chloe and Jon’s story starts out when they are young teenagers, and Jon has no friends but Chloe. Then Job gets kidnapped. Four years go by and he’s released with a special power that he discovers can hurt the people he loves. To protect them he leaves, but definite drama ensues with his power. Will Job and Chloe find there way back together? Read the book to find out. I’m really hoping that this story continues in another book.

I absolutely loved this book even though I'm not a fan of the supernatural! I had no idea what to expect and as I adored both You and Hidden Bodies, my expectations were pretty high. The characters were so real and multi-faceted that you cannot help but love them. I also particularly like when a writer can give the perspective of another gender; Eggs was a wonderfully flawed and imperfect man which made me love him even more as we navigate the very difficult marriage he has to Lo. The love story of Jon and Chloe is just magical; and yes it was frustrating that Jon never just texted her about his "problem," but that just heightened the suspense. Having never read Lovecraft (now I plan to), I worried that I was missing something, but the story was complete and fulfilling and left me heartbroken and heartened at the same time! Now I will go and make myself some tea and let it steep for a full 15 minutes. Exactly!

The perfect book to bring on a 5 day cruise. I didn’t want to do anything but sit in the sun and read. I adored the 2 main characters and the plots originality. Although I was looking for they all lived happily ever after, that would have been unbelievable. What a great fresh novel with enough mystery to pull you in. Super fun read!

I couldn't finish this book. I was so disappointed--I loved Kepnes' two previous books so much. While I believe authors shouldn't have to write the same books over and over again, this one just didn't work for me.

Thank you for the chance to review this book! A full review will be posted closer to release day.

I love Caroline and couldn’t wait to get my hands on Providence! It was amazing and had me on the edge of my seat the entire time I was reading. I could not put it down! I can’t wait for everyone to check it out!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a free ebook copy of Providence By Caroline Kepnes in exchange for an honest review.

I really really wanted to like this book.
I loved You and Hidden Bodies, but I just couldn't quite get into this one.

I think the reason I liked the first 2 books so much is the brilliant writing and the characters.
This book felt forced, There was good character development, but it just kind of jumped around.
There was much so much struggle when Jon disappeared - and then we suddenly go 4 years forward.

It started off so strong, but about a quarter of the way through, it just kind of petered out and I lost interest.

It's almost like there were too many ideas for any to actually play through.

What even is this book? This book was my most anticipated book of the year, because You is one of my favorite books of all time. I read this books description and I thought it sounded so cool and I couldn't wait to read it and now I'm just like..... what??? This book was strange. Probably one of the strangest books I've ever read. This book was trying to be so many things at once and failing at all of them. This was part mystery, part romance, part supernatural, part detective story, part thriller?? It was absolutely nothing like You, which is fine, I like it when authors try something different but this was so different and strange to the point where it felt like a different author.

It follows this boy named Jon who is best friends with this girl named Chloe. Jon gets kidnapped by his substitute teacher Richard Blair randomly one day and goes missing for four years. Four years later he wakes up and has no memory of anything that happened in the last four years. He's horrified to discover he has this strange supernatural ability now that harms people he acres about. This description sounded really cool and it's what drew me in in the first place, but from the moment Jon comes back after four years - this book really drags.

It becomes this obnoxious love story about Jon just wanting to be with Chloe but he can't because he's afraid he'll hurt her. Chloe was such a bland character, and all of her chapters talk about how much she misses Jon, or she's trying to hunt him down, and she's waiting on his call - like she literally doesn't do anything but talk about Jon. We follows this detective named Eggs as he tries to track down "the bearded man" which is Jon literally the entire fucking book and I couldn't care less about his chapters and his problems in his marriage and I don't understand why he was even included in this story.

Overall, this book had so much potential to be great, I thought the premise sounded so cool but this story dropped the ball on pretty much everything. The ending is so cliche and cringe-y and just made the whole thing feel like a huge waste of time. The only reason this gets two stars instead of one is because I really do like Caroline Kepnes's writing style, and because this book kept me curious enough to finish it all in one sitting, which is a good thing for me because lately I've been DNF'ing anything I'm not liking, but this book kept me interested until the end, even though the ending wasn't very good unfortunately.

When Jon Bronson disappears on the way to school one day, he leaves his best friend Chloe wondering what happened to him. Four years later, he wakes up in a basement, jacked up and with no memory of the past four years, only a copy of The Dunwich Horror with some notes written inside. Will Jon and Chloe be able to pick up where they left off?

This was a Netgalley pick. Edward Lorn and some other trusted reviewers have sung the praises of Caroline Kepnes in the past so I decided to take a chance.

Overall, I liked my first Caroline Kepnes experience. The shifting viewpoints between Jon, Chloe, and Eggs held my interest and a main character that gives people heart attacks is a pretty interesting hook in a story of unrequited love.

The book is promoted as a thriller but it's really about relationships and intimacy. Eggs and his wife, Jon and Chloe, Chloe and Carrig, all very different relationships between very different characters. Also, fuck Carrig! Since I've read a few hundred detective novels, I had a soft spot for Eggs and his obsession with The Beard.

And here's the part that I hated: fully 80% of the book could have been avoided if Jon had just emailed Chloe and said "I give people heart attacks. That's why I'm being a douche nozzle." Considering Jon mostly communicates by text and email anyway, this makes a lot more sense than torturing himself for the better part of a decade.

And now we're back at the other piece of bread in this complement sandwich of a review. While their situation was outlandish, I think Kepnes did a great job with the various characters. I had no trouble believing in Eggs, Chloe, or Jon. They were all very fleshed out acted like real people would in the situation, aside from the lack of communication I mentioned earlier. The Lovecraft connection was also well done. I've read the Dunwich Horror a couple times but I think someone could infer what they need to and not feel lost.

And here we are at the end of the review. I enjoyed Providence but it wasn't a game changer or something I felt like neglecting my health and/or personal hygiene to read. 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Caroline Kepnes is one of my favorite authors. I didn't know what to expect after her Joe Goldberg books, but I wasn't disappointed after reading Providence. I love her characters!

This book just didn't do it for me. It started out with a bang, but somewhere near the center I kind of lost my way. If you have read and enoyed Caroline Kepnes before, then you will this one, too. The story just fell flat (for me).

Many thanks to Netgalley and Random House Publishing for this advanced readers copy.

Kepnes is good. Really good. I dig her style and was chomping at the bit to get to this one.

“Providence” has a solid plotline with an eclectic cast of characters that were fleshed out extremely well. My only peeve really was that it felt a bit too long and could have used a wee trim here and there. Still a very good and engaging story with a few nice turns thrown in to keep it moving.

Kepnes makes this writing thing look easy. Her characters have real depth and her storytelling flows effortlessly. If you haven’t read her yet, then you need to pick up “You” and “Hidden Bodies”. They were both most excellent.

3.5 Stars with a disclaimer: My super high expectations may have hurt my star rating of this one, but it should not take away from the fact that I dig this authors style and look forward to whatever she is going to put out there.

I went into Providence with an open mind. I knew the author wasn't going to write a repeat of You.
And I think anybody looking for more of the same will be disappointed.

Providence does have some of the cultural references that add a little flavor to her writing (especially to Lovecraft fans). But this is about a jr high boy that gets kidnapped. He eventually returns back to his life and to the girl he loves but he's different. And I don't mean different like he's seen awful things. I mean he's physically different and there is something a little supernatural about him now.

Providence is written in a sort of stream of consciousness. There is so much packed into every paragraph. It can make you a little dizzy at times with information.

Providence is sad and somewhat depressing. Its a love story at heart. But these star crossed lovers are separated by circumstance. I loved how the book starts. Interesting characters and synopsis. Fast pace flow. But after time I felt like the pacing slowed down which is why this wasn't a 5 star book for me.

***Advance copy obtained from Random House Publishing Group via Netgalley***

I had high hopes for this book and it definitely didn't disappoint. Filled with quirky characters, an interesting storyline and I love the H.P. Lovecraft tie in. I couldn't put it down! I loved the different feeling of this tale and the protagonists really made the story. A coming of age/mystery/kidnapping/suspense!

*I'd like to thank the author/Publisher/Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a fair and honest review"

This is a well-written young adult book with an edge. Strong language. Difficult situations. Unrequited love. It was a bit slow-going and confusing at times, but in the end, I liked it.