Yawn. I wanted to love Providence like I loved Caroline Kepnes' You. Kepnes is a solid writer, capable of complex, interesting characters and wild new concepts - including this one, about a boy who is kidnapped and returned four years later a changed person. It has a tantalizing hint of a supernatural element and the beautiful agony of unrequited young love. There's potential here - something that could be really, really cool. But this book is really, really boring. Other than a flurry of activity in the first pages, it's mostly a series of morose inner monologues from various character perspectives. As a fan of both navel-gazing literary books and mystery/thrillers, I am sorry to say Providence doesn't satisfy the appetite for either one.

The book itself was a dark magical beautify of a novel, very different than what I've read in the past. I appreciate the opportunity to have received an e-copy arc. It was a love story and thriller infused together, it was something unique that many readers will definitely enjoy. The characters and plot were very engrossing and the mixture of genres was very interesting. What I appreciated was I didn't know what to expect from this book and that is what made it more special. There was suspense, romance, the supernatural, and mystery wrapped up all into one book. Thank you Randomhouse for the opportunity to read such a fascinating book for summer.

I was a little awestruck by the way Caroline Kepnes got in the head of an obsessive stalker in You. I found the book downright creepy to read, and yet I went back for seconds when she released Hidden Bodies. Kepnes’ new book, Providence, steps away from this character and story, but I was curious to see what kind of mind she put herself into next.

I was actually really surprised to find this is more of a sci-fi novel than anything else. If that is how you can describe it. It’s a bit of a mix of genres and I wasn’t expecting that. I also think that this is the kind of book that you’re either going to like, or not. For me, I think I was stuck somewhere in the middle.

It wasn’t that I didn’t enjoy the story, I think it was more that I couldn’t appreciate the H.P. Lovecraft inspired horror and the many nods towards Lovecraft throughout. It takes the tone of a classic horror story, where you have a monster who just wants to be loved, but he keeps hurting the people around him without meaning to. I can appreciate the sentiment of that story, but I found it kind of dragging for me and I also found I didn’t have a lot invested in any of the characters.

Things picked up toward the end of the book and I was very curious about what direction this was going to go in, how it was going to end. There was a lot of messaging in the dialogue and the actions of the characters that speak to the complexities of relationships and self identities and trying to find your place, which I enjoyed reading about, but putting all these different elements together in this one story didn’t necessarily completely fit for me.

Kepnes definitely always surprises me with her books. Sometimes in a great way, like with You, and sometimes in a more confusing and underwhelming way, like this. If you’re expecting a similar tale as You, you will be disappointed. But someone going into it with an open mind and a strong appreciation for the classic horror genre and Lovecraft will probably enjoy this quite a bit.

well paced thriller will please those who want their mysteries with a supernatural and romantic bent; scary and gripping story of love, identity, care, and power.

This book is like nothing I've ever read. A really weird and morbid love story, with a paranormal/supernatural twist, get your thrills by reading Caroline Kepnes' Providence.

Caloine Kepnes is a solid author and I always look forward to her upcoming books. I am not typically a super natural, fantasy reader but I did enjoy Providence. Chloe and Jon 's bond is something we all desire - somebody who is on the same wavelength as us. This book has to be "up your alley" or else you will probably not like it.

Thank you Netgalley for the free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

2 stars

I picked this up entirely because of the author. I gave You a try when it came out and everyone was buzzing about it, but it wasn't for me. It has always bugged me that others were seeing something that I couldn't see. So, when this one came out, I thought I would give this book a try.

At first, I was intrigued by the story. I hadn't read the synopsis and I was reading completely blind. I enjoyed the mystery that was unfolding and I had some [misguided] theories about where the story was headed. It wasn't the fact that the story didn't go where I was expecting it to that threw me off, but rather that it took a long time getting to the point and in the end, I felt that many key questions were left unanswered. After a long build up and some false starts I was itching to get to the resolution and when it finally arrived, I was disappointed and unsatisfied.

What this book did for me, though, was to open my eyes to a genre that I wouldn't gravitate to normally. I like that I took a chance and even though this one wasn't a home run, it's reminded me that taking a chance on something can be a fun distraction.

This was a hard review to write. It's a very well written book. So well written that I didn't feel compelled to put it down for a while because the plot line goes no where for so long. I was still drawn to continue reading. Guy gets kidnapped when a child and comes back with the horrible power to kill people if they're around him too long. Guy doesn't tell anyone and just runs away. Why doesn't guy just tell his soulmate (his connection with his childhood best friend is too mystical to call it anything else)? The book never gives a good enough reason. Maybe to make sure this novel isn't the length of a short story.

Oh, this book. How on earth does one review such a unique book without ruining the experience for others? This is one of those books that you should experience going in nearly cold.

Strangely enough this book takes place in a town five minutes from my home. Me, being me, was reading every Nashua reference with a squinty eye looking for a nit to pick but I didn’t find anything to bitch about. Nashua is not a very exciting place, if you ask me, and it was fun imagining this weird stuff happening so close to me. I’m going to give any suspicious men about town even more of a wide berth after reading this, however.

If you bought PROVIDENCE because you loved YOU and HIDDEN BODIES and you expect another crazy Joe you do need to know that this book is not at all like either of them. It starts out when the main characters are children and within pages I was so in love with their friendship and engaged with these two characters that I didn’t want to put it down (curse you real life and your constant interruptions). Kepnes managed to do in mere pages what some books cannot accomplish after hundreds of them. She made me care deeply about these two and put my feelings through the wringer. Now that’s a talent!

Jon and Chloe just click. They would’ve, could’ve, should’ve been that rare couple who fall in love, marry young and stay together through good times and bad because they were meant to be. But that doesn’t happen because who wants to read that book?! Something unexpected happens to one of the kids and it changes them forever. Waking up with vague memories and a copy of The Dunwich Horror by Lovecraft with a strange letter tucked inside, the parents, best friend and the family soon learn that something has forever changed with this kid. I’m not going to tell you what it is or even which kid it is because you need to experience that gut punch yourownselves. I’ll just leave you guessing with this quote.

"I’m starting to get paranoid, starting to think something’s wrong with me… I imagine myself the invisible monster, slaughtering them all."

The remainder of the book features these two kids grown and struggling to connect, longing for each other but unable (for reasons I’m still not divulging) to be together properly. Their story is absolutely wrenching to witness. There is also another character named Eggs who makes it his mission to crack a case involving suspicious deaths of young people. Eggs and his story was also filled with pain and heartbreak and tore me all up inside. Geez, this book. I’m going to spoil it if I keep blathering on. Just read it if you want and I hope you love it as much as I did.

My favorite quote is this one because it’s so damned accurate for me and most everyone I know that I actually laughed out loud like a genuine lunatic.

"Why are you so dressed up? That should be the state fucking slogan of New Hampshire. "

This is a really weird book...but I couldn't stop reading it! Admittedly, I did skip through certain parts, especially the chapters about Eggs, and some Chloe chapters too. I found myself sympathizing with poor Jon; he really was dealt a shitty hand. I wish there was a way for him and Chloe to be together, even though I don't usually enjoy the stereotypical happy ending. Providence is definitely different from "You" which was also written by Kepnes.

Thank you to Netgalley, as well as the author and publisher, for providing me with the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I hate to admit that I didn't love this, especially since I loved Kepnes's other novels. I had high hopes for this, but something just didn't work for me. It may have been references to books/works I'm not familiar with...so in that aspect, I felt lost. Maybe it will be more enjoyable to those who know Lovecraft.

I wanted to love this. I planned on loving it. And I tried not to compare it to You or Hidden Bodies, both of which I adore. Truly I did. But...
I'm not sure what kind of book this wanted to be. Horror? I didn't get that at all. Supernatural? Is Jon's ability supernatural or grounded in science gone wrong (an absolutely favorite genre for me)? Thriller? I did not have that "can't put it down" feeling I get with really good thrillers. I think this book has elements of all of the above; it's just not a great example of any of them.
The book started out pretty good. Kepnes had a real person in Jon. Flawed and awkward, he even made you a little uncomfortable. I related to him almost too well.
Then Jon gets kidnapped. It reminded me a bit of PenPal by Dathan Auerbach. I was prepared to be really creeped out. Then things begin to fall apart for me. We jump ahead 4 years. Okay for the first time, but the constant jumping of years felt disjointed to me. I could never get really invested in the story before it got yanked out from underneath me.
This novel left me wanting..more. And not getting it.
More character development. More backstory. More Lovecraft. Just more.
I'm going to get slammed for this, but I really disliked Eggs for most of the book. His character put me off. I couldn't feel sympathy for him at all. I routed against him. Part of the reason is very personal and subjective. (view spoiler) At the end though, I started to warm up to him.
At least I felt I got to know him as a character. I can't say the same for Chloe. She did not feel like a real person to me. She was a cardboard cutout of what a popular (mean?) girl is in a young adult novel. I never quite bought that she loved Jon. It didn't seem genuine. Come on, if Jon is your soulmate since childhood, you would NOT befriend, date, (view spoiler) his bully; even if you thought he was dead. No way.
And Blair was a non-starter. What did he do? Why did he do it? The perfect villain(view spoiler)?
I did somewhat enjoy the book. I finished it; and I do not do that anymore if I book doesn't hold my interest at page 100. So, there was interest. I will not, however, wait with bated breathe for a sequel. And that's what this book felt like; an introduction to the main story, a superhero-ish origin story. I was left a little disappointed. I think I expected to much. And that's on me, not Kepnes. I give this 2 3/4 stars.
I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley.

This is a great thriller. Throughout the book, I had no idea how it would end, but I was satisfied with the final pages.

This was quite an emotional story. Both Jon and Chloe struggled with the loss of each other. It was heartbreaking to see them apart, because they really were meant to be together.

Jon’s condition reminded me of the main character in the Joe Hill book Horns. In that book, the character grows horns, like the devil, and people tell him their worst secrets. He can’t escape it, just like Jon.

I have never read any Lovecraft stories before, but now I’m tempted to.

You know the thing about expectations? It can really crush the reading experience. I’ve enjoyed reading Caroline Kepnes in the past and when I saw she had a new book coming out, my love for YOU made me want to jump all over this with high expectations and not even read the blurb. What was I expecting? A great, riveting story. Thrilling and unputdownable. So that makes this so much harder for me because I expected to be blown away and was highly disappointed.

PROVIDENCE was nothing like I expected, in all the bad ways. The one thing about this book that stands out though, is the amazing writing. The writing is what kept me reading it until the end. Caroline Kepnes is such a talented writer that I was engrossed in reading something that I wasn’t even really enjoying. There’s something to be said about that.

The first thing you should know going into this book is that this is a paranormal thriller. I don’t do well with stories that have that thrown in like that, especially when I don’t know before hand. Should’ve read the blurb, and then should’ve skipped reading this. But here I am.

The beginning of this story was actually really good and I can honestly say the thing that also kept me reading was the fact that I genuinely felt bad for our main character Jon. His life was forever changed because of a tragic event from when he was a teenager and he never really figured out how to cope with it. The aftermath and what it did to him, what it turned him into. At the same time, I really disliked his best friend and love interest Chloe. Something about her character just rubbed me the wrong way and I couldn’t be bothered with her. Then there’s the story. Honestly that’s what felt the most underwhelming. I wanted it to be more suspenseful, more thrilling. In the end those were the very things it was missing. It was all very predictable, there was no big mystery to unravel. All the cards were laid out pretty early on and then we just went through the motions to see how things would turn up. The plot didn’t draw me in and keep me excited. And the ending was such a wishy-washy wrap up of the problems presented that it just made me angry.

I’m sad to say this was a miss for me but I am looking forward to reading what Ms. Kepnes puts out next. I’ll definitely just be more careful reading blurbs from now on.

Well, this was NOTHING like I expected it to be! Partially this is my fault because I had read the synopsis AGES ago and completely forgot about it and went into this fairly blind. I was expecting something more along the lines of a thriller (which I wouldn't QUITE categorize this in) and instead got a part contemporary, part romance, part sci-fi/mystery type read. Please, for those who are so anti sci-fi for some reason, bear in mind this plays a lesser part to the story than the contemporary "mystery" type feel that we get even though it is a big part of the book. Don't quite know what I mean? Well, that's actually what I LOVE about this book. I pretty much had no idea what was happening the entire time. I don't know if it's my lack of knowledge of Lovecraft, which seemed to be referenced a lot, or that it never quite gave me any of the answers that I wanted.

I do applaud the uniqueness of this story and absolutely felt for Jon and Chloe throughout the entire read. However, at a certain point I could feel my interest wane. I needed to know exactly how it would play out and what exactly DID happen to Jon?! Although I think the answers towards the end were supposed to round it all out for me, either I missed some of the point or it just didn't quite work for me. I can't quite pinpoint exactly the reasoning behind what didn't work for me.

What DID work for me was the intricate way in which Kepnes brought you right into the story. I love all the characters... well except for maybe one particular guy but that's a whole other story. This really, to me, felt more of a story of Jon and Chloe and their trials and tribulations while having to be a part - with neither of them fully knowing the reason why. This is a look at relationships, friendships, love and the intricate threads that come with all of them.

There's absolutely no taking away from the talent that is Kepnes. While I'm left still feeling a bit befuddled, I did love the relationship between Jon and Chloe.

Firstly, I need to mention how very different this book is to Ms. Kepnes' previous books You and Hidden Bodies. So much so that I think peoples reactions to this are going to be all over the place. Where do I stand? I LOVED IT!!!!

Where You and Hidden Bodies were dysfunctional (putting it mildly) love stories this is a more of a classic love story. There is never a doubt that Jon and Chloe are in love and what they will do or won't do to preserve that love. Here's the thing....I don't do love stories. I don't do romance. However, sometimes a book just moves your soul and you can't help rooting for the characters. Jon, Chloe, Eggs, & Lo - I loved all of you. I wanted nothing more than for your happiness.

There is a strong Lovecraftian theme in this story but I don't think you need to be a Lovecraft fan to enjoy this. I've read some of his short stories years and years ago so truly my knowledge of him is quite limited but still I had no problem following along to this. I'm also not one for supernatural elements but Kepnes made it work for me here. Her writing is so evocative, so lovely....perfection. I commend her for going in such a different direction and making it work. Well done, indeed!

I first want to thank Netgalley and everyone involved in making the master piece that is Providence by Caroline Kepnes. I LOVED Caroline Kepnes’ YOU and Hidden Bodies so when this came up on my screen I knew I had to read it. Providence is a mishmash of genres- thriller, paranormal, urban fantasy, young adult and it made it a mishmash 0n how I felt about it at certain times but it is so interesting and well written that by the end you love it. Jon and Chloe grow up as best friends in New Hampshire. Their feelings for each other start to grow, but they never talk about it. Just as Jon is about to confess how he feels, he is kidnapped by his teacher. His teacher has an obsession for H.P. Lovecraft, an author of horror pulp fiction, and by kidnapping Jon, the teacher is planning to save the world. Chloe is left to mourn Jon and becomes an adult without him there to support her. Jon finally escapes, but does so with an uncontrollable superpower, which can hurt the people he loves most. Of course he runs away to protect Chloe from his power, but all the while, he is being tracked by a detective.  What is good about this story is that it is told from multiple points of view. I find Cloe and Jons story easy t0 read and likeable characters. The story is well written and shows the different dimensions of the writer making this a must read book.

Loved this book! I was on the edge of my seat throughout the whole book wanting to know what would come next.I find myself feeling bad for Jon he's kidnapped and overcomes this and then he is still isolated I found myself hoping throughout the whole book that Jon and Chloe would get back together and live happily ever after but twist after twist happens and the end of the story makes you wish for more.

Wow! This book took me on a wild ride! I work with teenagers every day so when I started reading Providence it felt as if it was a typical teen mystery but THEN part way through I realized I was reading a sci-fi love story. It was new. And it was fun! Even transitioning from one person to another was very smoothly done. #NetGalley #Providence

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I really wanted to like this book more then my did. The story appeared interesting but for me it never really went anywhere. The story seemed to drag on and the ending was somewhat unsatisfying. It was completely horrible and I did like the characters but overall it seemed to lack some fire. If you enjoy HP Lovecraft you will probably find the story more relatable and interesting but I don't.