Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read to this book!

I enjoyed this one and I highly recommend.

Gripping tale - yet again by John Hart - I very much "enjoyed" this book. It fits with Hart's styler. The perform,ance was easy to listen to - very effective.

I received a review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley for my honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

3.5 stars. I really like this author's writing style and how he writes a thriller, family drama, coming of age story and it doesn't become bogged down by too much going on. There were some elements of this book that were a little too unbelievable, especially with a few characters. And maybe just a little too long. The narrator was the perfect voice to tell this story.

The Unwilling started well enough. I liked the narration and the story was a compelling listen through the entire first half. Then things kind of went off the rails and required more suspension of disbelief than a story like this one should. I also noticed that some characters were much more developed than others. Now, that would be fine since the main characters are going to get more page time and we need to know them on a deeper level. The problem is I started to notice that the female characters all fell pretty short. They just didn't have the depth I would've expected, especially for some that were more central to the story. So, what I ended up with was a good first half that just went wrong somewhere. I realize that I'm in the minority here, so take my opinion for just what it is - my opinion.

Thank you to Netgalley and the author for allowing me to read this!

I was instantly intrigued by the synopsis of this book. This book instantly drew me in, I got to explore through the eyes of our main character and this is always my favorite way to discover these details of the story and, it was done very well in this book. I really enjoyed this book and the plot. This author did amazing. I loved the writing style.

Thank you, Netgalley and the publisher, for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

Wow, that was a fantastic read! It had all the elements I love in books: great character building, fantastic writing, lots of emotions and broken characters, fast pace, mystery, and action. As a parent, I could absolutely relate to the detective. I often thought about what I would do if I was in the same situation with one of my children. I know how hard it is when you feel helpless because you think you could do more for your child but don't know what. It's heartbreaking to see your children struggle with life and their own self.

I listened to this novel as an audiobook which I usually find enhances the story. In this case, though, it was a bit of a distraction. I wasn’t a huge fan of the narrator nor his various accents. The writing was very good and the story, although unbelievable at times, was engaging throughout.

This book had a little bit of everything; war, mystery, love, addiction, crime and grief. One of the most intriguing things about this book is that you hear the story from almost every character's point of view. From the teen trying to reconnect his family to a serial killer, we were in the minds of everyone. This was so well done. A fascinating read.

Best book of the year! Will recommend to anyone that will chat books with me! Definitely needs to be a monthly book club selection!

John Hurt's The Unwilling was my first book by him and I enjoyed it, although it was different than what I usually read or listen to. The story is set in the seventies, during the Vietnam War and follows two brothers, Jason and Gibby. Jason went to war and came back a changed man, eventually ending up in prison. Gibby was the younger brother left at home to be sheltered and worried over. When Jason gets out of prison, they spend the day together with two women. The day will forever altar their lives. When they pass a prison bus on a lonely road, one of the ladies starts yelling and causing trouble. A riot ensues. Shortly thereafter, Tyra turns up dead. Jason is suspected. When the other young lady, Sarah, is kidnapped, the police think Gibby is involved too. Gibby must set out to prove his innocence, find Sarah, and prove that Jason didn't kill Tyra. His journey leads him to the underbelly of the city and to danger he couldn't possibly know to expect.
To me, it was really a coming of age story. Gibby, on the brink of manhood, will discover what it means to grow up and how to do so in the shadow of an older brother who was changed by the things that he saw. Jason will discover family and how to live with the reality of what he did and who he was. I did enjoy the book, although I wish the ending was a little more concrete. Some things were left to the imagination and I prefer everything tied up with a bow. However, the characters were raw and real and I found myself looking for a chance to listen to the story whenever I could. Thanks to #NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to listen to the audiobook. All opinions are my own. #Bookstagram #all_the_pages

The Unwilling was a brilliant tell of a family in the South during the Vietnam War. I have a hard time categorizing this book as it is a mystery, thriller, and also delves deep into the inner relationships with family and the human mind. The French family has been severely affected by the war. The oldest son died and the middle came home distance and withdrawal. Gibby is the youngest son and his mother wants to fiercely protect him from the world. Gibby is determined to get to know his last remaining brother, Jason, but Jason is involved in a tangled web that even he doesn't know the extent of. As bad things start to go down, we realize the strength of family. This story faces the way different types of grief. The story draws in and grabs you. John Hart's writing is just beautiful and so effortlessly weaves this story to life. The beginning is a bit slow, but I don't mind a slow burn especially when the story ends with such a satisfying and beautiful ending.

This story is set in the South during the Vietnam War. John Hart has created a work of crime, suspense and honest views into the human mind and soul..

Gibby's older brothers went off to fight in the war. One brother died over there and the other came back a changed man,

Jason, the surviving brother, won't speak of the war or of the time he spent in prison. as he tries to find some normalcy at home he goes on an outing in the country with siblings and friends. The outing involves heavy alcohol consumption. Unfortunately there is an encounter with a prison transfer bus on a stretch of empty road. One of the women taunts the prisoners, leading to a riot on the bus. The woman finds it funny in the moment, but is savagely murdered soon after.

Jason is immediately a suspect due to his violent past record. But when a second woman is kidnapped, the police begin to suspect Gibby as well. . Determined to prove Jason innocent, Gibby must avoid the cops and dive deep into Jason’s hidden life, a dark world of heroin, guns and outlaw motorcycle gangs.


This crime novel is brutal and frank as the author explores family, the past secrets, prison, war and the painful and everlasting marks they leave.

The Unwilling is the first John Hart book I have read, and I have already started finding others to read. The Audiobook narrated by Kevin Stillwell was perfect and provided a new level of intensity throughout the suspenseful novel.

Detective French had three son: Gibby, a senior in high school, Jason, a Vietnam veteran who was in prison for three years, and Robert, who died in the Vietnam war. Their family was strained due to the death, the effects of war, and the lack of trust and communication between the family unit.

Jason is released from prison and wants to re-connect with Gibby, even though his mom is adamantly against it because he would be a bad influence. After a full day of hanging out and drinking at the lake with two women, one of the drunk women exposed herself sexually to the prisoners who were on a prison transfer bus causing a brawl with the prisoners. Soon, she was found brutally murdered, and Jason was the first person the cops suspected followed by Gibby.

As the murder mystery plays out, connections are revealed to help understand each of the characters' intensions and deep-seeded issues and fears. To tell more would spoil the book, but know that this was a descriptive book in every aspect.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for allowing me to listen to this book for an honest review. It is one you won't want to miss.

I enjoyed this one in audio. So many family dynamics were interwoven in this story beginning with the Vietnam war where one twin (the good twin) loses his life and so the other twin (the bad one) enlists and then comes home a decorated hero but an addict and criminal and that is all anyone sees. He is soon sentenced to prison where he spends hard time and when he is released all he wants to do is spend one day with his remaining brother, Gibby, before he graduates from high school and goes on with his life. This is met with resistance from his cop father and neurotic mother (she is a piece of work). When they set off on their day of adventure with two young ladies Jason knows this starts the ball rolling for the rest of the story. One instance leads to another and...crazy how life is. This was a well told story and the narrator was perfection! The only drawback was the character of X, a serial killer billionaire who ran the prison and his world still from the bowels of the underground of the prison. It bordered on comic book meets action movie story. Still, I would recommend this one.

**Received this ARC for review from the publisher via NetGalley**

Chilling in its beauty

This book is beautifully written. It is hard to appreciate how powerfully well written this book is, obvious even in the audible version of this book when nuance and language are not as easy to notice. Sometimes I feel like I miss some of the details in audible books but in this case, the words leapt through time and space. It’s haunting and beautiful.

It could be the incredibly insightful characters or the complexity of the plot – hard to know which is most important – but they both shine through.

I chose this book, from NetGalley, thank you!, even though I don’t usually like historical novels, but Vietnam has had profound effects on my life. Hard to think of the time as being historical, but… apparently I am really old. It was interesting to hear the afterword when John Hart said he didn’t usually write historical novels. I had to LOL because I don’t usually read them either. But Vietnam and John Hart?

Impossible to resist.

What a lovely storyteller John Hart is. I was drawn to this book by the time period, the synopsis of the plot, and by John Hart himself. And I wasn't disappointed - even though parts of the plot felt a little implausible, the majority of it felt completely grounded in the reality of the time. My heart broke for Jason, the son and brother whose life was irrevocably changed by his time and events in Vietnam. And for Gibby, his brother who is on the verge of graduating from high school but has already had to deal with far too many life upheavals, although he certainly has more to come as the book progresses. And my heart broke too for their father - trying to protect his broken wife, his younger son and his older one whom he's afraid may be beyond protection, or redemption. This is a story about family and love and how hard it can be to "do the right thing" when it's hard to see what the right thing may actually be. It's also a murder mystery. And while I found the villain to be over the top - upon reflection I wondered if he might be a bit of a personification of the government forces that wrecked Jason's life. Whether he was or not, I thought this was an excellent book. I listened to the audiobook, and the skilled narration definitely added to the book.
My thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for providing a copy for an unbiased review.

I cannot review this book because it is audio which I cannot use. I’d be happy to review an email copy. I requested this book by mistake.

This is not the typical mystery book that I would pick up. I didn't realize that it was more of a Historical Mystery until I actually started reading it. I requested it a good while ago, and know that I requested it for a good reason, so despite my initial misgivings, I gave it ago! It did take me a little bit to get interested in the story, as it was a slow start/slow build, but I am glad that I stuck in there and finished it, because I actually really enjoyed it! The only thing that was a little off-putting for me was, would it have been possible for X to be able to do all of the things he did? Maybe in those times...who knows!

It would be hard to classify this book as just one thing because it is so many things wrapped up in a neat little bow! It has mystery, it is a thriller, it is a coming of age story, it is historical fiction, it has family drama...overall excellent read!

I couldn't help but root for Gibby, and I think that's the way Hart intended it to be! He is the loveable little brother that already lost one brother to the war and isn't ready to give up on the other!

I am surprised that I enjoyed this book as much as I did, but in some ways I'm not because I've loved all the other books that I've read by John Hart, but I'm certainly glad that I've got it in my personal library now!

The narrator, Kevin Stillwell did a STELLAR job narrating this book! He is a narrator to watch out for! There are a few that I will grab books just because they are narrated by them, and I feel like he could quickly become one of those for me!

Overall, a bit of a slow start, but no disappointment at all!

I would like to thank the author, John Hart, the Publisher, Macmillan Audio, and Netgalley for providing me a copy of this book, The Unwilling in return for an honest and unbiased review!

John Hart is an author that I buy his books the day they are released. As a matter of fact I preordered a signed copy of this book before I even started listening to it. He is that good! And this book is his absolute best.

Jason has just been released from prison. He has returned to his hometown just to see his little brother, Gibby. He has a complex relationship with his family. Heck, Jason is a very complex character. He is a Vietnam vet with a high kill rate and huge secrets.

Gibby is a high school senior. His mother has sheltered him from many activities and especially from Jason. When Jason shows back up in his life it opens a whole new world. Then, Tyra, Jason’s girlfriend, is murdered. Gibby is determined to prove that Jason is innocent.

There are so many intricacies in this story. The characters are amazing and believe it or not…Jason was my favorite. He broke my heart with his damaged self. But then he has such strength and intensity. I could not help but be pulled into his orbit.

Wow! Just Wow! I cannot say enough about this story. Captivating, thrilling, mysterious and mesmerizing are just a few words to describe this tale…I could go on and on! And the narrator, Kevin Stillwell is fantastic. He hit just the right level of intensity at the right time! Need a book you cannot put down or an audiobook you do not want to stop listening to…THIS IS IT! You will not be disappointed!

I received this audiobook from the publisher for a honest review.