Enjoyment (stars): 4
Total rating (stars): 4.36

When she was in High School. Micah's boyfriend was convicted of killing her best friend - and her testimony carried a lot of weight in that conviction. Ten years pass, and she is still trying to deal with what really happened. She moves back to her hometown, opens a coffee shop and rekindles a friendship that turns into romance. Just as things seem to be on track, reminders of her past seem to be popping up around her. When a true-crime blog raises valid questions about the murder, Micah begins to doubt everything she knows about the case and goes on an obsessive hunt for the truth. Is Alex the killer, or is Joshua, her best friend's brother, possibly the killer as the internet seems to think?

Catch Her When She Falls was a beautifully written book about the impact of murder in the life of the characters. I really enjoyed being in Micah's head and feel that Buccola did a phenomenal job telling the story through her point of view but still fairly representing the other characters, giving us a fair chance to piece things together. However, the person connected to the true-crime blog would have served their purpose better without their present connection to one of the main characters. Their relationship just didn't make sense to me.

I loved the atmosphere - the constant foreboding and urgency as Micah nears her destination is heart-poundingly palpable. Strong debut.

Disclaimer: In exchange for an honest review, I am thankful to Random House and NetGalley for providing a copy of Catch Her When She Falls

Catch Her When She Falls by Allison Buccola is a mystery about a murder committed ten years ago. Micah Wilkes’ best friend, Emily, was killed and Micah’s boyfriend was found guilty of murdering her. Ten years later, Micah is the owner of a coffee shop in the same town when strange clues begin to pop up here and there, leading her to believe that all was not as it seemed ten years before. I found the storyline difficult to follow and the more I read, the less I cared about the outcome. There were too many absent characters, people that Micah spoke of but who were not personally included in most of the novel. This book has promise but I felt that it needed more clarity. It was interesting enough that I would like to read future novels by Allison Buccola. This is my own personal opinion and I’m sure most readers would enjoy this mystery. Thank you to Random House, NetGalley and the author for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sorry, this was another “Meh” for me. This story had a low rating in Goodreads, and I think I understand why. There wasn’t much action, and there wasn’t enough to keep me interested.

The premise of this is about a girl, Micah Wilkes, a high school senior whose boyfriend is convicted of killing her best friend. This plot was actually fascinating because it immersed the reader completely into Micah’s head, specifically her obsessive to the point of being debilitating thoughts. As a reader, there were times that I wanted to reach through the pages and shake her because of her misguided and downright stupid actions.

Though her actions were infuriating, I found the plot to be original, refreshing and quite suspenseful. The narration went back and forth between several time periods and at the beginning of each chapter, it was evident that Micah was on a trip somewhere unknown to see someone unknown. The explanation for this unfolded as the story progressed and all questions were answered by the end. At first I found the beginnings of the chapters to be confusing and disjointed, but it made more sense as the story progressed. I also don’t know if I completely loved the ending, but I can see why the author did this. Overall, a fast, original, entertaining read!

Many thanks to Netgalley, Random House and Allison Buccola for my complimentary e-copy ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Ten years have passed since Micah Wilkes's best friend was murdered in high school. But Micah has now moved back to her hometown to start over. Her ex-boyfriend, Alex is in prison for murdering her best friend, Emily. Micah is living with Ryan, Alex's best friend. Micah has started her own business, but is struggling to get over the fact that her boyfriend was cheating on her with her best friend back then. To make things worse, the night she discovers this is the night that Emily is murdered. Now, Alex has a new girlfriend who is fighting to free him from prison and making everyone question if the right person is in prison for Emily's murder.
This is an enjoyable suspense read. I wasn't exactly sure where things were going, but I liked that it wasn't so predictable.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House for gifting me a digital ARC of the debut thriller by Allison Buccola - 4 stars for a captivating story!

Ten years ago, Micah's boyfriend, Alex, was convicted for killing her best friend, Emily. It took Micah's mother's death to bring her back to her hometown of Calgary, PA, to try and start a new life. She's living with Ryan, her high school friend, and owns the Stomping Ground, a coffeeshop in town. Things are going well until they aren't. Suddenly, someone is taunting Micah and insinuating that Alex is innocent. Micah starts obsessing over everyone in her life and online blogs to try and figure out what's happening.

I liked the way this story was told - Micah is driving towards Joshua, Emily's brother, and is having conversations in her head with him as she drives. The story then goes on to fill in the blanks of all the past events leading up to this drive. There are a lot of characters in this book and I found myself questioning many of them. I am still thinking about that ending! Great debut - excited to read more from this author.

Ok, so I always like a book that goes back and forth in time. When done well, you get sucked into past and present.

In this case, I didn’t love so much that we were flashing back in time to the past, the recent past, and the present. It was different, and it did suck me in, but at times it got a little frustrating this added layer of the recent past. I wish the reveals of the recent past came a little quicker. Some of it felt extraneous.

But it still worked.

3.5 Stars

A decade earlier, Micah Wilkes’s boyfriend Alex killed her best friend Emily. Or did he? Author Allison Buccola will keep you guessing, which requires skill and a very precise strategy, no easy task, particularly for a debut author.

Because I committed to an honest review in exchange for a complimentary ARC, I should also list a few things with which I found issue:

• Long before setting out with manically obsessed Micah on a road trip as she searches for the truth, I often wondered, “Why a decade later?” Maybe I missed something, but I thought the story would have been much more plausible if it had taken place a year, two at most, following Alex’s trial.

• The novel doesn’t pick up momentum until the 80% mark. I found the pacing quite slow, but please keep in mind this is totally subjective. I know many readers who prefer a leisurely walk rather than a sweat-drenching jog.

• The main character and many of the others didn’t resonate with me. But, again, this is a personal preference.

• I found the ending unsatisfying and rather abrupt. Possibly Ms. Buccola has a sequel in the works., which might account for that.

Because of these personal preferences, I am downgrading my rating from 4 stars to 3.5.

I would recommend CATCH HER WHEN SHE FALLS to those who enjoy a cozy mystery. Thank you so very much, Ms. Buccola, Random House, and NetGalley for this opportunity. I wish the author much success, now and in the future, and I look forward to reading her next book.

I think I fell victim to not liking the main character in this book. And since it centers around Micah, that made it hard to connect with the story. I struggled with Micah quite a bit throughout the book and it all comes down to not really understanding why she ever moved back home. All her poor decisions stemmed from this one and it made it difficult for me to really grasp why she was doing the self-destructive things she was doing. The writing style, with diary entries, flashbacks, and a undisclosed continuing road trip also made it somewhat hard to get comfortable in the reading. I did figure out who she was driving to early enough on, but it felt more like another one of her off-kilter reactions instead of a solid way to move the story forward. But perhaps the most disappointing part was the end. After all that build up, it felt somewhat flat. Perhaps that was due to Micha's histrionics that permeated the rest of book? There was no where for the ending to go emotionally.

I honestly cannot believe I actually made it through this book. I struggle to find any positives to say.

The main gist of the story is: Ten years ago when they were in high school, Emily, one of Micah's best friends, is killed during a party. Micah's then-boyfriend, Alex, was convicted of the crime, but his current girlfriend insists that he is innocent and is trying to get the case re-opened. Micah is on a road trip to see someone (the reader doesn't know who for a long time) and flashes back to the past and the recent present while she is driving.

Micah is incredibly self-centered and it is almost painful to be in her head. Everything is about her. She is paranoid and flies off the handle and jumps to conclusions at the smallest hint of trouble, and obsesses over everything to do with the case potentially being re-opened.

The timelines are so jumpy that I never knew "when" I was. Emily's diary entries are info dumps, not diary entries. It's a huge pet peeve of mine when authors use them in this way. NO ONE writes entire pages-long conversations with quote marks in their journals. No one.

And then let's talk about the ending. When Micah gets to the end of her journey, we get the lamest of lame conclusions and then the book is over. It's just head shaking.

I suppose this could be a quick read in the hands of another reader. I just found myself dreading coming back to it (mostly due to the fact that I just could not stand being in Micah's head one more minute) and even went an entire day without reading anything just to avoid it. That's saying something for sure.

I do know that many others have really enjoyed it, this just was not the book for me.

This started out so promising. With Micah trying to start her life over after her boyfriend is found guilty of killing her best friend. Oh and yeah, he was cheating on her with the best friend. However someone is making her think that he didn't actually do it, after he has been in prison for 10 years.

This was a pretty interesting in trying to figure out who did it, and I narrowed it down pretty early but getting there was intense.

Now with what I didn't like. At first Micah was pretty stable, owning her own coffee shop. She soon becomes obsessed, and a little paranoid. Her boyfriend turns on her telling her she needs help. However she didn't even dwell on the case mostly until someone starts leaving her message, and breaks into her home. She was warranted to be suspicious.

Also she never goes to the police which would have established a pattern and instead ends up turning back on her. The story also changes from past to present mid chapter, with a simple paragraph change which was confusing more than a few times.

The biggest issue though was with the ending. I don't know if this was trying to set up for a second book, but it was a conclusion without a conclusion. Just don't.

Catch Her When She Falls is a slow-paced thriller where the unsympathic narrator may or may not be losing her mind.

In high school, Micah, Emily, Alex and Ryan hung out together. Emily was Micah’s best friend. Alex was Micah’s boyfriend. Ryan was Alex’ best friend. Alex and Emily were having a clandestine affair. When Emily was murdered, the police arrested Alex.

Now, ten years later, a true crime website is renewing interest in the crime. Micah begins to have doubts about Alex’ guilt. She sets off on a road trip to speak with Joshua, Emily’s brother, about Emily’s death. While driving, she flashes back to that night and her recent life with her boyfriend, Ryan.

The book has an unusual format. In the first quarter, just trying to get the characters straight was a challenge. The mystery of who really killed Emily doesn’t hit thriller speed until almost 80% into the book.

So, was the ending worth slogging through the rest of Catch Her When She Falls? While it was surprising, it was more of a double than a home run. 3 stars.

Thanks to Random House and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

I received a complimentary copy of this book "Catch Her When She Falls" and all opinions expressed are my own. This was an interesting story that was a bit slow for me to read. I wanted to know "who did it" so I continued. Overall good.

This was a good debut. It could have used a little more action at times, but overall, a pretty good read. I liked Micah, whose boyfriend was convicted of killing her best friend 10 years ago. As it also turned out during the trial, said boyfriend was sleeping with said best friend. Most of the story is told in flashbacks as Micah drives to meet someone. Just gonna leave it at that. Pretty interesting premise and pulled off fairly well. Look forward to more from Allison Buccola.

Thank you to #NetGalley, Allison Buccola and Random House Publishing Group for this ARC.

I was very excited to get an ARC of this book. The book had such an intriguing premise with Micha's boyfriend who is arrested for the murder of Micha's best friend Emily. Ten years have passed and things are happening. The book was a little to slow for me but it stays true to Micha's character throughout. I was never attached to any of the main characters. The book got rave reviews and it was a decent read but for the most part the book was not my favorite. I received this book from net galley.com and the publisher as an ARC for an honest review. Thank you Netgalley for this book

The first sentence will capture your attention. 10 years after the deadly of a teenage girl, her best friend is wondering who is really responsible for her death.

Micah (beautiful name!) starts digging through the past. The book is told by Micah in the past. In the present she is taking a trip because at the beginning of each chapter is listed how many miles left and where she was. It quickly changes to the past story. You don’t know where she is going

I liked the variety of ways the author tells the story. First person, online chats, notes, ect. If you like solving crimes you will like this book. It is an interesting debut and I look forward to reading more by this author..

Catch Her When She Falls is a fast paced and emotional journey. How do you move on with your life after your boyfriend is convicted of killing your best friend? It has to be even harder when, during the trial, it comes out that they had been sleeping together. It is understandable that Micah doesn’t know who to trust. She got far away from all of it for a while. Now she is back in her hometown. She is living with her ex’s best friend and she owns her own business.

Micah becomes increasingly paranoid and obsessed. Maybe Alex didn’t do it. So who did. I was talking about something once and told, “Do not look it up on the internet. If you have questions come back and ask.” It was good advice. The internet can be either a cesspool or a rabbit hole. Maybe both at the same time. That’s where Micah finds herself. And loses herself. Watching her descend was both fascinating and sad.

I would recommend this as not only a good mystery but as a study of human guilt.

Catch Her When She Falls by Allison Buccola is a debut thriller about Micah Wilkes. Ten years ago, Micah's best friend was killed, and Micah's boyfriend was convicted for that murder. But now, Micah has started doing some research and realizes that maybe her former boyfriend isn't guilty. As she keeps investigating, she starts acting more and more out of control, and she starts getting really paranoid. Can she figure out what actually happened? Will something happen to her now too? This story was entertaining and well-written, but I didn't really like the conclusion. Thanks to NetGalley for the free digital review copy. All opinions are my own.

Catch Her When She Falls slowly but surely leads you into the story with twists and turns, red herrings and suspense as Micha returns to her home town where her girlfriend was murdered 10 years ago by her boyfriend.

The back story quickly unfolds and the suspense mounts as a true crime blog is out to prove that Alex is innocent.

Someone is gaslighting Micha: who can she trust.

I didn't trust any of them .

The miles count down as Micah is off on a mission to get answers.

Catch Her When She falls is great debut novel that had me keeping the lights on for one more chapter.

Can't wait to see what Allison Buccola writes next; I will be first in line.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group, Random House for a suspenseful read.

This was well written but a little slow for me. The story is being told by Michah as she is driving to meet someone. The timeline goes back and forth between now and 10 years ago during the chapters. I like dual timelines but the way it was done it got a little confusing. If you like a slow burn read, then this book will be for you!