this one was a firm miss for me 🥴 I was about to DNF at around 40% but a part of me really wanted to know if this was going to end in a final plot twist or be as slow and boring as the first half

sadly, it went the way of the latter 🫠🫠🫠

the back and forth timelines in the life of iris was very disjointed. it would have worked better if the past stories related at all to what was happening in the present, but instead, it felt like they were completely separate stories until the very end

plus can we talk about that random romance that was thrown into the middle for little reason?

I figured out the plot twist very early on, and I was hoping I was wrong, but sadly it just dragged on and on forever 😭 I just wanted it to end pls

between the side plots and random characters that had absolutely nothing to do with the story and basically existed just to drag the book out further 😭 this was not it for me - however, I do love a good spooky setting and this island prison gave me all of the shutter island vibes!!!

thank you to netgalley and graydon house for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

rating: 2 stars
wine pairing: beaujolais red blend

Good...grief.

I have a very vivid visual imagination (a 1 on the apple visualization scale if you're familiar with it) so it doesn't take much scene-setting for me to picture what's happening as I read, yet despite what should be a series of great settings in this novel I could only rarely get a handle on what I was supposed to be picturing. Some of this could be attributed to what felt like a ridiculous lack of editing here; with few scene transitions outside of new chapters, and some truly wack internal timelines, more than once the movie playing in my head simply fractured into Picasso-esque chaos on sets built by M.C. Escher as scenes dissolved into incoherent mush. This was especially galling as I grew up in Washington and have spent plenty of time in Seattle and visited at least a couple of the islands around there. I mean, I've seen AHS: Asylum, I have mental references over here! But this book felt like trying to watch porn on the forbidden channels when I was a kid, like I heard some noises and maybe saw a thigh but no matter how hard I squinted it was still mostly static.

Although this book often felt like an incomplete first draft including about 10% scribbled notes with no cohesion, there was enough to keep my interest right up until the ending, which gleefully sacrificed believability and sense on the altar of a ~*~big twist~*~. In that way I suppose it was immersive - because trying to make sense of this book will make you feel like you've gone insane.

My thanks to Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC.

It is unfortunate, but Good Half Gone has not been an enjoyable read for me. I hope that this will be put through the editing/proofreading process again because I see the story there, but it is being overshadowed by other issues. I do not plan to post my full review outside of NetGalley, until I’ve been able to read the official publication, and can see if changes were made.

I knew I would struggle through this book on page 14 with the lines “Piper’s case is so cold it has freezer burn. I turn up the volume on the radio to drown out my thoughts; Lana Del Rey reminds me that I’m born to die.” I know many readers will find this line at best corny and at worst cringey. I love Lana Del Rey, but Fisher does a great job showing Iris’s angst without lines like this. There are also later references to Aretha Franklin and Britney Spears, specific candy brands, multiple references to Disney/Disney-owned brands, and it feels like a long ad. This novel is being advertised as a thriller, and these references really took me out of the experience.

There are also so many unnecessary details. Many chapters in this book can be cut down a lot. It feels like I’m being told every detail of Iris’s day. The book goes from being fast-paced and engaging to extremely slow because of it. Readers get almost every detail about Iris’s commute and scene direction (specifically character movement. I will discuss later the lack of establishing scene). I’ve read Tarryn Fisher’s other works like The Wives and The Wrong Family. I only vaguely remember a similar issue with The Wrong Family, but it worked there because it showed the level of invasion Juno was taking into the family’s home. However, in Good Half Gone, it feels like needless fluff.

In other places where readers need more context, we get none. Like chapter 7, we just popped up at a prison. As a reader, I could not figure out if we were on the island for Iris’s internship or a rehab center, until five pages into the chapter when we finally learn that Virginia is serving a prison sentence. Readers can gather that it is the next day because of the reference to “Xanax for breakfast” but no other aspects of the setting are established early in the chapter.

There are also jumps in time that need to be corrected. In chapter 9, Iris describes her first day at work. A direct quote from the first page of this chapter “The continuous operation of the hospital and the tediousness of travel require swing shifts. Three days, two nights on Shoal Island. My supplies are carefully rolled into my backpack: three pairs of white scrubs, two pairs of sweatpants and T-shirts for downtime, a novel, a plastic bag of toiletries, a pack of playing cards, and snacks.” This quote clearly implies that Iris will be staying for her entire three-day shift on the island. She has packed three sets of scrubs for three shifts, and two sets of sweats for 2 nights. The next present-day chapter (11), continues to describe her first day, but in Chapter 13 we get multiple quotes establishing that time has passed, and Iris has had multiple shifts on the Island.
Chapter 13, Page 126: “When I’m home for my four nights off, Cal never leaves my side.”
Chapter 13, Page 126: “During that first week, I am kept away from the patients.”
Chapter 13, Page 131: “That’s the way lunch goes for the first two weeks of my three days on/four days off schedule.”

But then two pages later we start to see details, that maybe we changed our minds.
Chapter 13, Page 133: “My backpack is heavy, stuffed with three days of necessities. Three days!”

On the first page of chapter 15, it is clear that we have now decided that Iris did not have any previous 3-day shifts, even though she packed for it, and has referred to her first two weeks on the job and training with different colleagues. “My first overnight went something like this…She leads me away from the older section of HOTI to the wide, well-lit hallways of the staff area,” followed by Iris getting a tour of the kitchen and sleeping areas. In chapter 15, we either go back in time suddenly without explanation or clear direction, or there is a continuity issue. Either clear directions about how much time has passed need to be added, or it needs to be made clear that Iris has returned home every night of her previous shifts (she doesn’t need to pack three scrubs if she is only working 1 shift, or 2 sets of downtime clothes if again she’s not staying overnight: aka no downtime). As a reader, I should not have to sit flipping back and forth to understand Iris’s schedule. Did she work one day with three days’ worth of supplies, return home, then go back for more training, return home, and finally go back for her “first overnight”? Or did we jump back to her first day of work after having the first 2 weeks described to us?

Even in chapter 1, on page 8, we suddenly get introduced to our first character: “He leans forward, rouses the mouse, and turns off the audio on his computer. Click click clack. I was referred to Dr. Stanford a year ago when my long-term therapist retired.” The first time Dr. Stanford is mentioned is using a pronoun. Then two sentences later we get his name. Maybe this was overlooked in proofreading, or a previous sentence was removed in editing. Either way, I strongly believe that Dr. Stanford should be introduced to readers as such before having his name replaced with a pronoun. Without the context that “he” is referring to Dr. Stanford, readers are left confused. I personally went back to the previous page believing I missed the introduction to a character. This was the second page of chapter 1.

I do not like to DNF novels, but I cannot continue this in its current form. I know that Tarryn Fisher is a capable author who puts together incredible storylines, but if she was a debut author, or this was my first introduction to her work, I would not have continued as far as I did.

I was really looking forward to reading and reviewing Tarryn Fisher's upcoming book Good Half Gone. Unfortunately the advanced PDF file I was sent does not work on my kobo, which is where I do all of my reading.
I look forward to reading it once it has been published on March 19.

Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for approving my request even though I am unable to read and review. I will update after publication date

I love me some Tarryn Fisher! She keeps me on my toes and I will auto-read every book she comes out with! 5 stars from me.

Iris's determination to find proof and her unconventional approach of interning at a hospital for the criminally insane add an intriguing element to the story. The mention of secrets lurking in the shadows and something more sinister beneath the surface adds a layer of mystery and suspense. The twist that the patients aren't the only ones being observed suggests a broader conspiracy or hidden agenda.

I enjoyed this popcorn thriller. It had a little bit of humor and I was actually pretty surprised by the twist in the end. The pacing was a little strange to me. Something big would happen and there would be long drags in between but overall it is a pretty short and quick read, so it didn’t drag long. Some of the names were so similar to each other that it was difficult to keep some characters straight and I found myself having to flip back and forth so I knew who I was reading about. Overall, this was enjoyable.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this Advance copy!

Unreadable; the editing is nonexistent. This is nothing against the novel itself, I merely could not read it due to the horrible formatting.

I am giving it 3 stars. I love Tarryn Fisher books.

This story was super hard for me to get into.
Iris witnessed the kidnapping of her twin sister, Piper, so why does no one believe her?
With the case being cold for years and no proof, Iris takes it into her own hands to find out the truth behind what happened to her sister, no matter the costs or circumstances.

This book starts off in such an intriguing way that catches your attention and draws you in with the story of Iris and Piper right from the first sentence, which it did, and I was all of a sudden over 30% through in the first sitting. It was definitely such a fast read because I wanted to know what happened to Piper just as much as Iris!
Thank you so much to Harlequin Trade Publishing/Graydon House and Netgalley for the e-copy ARC and opportunity to review for my honest review!!

The formatting of this eARC was unfortunately unreadable. The sentence breaks were in the wrong place in about every other sentence. I’m bummed because it was very distracting to the reading

Slow burn…. I had to really push myself to finish this. 3 stars is being generous. The beginning hooked me. But the story lacked something.

Love this authors thrillers. She always takes a nuanced approach to thr genre and keeps you guessing. I thought the twists were good and I liked thr characters. I would recommend it.

Tarryn Fisher is one of my favorite authors. I have read every one of her books. So Good Half Gone was one of my most anticipated reads of 2024.

The book is a thriller with a past/present timeline. It starts with Iris at age 15 calling 911 saying that her twin sister Piper has been kidnapped.

In the present Iris is in her early 20s with an 8 year old son. She has decided to accept an internship on an island that she gets to by ferry. She works at a creepy private hospital for the criminally insane.

I don't always love dual timelines. However in this case both time periods were quite interesting. In the past Iris and her Gram do everything in their power to get the police to find Piper. And in the present Iris is committed to learning the truth about her twin by any means necessary.

Iris was an amazing character who I really enjoyed. Her determination to get information and revenge was chilling. I really liked her relationship with her Gran and her son Cal.

I found much of this book to be quite riveting. I could not put it down. It was definitely very suspenseful. And the eerie setting at the mental hospital was so creepy. And the characters there were so unique. I did like the actual ending, however there were definitely parts of the major reveal that I did not think worked. I loved the premise so much. But I just wish that I felt more satisfied with how things played out.

I was hooked since the beginning. I enjoyed this thriller that kept me guessing and shocking me. I totally guessed the ending, but I'm not mad about it. The police department not taking Iris or her grandmother seriously had me annoyed. The whole prison on the island was cool and gave spooky vibes. This was my first book read by Tarryn Fisher, and it didn't disappoint. I will definitely read more of her books.

Very unique story. I loved Iris. One of my favorite authors! Great characters and development. Highly reccomend.

Good Half Gone is captivating, thrilling, and propulsive. Don't start reading it if you have things to do because walking away from this book is damn near impossible.

Iris is on a mission to find out what happened to her twin sister, Piper, who was abducted ten years ago. The plot alternates between the past and present, slowly exposing the tragic twins' stories. Fisher developed Iris' character so vividly that you can't help but become invested in her dire search for justice.

Good Half Gone was almost a five-star read for me. But unfortunately, the ending was rushed, like the author was pressured to tie up the plot. As written, you need to be willing to suspend reality and just appreciate the story. Too critical of an eye exposes a plethora of plot holes. The timeline of events is also quite shaky, but I hope those crucial details are ironed out in the final rounds of editing.

Thank you, NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing, for the opportunity to read this fast-paced thriller!

Thank you to Graydon House and Netgalley for the advanced copy of this novel.

This was a dark but gripping tale. I looked forward to picking up this novel each night at bedtime. The only reason I put it down was I so tired! This one really grips you about the 70% mark that you'll want to power through the ending to find out what happens.

I think this is a great read for young adult readers. Nothing outrageous in it but definitely an age group that could relate to the topic.

A unique storyline, follows the life of Iris’ after she witnesses’ her twin sister get kidnapped. Flash forward to the future and Iris is going to work at a hospital on a remote island thinking it could lead her to what happened to her sister.

Good start, quick ending where everything ties together.
Some inconsistencies- Iris says she graduated with solid C’s but in the next chapter talks about how she had a 4.0 gpa. Kept referring back to some guy named Marshall. He had no relevance to the story line.

This story is told in two timelines: present and past. In the beginning it was confusing and felt disconnected. When the story began to be told in the present only, it was quite captivating. The ending of this book was full of twists and turns. I wish I would have known a bit more about the main character, Iris. I couldn’t really visualize much about her throughout the story. Regardless, I will always pick up a book by Tarryn Fisher!

I love Tarryn Fisher so I was thrilled to receive a copy of her latest book! This book follows Piper who is searching for answers in her twins sister disappearance. I devoured this book and it’s easy to keep the pages turning! The ending twist, although it worked was just okay. But if you’re looking for the next page turner this needs to be added to your list. Thank you to netgalley and the author for an ARC.