I found myself absolute lost in this book. A captivating tale with unforgettable characters. Strongly recommend. Will pick up her other books.

Wowza. This one was a LONG one and what I felt a very slow burn, with much of the action happening in the last 20% of the book. That being said— this is a story of love, hope, some mystery. It’s my first by this author and surely won’t be my last. I can totally understand why this book is being so hyped up but the length of it really was a struggle for me. I loved how it all came together in the end and overall I’m giving it a 4/5! It needed to be shorter and less descriptive. Big win on the short chapters though, had they been longer, I’m not sure I could have stuck with it.

Chris Whitaker's All the Colors of the Dark is a gripping story, told over several decades, with unforgettable characters. This is one of those books that you'll be thinking about long after finishing. I loved it.

There are many things I can say that Whitaker does well but mostly it's his ability to emotionally destroy me. 😭

This is the story of Patch, a 13 year old boy who believes he's a pirate due to his missing eye, and Saint a lonely girl in his class that he befriends. The two of their lives intertwine in so many ways that it will take decades to untangle.

This epic 600+ page book that spans decades is nothing short of magnificent. I won't speak of the plot because it is so intricate, so emotionally compelling, so nuanced that I will only sound like a blubbering idiot in the wake of Whitakers brilliance. This man is so talented that I am truly in awe and so very grateful to be able to savor the words he puts on the page. It's books like this that remind me why I love reading so much. When an author can reach into the very depths of your soul leaving you breathless.

This book is painful. It will make you ache.

I admit it will take me a bit to put the pieces of my heart back together again but it was worth every minute of destruction.

Every single one of these characters touched me in ways I could never have imagined and I will never forget them. Highest recommendation. ALL. THE. DAZZLING. STARS.

Thank you to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for my complimentary copy.

Favorite parts:

+ This book is beautifully written with well developed characters that you grow to love.
+ I loved how much background we got to the mystery and characters- it is often what I miss in "typical" thrillers or mysteries.
+ I loved the references to and inclusion of art.
+ There are lots of short chapters which kept me turning the pages. I also enjoyed the style in which the story was told- it felt as if I was piecing together a puzzle along with the characters.
+ The ending was satisfying and tied together nicely.

Parts I could've done without:

- There were a lot of religious messages that didn't feel necessary to me or authentic to the characters. I could have done without them and the many pop culture references that also went over my head.
- While there were several other good surprises, one of the biggest "mysteries" I guessed at the very beginning- this left me feeling slightly underwhelmed at the ending.
- It was very long. As a result, I sometimes found it hard to keep track of some of the characters and smaller details. If I were reading it again, I'd try to read it quickly or in larger chunks of time so that all of those details stayed fresh in my mind.
- Without any spoilers, I was hoping for a different outcome for Saint's character.

Overall: This book (and especially the characters) are memorable and I enjoyed reading it. The high quality writing easily deserves 5 stars, but due to my personal preferences I'd give my experience of reading it 4/5 stars. I would still highly recommend it to anyone looking for a literary mystery & can see why Chris Whitaker is such an acclaimed author. I look forward to reading more of his work.

I loved this book. Saint and Patch were two memorable characters. The plot was original and it moved fast. I couldn’t put it down. This would make an excellent book club choice.

Thank you to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for the eARC.

Chris Whitaker's "We Begin at the End" was the first book I read in 2022 and my favorite book of 2022. When I was approved for his new novel I was overjoyed. All the Colors of the Dark is a sweeping, heart breaking story that I really could not look away from. The length was intimidating at first, but I should have known how Whitaker's writing would draw me in and captivate me. This story is full of tragedy and friendships and keeps you hooked thanks to the short chapters.

All the stars.

Amazing! This will be one of my top books of the year. While the story is dark, the writing sings with short chapters that kept me hooked. It also grapples with the complexity of life and being a human. The dark is not with out the light. The wide characters were deep and multi-dimensional. I enjoyed the unexpected theme of art throughout. Highly recommend this one!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for an advanced copy of this novel.

I had high hopes for this one as a few of my "book twins" raved about it. I was super excited to get into it.

Unfortunately, it fell flat for me. I had a hard time deciphering what the author was trying to portray. I think I am going to pick up a hard copy and see if that is any different. I honestly believe this is a right book, wrong time situation.

3.5-4⭐️
I couldn’t put this down, but I kept having a nagging feeling of feeling underwhelmed. The characters and heart are big, but plot felt like it didn’t rise to meet the characters’ potential. I felt like some thing would be building, and then a plot twist would happen that didn’t really seem to fit. And then we would jump to the next section of the book. I still maintain that Chris Whitaker is an all-time favorite author, but this wouldn’t be the first book by him I suggested to new readers.

Having read Chris' previous book, We Begin at The End, I was aware of his writing style and looking forward to this one! His writing is kind of poetic, and has sentence fragments. Maybe I'm growing up but I really enjoyed the way he writes in his newest book, All the Colors of The Dark! Short synopsis is a young boy named Patch, who considers himself a pirate of sorts and somewhat of an outsider, saves a girls life which then changes his future and the future of those around him. Along with his Best Friend, Saint they embark on a story that spans decades.
I personally love any kind of saga, I love books that cover decades, and we see how these characters develop. I became very invested in Patch and Saint. This book has been hailed as one of the best books of 2024 for good reason! There is suspense, and literary elements as well as some romance.
Pros- spans decades
short chapters
likeable characters

Cons-
writing style could be off putting to those that don't like a more poetic style.
600 pages

Thank you to netgalley and Crown publishers for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Two friends who keep love alive throughout years of trauma. A story that bends genres, and will remind you that, in the midst of pain, there are people who make life worthwhile. This will be a favorite book of the year for me.

Thank you NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. I enjoyed about 80 percent of it..the beginning totally had me hooked in, unfortunately I felt a bit heavy with it in the middle but the end definitely redeemed itself. The storytelling in this book was excellent, and I loved and was concerned about the characters, Patch especially. I think I personally just struggle with longer books but it was a beautiful book overall.

Hands down this is going to be my favorite book of 2024! Thank you Netgalley and Crown Publisher AND Chris Whitaker. I didn’t think he could top We Begin at the End,, which I also read this year and will also be in my top 5 books for 2024. I won’r rehash the plot, but this is a gorgeous fictional thriller bordering on literary set in 1970s and feels like a Martin Scorsese movie from that time period. That’s the best way I can describe the writing. You just simply feel each word down to its core.
Loved loved loved

I will not love the horrible book hangover this book is sure to cause.

Whoa. This story lingers long after the last page. All the Colors of the Dark covers more than twenty-five years from 1975 to 2021 in the small town of Monta Clare, Missouri where Saint and Patch are drawn together as outcasts. Saint, raised by her no-nonsense bus driving grandmother whom everyone thinks is a lesbian, has an obsession with bees. Patch has one eye and not only takes care of himself, but also his drug addict mother who cannot get over the loss of her husband in the Vietnam War. The two awkward kids have only each other courtesy of their abnormal family dynamics.

This small town is much like any other, until young girls start going missing. Patch, an unlikely hero, makes a choice that will permanently alter his life, and Saint who would do anything for her best friend relentlessly proves her loyalty as their lives diverge and converge across the years. Their childhood bond is pushed to the limits as obsession overtakes both Saint and Patch as they find ways to overcome their past traumas.

This novel reads like a psychological thriller at times and an unrequited love story at times. Ultimately this is character-driven novel and Whitaker’s cast is not only diverse, but incredibly intriguing, sometimes inspiring, and occasionally disturbing. The short chapters make this genre-bending novel very hard to put down. Though some characters’ motives had me questioning their direction, and I knew a twist was coming, I was still shocked by a few plot lines (and that rarely happens).

Thank you to NetGalley, Crown Publishing, and of course the author Chris Whitaker for the advanced copy of the book. All the Colors of the Dark is out now and should definitely be added to your reading pile! All opinions are my own.

One of the best books I'll read this year!

I was intimidated to start this book because of the length, but the short chapters quickly moved the story along.

In All the Colors of the Dark, Patch the local "weird" kid, missing an eye, wears an eye patch, and is obsessed with pirate. Saint, raised by her grandmother is Patch's only friend. When Patch goes missing, Saint seems to be the only person determined to find out what happened to him.

In a cycle that follows them throughout their lives, Saint becomes the only person able to track down Patch while he keeps running away to track down the girl Grace who lived alone with him in the dark for the 9 long months he went missing.

Similar to We Begin at the End, Whitaker knows exactly how to draw out how the acts of one person can impact the lives of many multiple times over.

Loved, loved, loved.

Thank you to NetGalley, Crown Publishing, and Chris Whitaker for a copy in exchange for a review.

If any book were perfect, this would be it. Whitaker follows the stories of Saint and Patch from middle school through adulthood. Both only children, Saint is being raised by her grandmother and Patch by his mentally ill mom. There is mystery, romance, murder, and twists. The character development is tremendous. I loved the short chapter format. The tale is wholly original. The story unfolds like pieces of a puzzle that slowly come together. This is probably the best book I will read this year and it’s only July. I thank NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Let me start by saying this is a brilliant story. How Whitaker managed to take such heavy content and turn it into a story that felt poetic and wistful, heartfelt and magical, sweet and yet heavy is artistry. It truly is.

It's a story about how one event can change the entire life of not just one person but all the individuals they are connected to. It captures the interconnectedness of humanity in a truly powerful way.

1975. Small town girls are disappearing. Patch, best friend to Saint, a small town girl, is kidnapped while saving a local girl. Saint goes on a mission to save him and, in doing so, they both realize that tragedy and triumph can coexist. The course of their lives are changed permanently by the events and choices made that day.

It's a serial killer thriller, an FBI novel, a family drama and a love story, full of friendship, mystery and redemption, all rolled into one.

I truly adored Whitaker's last book and the way it was written. I was expecting the same style on this one. I would say that my only complaint in this book was the actual writing structure. While the story itself was rich and full and poetry in motion, the structure itself felt short and choppy. To me, it actually broke up the story. I'm sure there are people that loved it because of the style but when I was at 30% and reading chapter 80, to me it broke it up too much. It actually felt like there were times that thoughts were broken up between chapters. That would be my only complaint; the story was beautiful, the structure was not.

Thanks, Crown Publishing, for the early review copy via NetGalley and @PRHAudio for the #gifted audiobook. #PRHAudioPartner #sponsored

You undoubtedly see this on everyone’s “best of 2024” lists, and it’s only July. The story starts in 1975 in a small Missouri town when an unlikely hero (Patch) saves the prettiest girl in town from a kidnapping and disappears. His best friend (Saint) will stop at nothing to save her friend.

Make sure you are in the right headspace before starting this one. Stretch first and hydrate because it’s an epic, multifaceted tale of friendship, family, loss, redemption, and heartbreak. The writing is lovely, the pacing is methodical, and the characters will not just take up residence in your heart but also your thoughts long after you've finished the book. I had a serious book hangover after finishing this, not only because it was a 14-hour audiobook but also because I was wrung out from living this story with Patch and Saint over their decades-long friendship.

This is exceptional storytelling, and Ballerini is the perfect choice for the narrator. His unique blend of gravitas and whimsey suits Whitaker’s heartfelt saga about a pirate and a beekeeper (#IYKYK).

Chris Whitaker writes the most beautiful books about childhood friendships. Saint and Patch have a bond that we follow throughout their lifetime. It’s a mystery meets coming of age story and you’ll finish it and wonder how 600 pages went by so quickly. Chris Whitaker has quickly become one of my favorite authors and this book is a masterpiece. Loved it!

Thank you to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for this ARC.