This book was a rollercoaster for me, unfortunately not because of the actual book's writing or plot, but because my emotions were all over the place as I realized that this book was not what I was expecting. I got it for review (thank you publisher!) thinking it was a new adult book about solving a crime. When I realized it was about a 17/18 year old couple, I was slighly disheartened but decided to continue reading to solve the mystery. And I was glad I did because I thought this was a very solidly written book. The writing was nice, the dialogue was realistic, and for the most part, I wasn't hating the characters. By page 150, I was thinking this would be a solid 4 star book just for entertainment value. But then it took a twist I was not expecting, and quite honestly I wish it wouldn't have taken. It added an unnecessary element to this story that wasn't properly introduced or explained, and its involvement in the solving of the mystery was very lackluster and almost irritating. If you like books about solving crime you might consider checking this out, but otherwise, it just resonated very meh with me. But I gotta say, I love the little dashes of humor and silly moments that occur with the characters. I think they were really well-written and though they could be bland, they were fun to read about, especially in dual POV.

I received this free eARC novel from NetGalley. This is my honest review.

This has been on my TBR pile for so long, and I'm glad I finally got around to it. I really enjoyed the storyline and seeing the characters change throughout the story was a great character development. The plot was great and kept my attention. I'm glad I got the chance to read this and will be on the lookout for more in the future!

I liked this book more than I expected to. The characters were three do
Dimensional and had their flaws. However, Charlotte made some stupid decisions that got me wanting to shake her. The ending of this book felt incomplete and was planning for a second book.

I know Brigid Kemmerer for her Cursebreaker series, so it was very fun for me to jump into one of her older titles that kind of fell by the wayside in my huge review pile. In all honesty, I had heard there was a need for a second book and was afraid to read this one before knowing if a second one was being picked up by the pub. I hate cliffhangers that are never fixed. But I decided I had to give this a try after binging the Cursebreakers series, and I clearly picked the exact right time to read this one, because OH MY GOSH. What a ride. I loved this suspenseful, unpredictable mystery! I didn't know Brigid could write a mystery like this, but I've now convinced myself that she can do anything. I had no idea things were going to go the way they did. None. I was blindsided by the big revelation.

I really, really felt for Thomas. He's in a new town and his mother has been killed... and everyone thinks he did it. So not only is he reeling and devastated by the loss of his mom, he's dealing with accusatory stares from everyone he comes in contact with. Everyone except Charlotte, who is convinced he's innocent and wants to help prove that. I liked Charlotte! She comes from a conservative family of cops, and they kind of drove me crazy. I loved putting the pieces together of this mystery right along with Charlotte and Thomas. It was eerie and creepy and so exciting for me.

The ending! AHHHHH. I was warned, but I resisted. That can't be it. Can it? I mean, this was published 7 years ago so I guess that's it. It's not exactly a cliffhanger, but it feels incomplete. I want more loose ends tied up. AHH how frustrating! lol. Thicker Than Water is so wonderfully written. Brigid wrote two real, wonderful characters and told such an amazing story! I highly recommend this one, but will warn people to be wary of the lack of a sequel.

My review: I put off reading this for ages but once I started, I couldn’t put it down. The story took an unusual supernatural twist that I’m not sure I was expecting based on the blurb, and the resolution came quickly, leaving me wanting more. I could easily see this as the start of a series with these characters. They were all very well realised and interesting. I’d certainly love more of Nicole!

Kemmerer is a new author for me, and I will definitely be looking up her other work.

***Disclaimer: This e-ARC was provided to me by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Huge thanks to them. ***

My rating: 4/5

I recently bought a new kindle after my old one broke. For some reason I was unable to download this title from the cloud onto my kindle, therefore I will be unable to review this title. I am sorry for any inconvenience caused

After loving Letters to the Lost and falling in love with Kemmerer's writing all over again, I picked up Thicker Than Water straight away. But now, having read it, I'm a little disappointed.

Not because the story was bad, it wasn't. I loved both Thomas and Charlotte, their individual voices and their chemistry together. I was intrigued by the mystery; who killed Thomas' mum, why did they, and how did they get into a locked house? But for a lot of the book, Thomas is arrested several times over, or Charlotte is hanging out with Thomas when her family - which includes three older brothers and a father who are all cops - warn her away from him, certain he murdered his mother. The book is told from both perspectives, so we, the readers, know Thomas didn't kill his mum, but Charlotte doesn't know that for definite, and she just keeps meeting up with him despite all she's told. It just seemed really stupid to me. I know Thomas was a good guy, but that doesn't excuse reckless behaviour from someone who doesn't. I know, if Charlotte didn't keep hanging out with Thomas, there wouldn't really be a story, but I just kept thinking, "What are you doing?!" Even more so given the fact that Charlotte is also diabetic, and with regards to her food intake and sugar levels, she's not as on the ball as she normally is when around him, and puts her health at risk.

Other than that, not a huge amount happens, not until pretty much the last 30% of the book. We find out a few things, and the story gets more interesting... and then all of a sudden, there is a huge climax 95% where we get our answers, and then the book ends. So abruptly! It just seemed so bizarre to me that there's nothing much happening for a great deal of the book, and then for everything to happen in the last 5%. Everything happens so fast, and then it ends. There are still unanswered questions. So many. And just behaviour at the end that I don't think was realistic. In spoilers, because I can't talk about it otherwise.

SPOILERS HIDDEN IN MY REVIEW ON MY BLOG
Knowing that Thomas is an empath, and can heighten emotions, why would either one of them want to be with the other? I mean, how do they know that what Charlotte feels is real? Thomas hasn't yet got control of what he can do, so how does he know he's just heightening a crush into something more? How could he be happy with that? How could Charlotte be happy with that possibility, that her emotions are being played with? It just doesn't feel right to me.

Also, even though Thomas was being controlled by his brother JB when he attacked Charlotte, Charlotte still has that memory of Thomas lying over her with his hands round her throat. It doesn't matter that he wasn't in control, that he wasn't doing it himself, it was still him strangling her. That's not something you're going to get over so quickly. I know four weeks go by in a matter of short chapters at the very end there, but to throw her arms around his neck the first time she sees him after? No. That's not realistic. Having someone almost kill her isn't something she is just going to get over and be perfectly fine being around the guy who did it, no matter the circumstances. That would affect her. But she is not affected. I'm not saying, when it comes to this particular issue only, that she shouldn't be with him, just that it would be a lot more realistic if they would take things pretty slow. Because that's a lot to have to deal with. But she's not.

And again, that just takes me to the point before - if she's not reacting in this realistic way, are her emotions being played with by Thomas unconsciously? It all just seems quite weird and it makes me feel a little uncomfortable. Thomas, in my opinion, needs to do a lot of work on himself and his power before he gets close to anyone. And I think he's being irresponsible for allowing their relationship to continue when he hasn't got a handle on it yet.
SPOILERS END.

Saying all that, the book is seriously creepy. That ending, though very fast and abrupt, was just so awful. It made me feel so uncomfortable. It was so disturbing! The book is left open, though, what with all the questions left unanswered, and with how things are left. So if this is just a stand alone novel, then I'm hugely disappointed - which, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/questions/930138-will-there-be-a-sequel-to-thicker-than-water" target="_blank">as things stand, it looks like it is</a>. If there will be a sequel, I'd definitely give it a go, because I did love the characters, and I'm intrigued by what we learn at the end, but I would want a whole lot more to happen.

So yeah, I have mixed feelings. Which is really upsetting for me, because I was such a huge fan of The Elemental series. And I just feel awful for not loving a book as much as I'd like by an author I think is awesome. I am sad and disappointed.

Thank you to Kensington Books via NetGalley for the eProof.