Providence: A Novel Kindle Edition

I feel like books are becoming more diversified. They’re not just one or two things anymore. Where the Shadow Lies was a mysterious thriller with a side of romance. Folsom was a political romance with a side of dystopia. And this book—Providence—is a romantic mystery with a side of science fiction. It’s impressive really. People are so complicated; we’re never just one or two things. We’re many things, and we have many sides. So it makes sense that what we like to read is just as complex.I must admit, I was a little reluctant to read this book. I’m not a sci-fi fan. I like books I can relate to, and supernatural qualities are often unrelatable. Unless I’m smack dab in the middle of watching a Marvel movie, I shrug off the idea of super powers. A web can’t stop a train from crashing, a root can’t defuse a bomb, and a hammer can’t crush a building with one swing. It’s unrealistic to the point of being ridiculous. (Sorry, Marvel fans! I know, I know…you’re booing me right about now.)But that’s what’s so great about this book. Caroline creates an environment that is unlikely and makes it completely believable. Once you’re immersed in the story, you find that you’re less focused on the supernatural element and more focused on the brokenness of the characters and their unjust circumstances. It becomes a matter of who instead of a matter of how.Let’s talk about the main character, Jon Bronson. On the surface, he is a villain or—as he refers to himself many times—a “monster.” He harms people and, at times, he feels no regret. You should dislike him because of what he does, but you find yourself sympathizing with him because of who he is. Sound familiar?If you’ve read Caroline’s first book, You, then you’re very familiar with its main character, Joe Goldberg. Like Jon, Joe is also a villain. He harms people too, and he seldom regrets his actions. And yet, villain or not, you find the guy endearing. Some would even say they’d want to be BFFs with him (ahem, ME).Reading about Jon made me think about Joe. But aside from their three-letter, three-syllable names and “monsterlike” qualities, the comparison pretty much stops there. While there is a similar cadence in the books—story-wise, Providence is a very different book.One of the ways Providence is different is its manipulation of time. The novel spans many years. In that time, settings change and most characters evolve. There’s a real sense of “growing up”…or not. You see that some people mature while others remain stagnant. Some people deteriorate while others flourish.Now, I know you’re all wondering about the ending, and without giving much away, I will say, I had some questions at the end of this book. My thoughts went like this: “Wouldn’t they have [something spoilerish]?” “Why didn’t they [something equally spoilerish]?” “Do they end up [MAJORLY SPOILERISH]?” Some readers have docked the book a star or two because of these questions, but I honestly love novels that leave you guessing. I don’t want everything tied up in a perfect little bow. The fact that Caroline left a few things up to interpretation says (to me) that she trusts her readers. She thinks we’re intelligent, that we can handle the mystery. This just makes me respect her more.My advice to you, should you decide to read this book (and you really, really should) is to go into it with an open mind. Don’t think, “This won’t be my cup of tea.” Don’t think, “I loved You, so I know I’ll love this book.” Don’t think, “All villains deserve to die” (okay, maybe that one’s a bit harsh). DO think, “I want to escape,” “I want to be entertained,” “I want to read something different,” “I want to use my imagination.” If you can do these things, then you’ll love this book as much as I do.

4.5 stars!After reading YOU and Hidden Bodies earlier this year and falling madly in love with Caroline Kepnes' writing style, you can imagine how eager I was to read Providence by Caroline Kepnes. Now, Providence is not a 'Joe & Beck' story, let's just clarify that straight away. YOU and Hidden Bodies are the Joe & Beck stories and if you haven't read those two books, I highly recommend them (You is my favorite of the two-I have Goodreads reviews for both)Providence is a 'Jon & Chloe' story.The magical things that Kepnes does so well as an author are the best things about this book. Caroline has this casual, accessible, and compelling way of storytelling that is immediately captivating. The pages fly by as the "movie" begins to play in your mind.She also builds characters that are like flesh and blood people and she stages the interactions between them with so much realism, I forget that I'm reading a piece of fiction. Dialog exchanges sound like real life conversations-the way people really talk and the characters open up like flowers to the reader with their steady streams of inner mind-chat.The story here was so totally original, I found myself not finding an easy place to drop the bookmark at bedtime...each chapter was an invitation to keep reading.This story is equal parts love story/romance, supernatural sci-fi and maybe even some mystery/hardboiled detective threads. I would not say this is horror at all, as some were suggesting.But genre aside, this book is entertaining on so many levels and Caroline's writing is so engaging, I can't imagine a reader that wouldn't be interested in this book. Seriously, there's something for everyone here.My only real complaint would be that this book checked all the boxes for me except one: Teeth.I felt myself hoping that the story would eventually leap off the page and land in some really dark territory--there was some opportunity with the antagonist where I felt like I needed a little bit more from that part of the story. I wanted more motive there. But that's my only real complaint, the edge of the knife was a bit dull but other than that--everything about this story was speaking my language.Mad love for Caroline Kepnes. She an insta-buy author.

Caroline is literally my favorite author in the world, so it pains me to give this less than five stars. Her first two books were phenomenal. I get that this is like ... YA/Supernatural, but it just didn't have that edge to it that her first two books had. I couldn't even finish it because I didn't care about the characters or what was going to happen to them.

and thankfully mine wasn't broken with this book!I've read a lot of bad reviews of this book. But most of those people say "this is no Joe" or "didn't live up to YOU". Well, stop comparing that book and one! This is a completely different book.This book held my attention from the beginning. It was interesting. It was emotional. It was quirky.I like my books to have messy bits where everything isn't tied up perfectly in a bow for me. I don't want to spoil anything for anyone so that's all I can really say.But if you enjoy friendship to love stories, Lovecraft, young adult, crime fiction, thrillers, books where people nail married life and some of the hard truths of it, or super-power having people....buy this book! It's worth it!

Maybe 2.5. At times I was really immersed and wanting to know where things led....and then it dragged and dragged and I was over it. Had to force myself to finish even though I was anticipating this one SO much.

Wanted to love it, especially after how much I loved, loved, loved YOU, but I couldn't get into this one. I just kept waiting for something to happen. It dragged and i wasn't invested in the relationship between the two lead characters. Unfortunately, can't recommend this one, but the cover is incredible.

Normally I don't check the genre that a book is lodged under, to be honest most of them tell you in the tagline for the book these days (especially if you buy online). However, after finishing this one I have to say that personally I would have filed this one under Horror and not Crime, Mystery, Thriller (or whatever order they are in). It is exceptionally creepy and quite fantastical in it's construct; in fact it all comes across a little bit Stephen King (compliment there - I am a huge and long term fan of Mr King).The book basically follows the lives of 2 main characters:Jon - Bit of a loner at High School, the highlight of his daily life is the delivery of the Telegraph, so much so he asked for a subscription from his parents as a gift - not normal teenage boy behaviour. He has one friend, Chloe, and doesn't seem to particularly gel with his parents either. Jon also struggles with bullying and so takes the forest route to school, this proves to be his downfall when he is kidnapped one morning on his way to school and disappears without trace. Four years later he re-appears and he is changed - tall and muscular but still with the mindset of a 13 year old and in possession of a copy of HP Lovecraft's The Dunwich Horror and a letter from his kidnapper telling him that he is improved. This is where things get very, very strange indeed.Chloe - Jon's only friend from High School but has a group of friends of her own. Chloe really struggles to cope when Jon goes missing and turns to her art as solace, constantly drawing Jon's face and especially his eyes. Try as she might she cannot forget him and when he reappears she rushes from a Pool Party to be with him. Chloe does manage to more or less hold her life together, going to art college and then settling down in New York to become an artist, leaving a very public social media trail so that Jon can find her, if he wants (and how badly she wants him to).We then have a secondary character who is a major part of the story:Eggie - Providence cop who is starting to wonder at the sudden upswing in young people dieing of heart attacks completely out of the blue. Married with a severely autistic son we get to find out a lot about the state of his marriage to Lo, his disconnect with his son and his obsession with work. An obsession that almost proves fatal.Wonderfully constructed tale that has solid, believable characters that you don't always like. The concept of the book is sufficiently strange to keep you engaged - even though we, the reader, know the truth of what is happening it honestly doesn't detract from your enjoyment. Maybe, it makes it all the more compelling because this is a secret we share with Jon and Jon alone. Each of the 3 character's voices is strong and individual - even if the chapter didn't have the narrator's name in it you would immediately know from the tone of the writing.I've never really been a fan of Lovecraft (give me Poe any day of the week) but I think that I now need to read The Dunwich Horror.

Caroline Kepnes goes from strength to strength: "You" and "Hidden Bodies" were as addictive as any book can be, then she writes "Providence". Well, what to say that hasn't been said already by far greater minds than mine? Suffice to say that you will not be disappointed if you're a Kepnes fan: i.e. excellent character studies; superlative intertwining of sub-plots along with the main plot; the over-arching necessity of simply having to know what happens next.Added to which, Lovecraft's "The Dunwich Horror" is the backbone here; I recommend you read that before you read this, and if you haven't already, sort it out!Look, just buy this book, you will not be disappointed.

I read the whole book hoping that the riddle would be solved but it never was. Ridiculous premise and I wish that I had not bothered.

Big fan of this author already. This book was very different to the previous two but I have no complaints...I won’t go through the plot, best to go in with an open mind but this was unlike anything I’ve read before.Read the whole book within a day, great writing as always.Can’t wait to see where the author goes with her next book!

I struggled to review this. Not because I didn't like it but because I couldn't put into words how I felt, or even understand how I felt. I was confused throughout.This is the type of book where you don't get many answers. Especially the main question. Everything is left very open.I found myself captivated by this despite being confused. I was trying to see if I could figure it out myself, which I couldn't.