Review: Jar of Hearts by Jennifer Hillier

Title: Jar of Hearts
Author: Jennifer Hillier
Series: Stand Alone
Published By: Minotaur Books (June 12, 2018)
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Source: ARC Provided by the Publisher (in exchange for an honest review)
My Rating: 4 Stars!


Book Description:
"Jar of Hearts grabs you by the throat! The perfect blend of riveting characters, chilling details, and gasping twists in this standout thriller will keep you frantically reading until the explosive end.” – Lisa Gardner, New York Times bestselling author of Right Behind You

This is the story of three best friends: one who was murdered, one who went to prison, and one who's been searching for the truth all these years . . .

When she was sixteen years old, Angela Wong—one of the most popular girls in school—disappeared without a trace. Nobody ever suspected that her best friend, Georgina Shaw, now an executive and rising star at her Seattle pharmaceutical company, was involved in any way. Certainly not Kaiser Brody, who was close with both girls back in high school.

But fourteen years later, Angela Wong's remains are discovered in the woods near Geo's childhood home. And Kaiser—now a detective with Seattle PD—finally learns the truth: Angela was a victim of Calvin James. The same Calvin James who murdered at least three other women.

To the authorities, Calvin is a serial killer. But to Geo, he's something else entirely. Back in high school, Calvin was Geo's first love. Turbulent and often volatile, their relationship bordered on obsession from the moment they met right up until the night Angela was killed.

For fourteen years, Geo knew what happened to Angela and told no one. For fourteen years, she carried the secret of Angela's death until Geo was arrested and sent to prison.

While everyone thinks they finally know the truth, there are dark secrets buried deep. And what happened that fateful night is more complex and more chilling than anyone really knows. Now the obsessive past catches up with the deadly present when new bodies begin to turn up, killed in the exact same manner as Angela Wong.


How far will someone go to bury her secrets and hide her grief? How long can you get away with a lie? How long can you live with it?

*Amazon*B&N*

A Jar of Hearts is intense in almost every sense of the meaning. It had me gasping, holding my breath and sometimes gripping my kindle in anticipation of what would happen next. It was, in short, an extreme read. 

It was thrilling and horrifying and I never knew what was going to be said or revealed next. It was brutal and raw and even tough to read at times and yet, tough or not, brutal or not, it drew you in and refused to let go. It was like a leech, sucking all the air out of the room until you finished it. Your breath stolen from the horror of what was happening, what was done and what you knew was coming.

Told in parts and alternating between the past and present, it was a train wreck that I couldn't look away from. It was oh so addicting in all the wrong ways and I couldn't help but love it in-spite of  all the feels and wrongness of the story unfolding before my very eyes. 

It was everything I like in a good mystery and everything I love to hate in a thriller. It truly was a stand out read that is sure to garner a lot of fans and a lot of talk. 

*All thoughts and opinions are my own and were not influenced by the author or publisher. I was not compensated for this review.*