Breakaway Books

Authored by Paula Hawkins; Published October 2024; Thriller

⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 🏖️🏖️

In a year filled with thrillers, The Blue Hour did not stand out to me as one of the best. While somewhat suspenseful, it seemed to lack focus and the satisfying conclusion I like in my novels.

The Blue Hour is the story of Becker, an art expert who is tasked with procuring and assessing the art of a semi-famous deceased artist. Grace, the executor of the artist’s estate, is unwilling to cooperate with Becker and his rich employers, but is enticed by Becker into revealing more and more about the years before the artist’s death. Sifting through Grace’s ramblings and half-truths made it difficult to know who was reliable and who was not—a feeling I enjoy in thrillers—but ultimately, it was relatively predictable.

Set on a Scottish island frequently separated from the mainland by the tide, the setting of this narrative was among the most pleasurable elements. Picturing myself there, living a life fully dictated by the coming and going of the tide, did put me in the right mood for the creepy events that took place. The constant fear of being trapped by the water, the intimidatingly high cliffs, the forest filled with animals bones—all of it contributed to exactly the right vibe. A beach house may not seem haunting to you at first, but the author sets the scene beautifully.

But as the story progressed, it became easier and easier to see through Grace’s lies, and the ending felt inevitable. We learned more and more about Becker’s personal life, and I was left wondering why it had been included—it felt like Becker had barely been changed by the story at all. It didn’t tie in with the other elements of the narrative as I had expected it to, and the conclusion didn’t give me the closure I wanted. Overall, I wanted a more focused narrative and an ending that packed more of a punch.

The Blue Hour has a setting that is to die for, but the rest of it wasn’t quite up to par.