Beth's Review: Downward by Bethan White
ARC
Publisher: T Squared Books
Released: April 21, 2016
Genre: Psychological, Thriller
Length: 222 pages
Format: ebook, Paperback
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Synopsis
Imagine a man, no stupider or thoughtless than anyone else you might meet. He struggles with depression and the denial which is so often its travelling companion, and this takes him on a downward spiral which sucks so many others into his wake. No fall from grace happens to just one person; the high velocity spatter of a life suddenly in ruins touches everyone and no one is ever the same again. Not everyone crashes and burns in his headlong flight; some are collateral damage and boy, do they deserve it! Some are hurt but can limp away, to carry on lives which are not worse, just different. Others gain knowledge, perspective and another layer of skin, making them more fit for the rest of their lives. Love, betrayal, lies and secrets pave the road of good intentions – just as life is never all dark or all light, Downward is peopled with those you will want to slap, those you want to applaud and those who you just want to hug until you make it better. From the time that tiny pebble starts the avalanche until all lies in chaos at the bottom of the mountain, this book will hold you tight and may never let you go.
Three Boundless Stars
Wow! This book is extremely true to its title; the story goes downward, the mood goes downward, and the depression goes downward, with no chance of rising. The main character, Chris Rowan, is a Real Estate agent, or as the book calls it, a Letting Agent. He has a huge streak of bad luck, and it only gets worse.
The writing is lovely, complete with the local slang; the characters are well developed, and the plot is unique and full of twists. I felt for Chris’ family throughout the book. I felt for Chris at times, and I wanted to slap some common sense into him the other times.
The only negative is after reading this book is; I’m left with unanswered questions; the main one being “why?” a lot of actions were left unexplained. I didn’t care for the ending too much either, or the last few chapters. He just kept making choices worse than the previous ones; this isn’t a symptom of depression, it’s an intellectual challenge.
With that being said; I liked Downward, but it could have been better; this is a 3 boundless stars rating.