While You Were Gone - Blog Tour

Synopsis:
Despite Karen Caughee’s intense focus on her music, her life is drifting out of its lane. Her alcoholic mother keeps calling from bars for early-morning rides, her boyfriend doesn’t think she gets him, and that Toronto Symphony Orchestra position she applied for ends up going to her friend, Amy. By chance, she meets American Greg Randolf just before she’s in a car accident. He pulls her from the wreckage, but after major surgery, her recovery is slow. Without her music, her life’s pursuit, Karen is pushed further adrift.

Greg stays by her side while she heals, and he sees her every time he’s in Toronto for work. Without any other support or friendship in her life, Karen craves his enthusiastic attention, and their friendship deepens to love. Though she’s fallen hard for him, he doesn’t share everything with her. In one heartrending moment, Karen’s life comes to a crossroads, and she must face the full truth about who Greg is, and about who she has become.



Review (Contains Spoilers):
While You Were Gone is a stand alone novella based on the characters from Thought I Knew You by Kate Moretti. However, this novella raised so many questions for me as a reader not familiar with the original story. The story reads more like a prequel than a stand alone companion novel. Though I do believe that it could have been stand alone if it were a bit longer and focused more on what happened to Karen after Greg.

Karen Caughee is the main character in this novella and the story is told from her point of view. Within the span of a single day, Karen loses nearly everything: her boyfriend, her job, and her mobility. Sympathetically, I felt an immediate connection to Karen. She was down on her luck and I thought that the journey of rebuilding her life was both entertaining and emotionally inspiring. I was definitely rooting for Karen as she searched for happiness. When Karen discovers that Greg has a wife and family in the United States, the happiness Karen found is shattered and she finds herself once again starting over. This is where I thought the depth of the novella would be. I wanted to see Karen overcome this second round of heartbreak. Instead, the novella jumped ahead two years. Is this break where the novel Thought I Knew You takes place? Then suddenly, Karen is engaged and has a son. I was totally thrown for a loop. I felt like I was given a raw deal. I enjoyed reading the first part and then when the situation thickens, I don't even get to experience it. This was quite a bit unsatisfying. Mainly because I did feel a connection to Karen as I'm sure other readers will.

The plot began well enough. Karen, a violinist, loses her boyfriend, fails her audition, and then is in an accident which leaves her immobile for weeks. Greg, a bystander who pulled her from a burning vehicle, takes care of Karen during which a relationship forms. Happiness ensues while Karen begins to rebuild her life. Then she discovers he's married. Soon after, the novella ends leaving so many unanswered questions. What happens after Greg awakens from a coma that Karen knew nothing about? Does he ever learn that he and Karen had a son? What does her new fiance, Cal, think about all of this? When did Karen and Cal fall in love? Is her mother still struggling with alcoholism or has she stayed sober? These seemingly never ending questions are the main reason I wonder if Moretti is going to use this as a prequel instead of it remaining a 'stand-alone' novella like she claims in the foreword. The connection readers feel to Karen will be an important foundation if there is another book focusing on this. And if that book is Thought I Knew You... well, then I would have to say that reading that book is a definite prerequisite for this novella.

Rating: 2.5/5 Cups

Meet the Author:

Kate Moretti lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, two kids, and a dog. She’s worked in the pharmaceutical industry for ten years as a scientist, and has been an avid fiction reader her entire life.

She enjoys traveling and cooking, although with two kids, a day job, and writing, she doesn’t get to do those things as much as she’d like.

Her lifelong dream is to buy an old house with a secret passageway.

Goodreads / KateMoretti.com / Twitter / Facebook

Binds That Tie

Love ties. Murder binds.

Maggie never felt as though she belonged until Chris Stevens showed her what true happiness meant. Ten years into their marriage, miscarriages and infidelities have scarred them both. Despite their perfect-couple image, Maggie can’t look at Chris with anything but resentment. When a charismatic stranger offers the opportunity for a little harmless flirtation, she jumps into the game.

But charm soon turns to malice, and a deadly split-second decision forces Maggie and Chris onto a dangerous path fraught with secrets, lies, and guilt. With no one else to turn to—no one she dares trust—Maggie will ultimately learn just how binding marital ties can be.

*May Contain Spoilers*

Kate Moretti shares a thrilling story of marriage and murder in her novel, Binds That Tie. Maggie and Chris have been having problems within their matrimony for years. They've struggled through multiple miscarriages and adultery. All Maggie wants is to feel beautiful, adored, loved. She finds the chance in a seemingly harmless flirtation with an attractive stranger, Logan. Though Maggie doesn't know that Logan's past includes attempted rape, assault, and a restraining order. 

Growing tired of the flirtation, Maggie insists that she and Logan no longer keep in contact. Logan strongly disagrees which leads to the murder of Mr. Logan May. When Chris learns of what happened, he is terrified that he'll be the one in handcuffs looking at a long prison stay. Instead of calling the police, Chris opts for burying the body and pretending nothing happened. The next day, the police are knocking on the door asking questions that Chris is not prepared to answer. 

Maggie and Chris are the main characters, the novel switching focus back and forth between them. Sadly, neither of them are very likeable characters, reminding me of Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. Maggie lacks the warmth that a relationship requires. When she is sweet or caring, I'm wondering what her motive is. She's struggled through a lot and that needs to be taken into account when assessing her character, but the consistent blaming of her husband paired with her own adulterous actions reduces the sympathy I feel for her. Chris is a man who takes things into his own hands without thinking through all of the consequences. He cheated on his wife, but still loves her. He's protective, willing to hide his wife's murder victim, but is also unbalanced and selfish -- after all, he fully believed the police would blame him instantly, no matter what the story was. 

Though the characters weren't easy to relate to... or easy to like, the plot is absolutely thrilling. Stakes are incredibly high and both main characters are all in. Moretti brings flaws to the forefront and marriage becomes a battle. Binds That Tie is a novel propelled by plot, not by character connection, and will leave readers with goosebumps, wondering how people could treat the ones they love so badly. 

Rating: 2.5/5Cups