Bryan Reardon

What to say about this book? It's the sort of novel that you don't want to know too much about before reading, because watching everything unfold and unravel is half the fun of reading it. There are so many twists and turns and nobody is actually who they seem to be.
On a surface level, I really enjoyed the book. It was gripping, creepy, and kept me up past my bedtime because I just had to keep reading. Had to know how it ended.
But how it ended is...complicated. I'm still not sure I've show more entirely wrapped my head around exactly how and why and by whose hand everything happened. If the ultimate ending is to be believed, then it required a pretty impressive conspiracy of quite a large group of people and a mastermind with an uncanny ability to predict the moves of a man he had never actually met. I just really struggled to wrap my brain around the final chapter and I think I would have been happier with one of the earlier "endings".
The endings aside, it was a wild and fun journey to go on and I definitely enjoyed reading it. It's full of mysteries to try to solve as you read along and complicated characters that you're never quite sure if you should be rooting for. show less

Finding Jake by Bryan Reardon is a 2015 William Morrow publication.

“Why are you sad?”

“You need to be more outgoing.

“You need to be more of team player.”

“You should get out more.”

Promoted as a book written in the vein of “We Need to Talk about Kevin” and “Defending Jacob”, I will lay you odds, that most people picked this book up because they believed the sole focus of the novel was about the gut-wrenching possibility by a couple that their child could be involved in show more a mass shooting. Yes, that is what this book is about, and it’s disturbing on so many levels, and is a scathing look at American society as we know it today.

School shootings have become a paralyzing fear for parents in the times we live in. In such cases, we immediately cast stones at the shooter’s family, blaming them for not seeing it coming, for not doing something to prevent it. How could they not know?

This is a theme that runs throughout this book, with people hurting on a level I can’t begin to absorb, trying to deal with the emotional trauma associated with the unthinkable loss of a child.

To lose a child is almost more than one could bear, but to lose them in such a horrifying way, would rip you apart heart and soul, but what if your child was a suspect? Can you even begin to imagine such a scenario?

The reader follows the first person narrative of Simon Connolly, a stay at home dad, as he faces, not only a parent’s worst nightmare, but one in which his beloved son, Jake, is possibly involved in a mass shooting at his school.

As his shocked mind attempts to digest the situation, he and his wife, Rachel, and daughter, Laney, must deal with the utter agony of not knowing where their son is, if he is injured, running scared, or dead, not to mention trying to cope with the accusations thrown at him.

As events unfold in the three- day period of time after the shooting, Simon begins to reflect back on his parenting skills, Jake’s quiet personality, parent-teacher conferences, the struggles of being a stay at home dad, before it was an accepted practice, and the divide his marriage was suffering from. He doubts every move he has made as a dad, what he should have done or shouldn’t have done. He is consumed by so much fear, and worry, he begins to lose faith, with so many seeds of doubt being planted about his son.

Everything about Simon and Rachel was so spot on, they could have been any couple in America, but they were also a couple who went against the grain. They did not always conform to the parenting rules set by others in their neighborhood or by teachers at the school their children attended.

Simon was a stay at home dad, Rachel the breadwinner, with a high stress occupation that demanded a lot of her time.

The author did an incredible job of showing the judgment passed on Simon by other men, how hard he was on his own self, how he coped with watching his wife live a life so separate from his that resentment formed deep within his heart, and he was often unfair to her.

I approved of the author’s depiction of ‘role reversal’, showing that raising decent human beings is hard work no matter who is home with the kids. While it is a luxury many would love to afford, it also has its challenges and is much harder than you know.

But, since Simon was the most hands on parent, his self- recriminations show the difficulties of having a child that is not like all the other children in temperament, as he chides himself, second guesses everything as places entirely too much blame on himself.

By contrast, Rachel deals with a different level of stress and is perhaps a little tougher, but would trade places with Simon in a heartbeat.

They may not have been perfect, but they were a couple many will find themselves relating to.

But, the underlying theme that many may not pick up on, at least not right way, is that being an introvert does not make one a criminal, insane, weird, untrustworthy, or stuck-up. Because Jake was quiet, didn’t engage with his classmates in the way our society expects, he was immediately a suspect. Because he tried to be nice to everyone, even those who were hard to like, even when they made him uncomfortable, he didn’t follow the crowd in making fun, or bullying, he was thus deemed guilty by association.

“Our culture made a virtue of living only as extroverts. We discouraged the inner journey, the quest for a center. So we lost our center and have to find it again.” ~Anais Nin

This novel paints a fairly accurate view of American society. Follow along with the crowd, and you will not be suspected of a heinous crime. Join the playdate club, rub elbows with the right people, be outgoing, gregarious, loud, talk all the time, constantly surrounded by people, always attend social gatherings, look just like everyone else, talk like everyone else, do the same things everyone else does, because if you don’t, you may find yourself labeled as being weird or antisocial.

“Growing up, it all seems so one-sided
Opinions all provided
The future pre-decided
Detached and subdivided
In the mass-production zone

Nowhere is the dreamer
Or the misfit so alone”

Conform or be cast out….

(SUBDIVISIONS BY RUSH)

While the book is most assuredly a psychological thriller with the suspense becoming almost unbearable, so taut I could barely breath at times, it is also a cautionary tale, one that highlights our hypocrisy, that points a finger at society, and gives the introverted soul a slap on the back, and the permission to give society the cold shoulder without being punished for it.

Simon and Rachel give us something to think hard about, because how often do we take life’s dull routines for granted, allow the small things to come between us, forget to count our blessings, or just live in the moment?

Simon may beat himself up forevermore, always worry endlessly, but despite their foibles and flaws, this family has so very much to be proud of setting such an outstanding example for us all.

It’s okay for you to view this book solely as a work of suspense, or as a thriller, because it is that, and if you understand why book’s conclusion is considered inspirational, then that is all I could hope for.

But for some who are extreme introverts like me…

This book touched me on many levels and while I am not usually a weeper, I cried the ugly cry, as I felt so connected to this struggling family, and saw a strength in them, they never knew they had, which gives me hope, though the lesson here is so very hard.

But, I for one came away with a feeling of vindication so profound I can’t thank this author enough for not only having the courage to write about such a difficult topic, but to also take a stand and fight for all the Jake’s in this world, and hopefully, his message was heard loud and clear.

“Everyone shines, given the right lighting.” ~Susan Cain show less

3.5/5 We've all read the horrendous stories and watched the news footage - shootings at schools....

Bryan Reardon's new novel, Finding Jake uses a school shooting as a starting point for his book.

Simon is a stay at home dad to Laney and Jake, while his wife heads out to her job as a lawyer each day. One fateful day, there is a shooting at the children's high school. Simon rushes to the school and anxiously waits to be reunited with his kids. Laney is fine, but Simon is the last parent waiting show more - and Jake is the only child missing. The suspected shooter was a loner, with Jake being his only friend.

Simon has had many doubts about his parenting skills over the years. He found it hard to mix in with the stay at home moms in the neighbourhood. He projected many of his own fears and insecurities on his children. Laney seemed to be unaffected, but Jake is a quiet child, preferring his own company.

As he waits for new, Simon relives Jake's life - from a baby to the young man he is today. And Simon's doubts, questions, self-recriminations, fears and anxieties about himself, his role as a parent, his childrearing abilities and his son are laid bare on the page. How well does he know his child? Where is Jake? His body was not inside the school - where could he be? Is he alive? Could he possibly be involved? What more could he have to protect his child? What did he do wrong?

Everything we learn is from Simon's point of view. It is as much a search for who is son his as it is a self exploration of himself as a father, husband and person. Despite his self realization, I found it hard to like Simon. As Simon's memories progress through the years, the picture we have of Jake changes. The ending was not at all predictable, though unsettling.

I found the back and forth between the past and present quite addictive. Reardon's prose have such a ring of authenticity to them - he eloquently articulates the fears we all harbour as parents. Reardon himself left an office job to stay home with his twin newborns. show less

Review of eBook

Documentary filmmaker Theo Snyder learned the hard way that success is fleeting, especially in Hollywood. His first film, “The Basement,” earned him critical raves and commercial success, but a humiliating public blunder not only knocked him from his pedestal of fame and adulation but also caused the cancellation of his latest film.

Determined to reclaim his standing and prove his talent, Theo sets out to make a documentary on the infamous “Halo Killer,” Jasper show more Ross-Johnson. But as Theo’s investigation provides him with new source material about the depraved serial killer, he becomes more and more obsessed with the truth of his film. Is his obsession pushing him into dangerous recklessness or will he finally find the truth about the night of Jasper’s capture?

The narrative, divided into four main sections [The Halo Killer, Miracle Jones, The Question, and The Hero], focuses on Theo as the central character in the telling of this sometimes-convoluted tale. As the story progresses, Theo develops a continually-escalating phobia as he attempts to put together the serial killer documentary that he believes will return him to his previous glory. Several chapters are presented as portions of the screenplay for the film, bringing a strong focus on the legitimacy of Theo’s ambitious documentary.

Although all the characters are reasonably well-defined, none are particularly empathetic; as the story unfolds, several unexpected revelations change what the reader has come to understand concerning certain people who play an integral part in the telling of the tale. Unfortunately, these revelations tend to seem a bit contrived, as if created solely to force the story in an unexpected direction.

This is a relatively quick-read, a story with a decided creepiness woven into the narrative’s suspense. However, despite the story being both captivating and mesmerizing, readers may find it difficult to accept that the depth of Theo’s passion for documentary filmmaking would allow him to fall into such a crushing paranoia.

I received a free copy of this eBook from Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley
#LetHerLie #NetGalley show less