. ( )

I was rather disappointed in this book. I simply could not connect to Kate. For being highly educated and an award winning psychologist she made a lot of mistakes and the ending! - like trying to put a circle in a square; just didnt' fit right. ( )

A Breath After Drowning is the third book from author Alice Blanchard.

Kate Wolfe is a child psychiatrist. A teenager is dropped off by her mother at the hospital Kate works at. During her inteviews, the girl reveals that she knows unsettling details of Kate's personal life - notably the fact that Kate's younger sister was brutally murdered. The man who perpetrated the murder is on death row awaiting execution - and still proclaiming his innocence. Kate is then contacted by the police detective who solved the case - he too is now questioning the man's guilt.

Whew, lots going on. A Breath After Drowning has a busy plot. Blanchard moves her story along with many clues and developments being added. I did find some of those clues to be just a tad too fortuitous and convenient. I forgot, I just found, I remembered. For this reader, the story seemed to bog down in the middle and started feeling repetitive. Things do pick up closer to the end. Blanchard does provide numerous other suspects along the way, but the final whodunit wasn't overly surprising.

I really never engaged with the lead character. I found her insecurities at odds with the profession she has chosen. And I questioned the hospital and therapy sessions - they don't seem to be realistic or follow protocol. Kate's personal life with her fiancé seemed forced and didn't make her any more sympathetic or likeable for me. They both seemed like cardboard cut outs to me.

For this reader, A Breath After Drowning was just an okay, middle of the road read - I had hoped for more. ( )

Having read Blanchard's Darkness Peering and The Breathtaker, I knew that I would enjoy her writing style. That certainly hasn't changed; her words flow smoothly and create vivid pictures, and the story moved along quickly. However, I am glad the story moved swiftly because the book suffers from "too much middle" and needed tighter editing. It certainly didn't help that I deduced very early on the identity of the killer, and-- although she has reason to be fragile-- Kate's insecurities wore me down.

On the whole, A Breath After Drowning is a fast-paced enjoyable read with a thought-provoking plot, and I'm glad I read it. Give it a try! ( )