Tuesday Reviews: Gilt Hollow by Lorie Langdon

Title: Gilt Hollow
Author: Lorie Langdon

Publisher: Blink

Release Date: September 27, 2016

Format Read: ARC

Rating: Five stars

Review from Goodreads: Willow Lamott's best friend is a murderer, and no one in the small town of Gilt Hollow will let her forget it. For four long years, she's tried to fade into the background-- but none of that matters when Ashton Keller comes striding into school, fresh out of juvie and fueled by revenge. The moment their eyes meet, Willow no longer feels invisible. Drawn tot he vulnerability behind Ashton's mask of rage, she sinks deeper into his sinister world and begins to question whether he's a villain, a savior, or both. 

Ashton thought he wanted vengeance, until Willow reminded him what he'd been missing. Noe he longs to clear his name and become the person she sees in him. But the closer they get to uncovering the truth, the darker the secrets become, and Ashton fears his return to Git Hollow will destroy everyone he loves, especially the girl he left behind.

GILT HOLLOW was one of my top three plucks from BEA. I'd been super excited when I found out it was going to be there, and this is one of those books that I sacrificed a few drops for, because there was no way I was leaving without it.

Let's go with characters first. I love me some contemporary, and usually the contemporary love interests are pretty great, but guys... ASHTON. I finished that book and dreamt about him when I went to bed. He's so great. Far from a typical, flat love interest, Ashton Keller is well-developed and easily lovable, and he stole my heart from page one. Literally. Page one. 

Willow is also pretty great. She reminds me a lot of myself, and I was able to relate to many of her struggles, which made reading the story so much fun. She, too, is more than just a page character, and her development is pretty spot-on as well.

Plot. Plot can be summed up like this...

The mystery was fantastic. I thought I had the killer picked out from early on, and I ended up being close, but still wrong. The way Langdon crafted the story was perfect-- not obvious from the beginning, a big shock when you figure it out, and even if you make the killer out early, the way she goes about the rest of the story should definitely be entertaining enough to still keep you intrigued.

I absolutely LOVED this one. If you like a little romance with your mystery, then this is absolutely a book for you. Tall, Dark, and Dangerous is at your service.

Happily,

Stephanie