The Victim by Max Manning

☆☆☆
ebook, 336 pages
Published August 6th 2019 by Sourcebooks Landmark
About the Book:
Make the wrong choice, and you won’t live to make another. When public relations executive Gem Golding becomes the victim of a carjacking at the hands of a dangerous criminal bent on her destruction, she must make a choice: Does she surrender to her attacker, or does she stand her ground and fight for her life? What follows are the two strands Gem’s life can take, and the chain of causes and effects that leads to Gem’s survival...or her eventual demise. Emphasizing the power our choices have to determine who we become, The Victim is an ingenious high-concept psychological thriller following the devastating effects of two characters as they spiral toward their ultimate fates.

This book explores the concept of how actions have consequences. The story switches between two story-lines: one where Gem fights, and one where she surrenders. An interesting take on potential futures, based on the choices you make. I enjoyed the concept in this novel as it has not been overdone. Gem makes some unquestionably dubious choices that lead her to the situations she experiences, despite this I sympathized with her and still wanted a happy ending for her. I found the surrender story-line to be more interesting and it was encouraging to see her develop a bit throughout the book.

The suspense angle didn’t hook me like I’d hoped and there are a lot of character points of view...Gem the Warrior, Gem the Victim, The Detective, The Mastermind, The Boyfriend and The Reporter. WHEW! The reader never really gets a chance to know most of them because there are just so damn many. I am not a huge fan of novels with chapters of alternating points of view, I think it pulls one out of the story somewhat.

The Victim is a very unique book. It was a very different concept that made for an interesting read. I found Gem to be a pretty unlikable person in both versions of the story. But as the plot thickened she began to redeemed herself. And while I still wouldn’t want her as a friend, she made for a fascinating character. Although this wasn't my cup of tea the writing was commendable so I would definitely read more by this author.

Thank you NetGalley, Max Manning and Sourcebooks Landmark Books for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an impartial review; all opinions are my own.

#NetGalley