Jen witnesses her eighteen-year-old son murder a stranger outside of their house. Shocked and terrified, Jen and her husband must return to their home, while their son is arrested. The next morning, Jen wakes up and realizes that she has returned to the previous day, the morning before the murder. Each time she goes to bed, Jen jumps to a different day in the past, sometimes years in the past, each day holding a piece of the puzzle to solve the murder. Jen works to crack the case, but struggles as each time she travels further into the past, she must decide who she can trust with the news of both her time travel abilities and the impending murder.
I like a good mystery and I was excited when my neighborhood bookclub selected Gillian McAllister’s Wrong Place Wrong Time. I had been eyeing this book and was intrigued by the premise. I liked the intensity of the opening chapter, which starts with the murder. I was compelled to keep reading and finished half the book in a single sitting. The story has some solid surprises and I was kept guessing until the last forth of the book, when I anticipated the twist- still a very good twist!
The overall concept is strong and unique. The time travel component adds a level of intrigue. How Jen is able to time travel is never explained, however, I like the idea that whatever entity is making this possible, is taking her to the points in time that are key to solving the mystery. It’s a clever idea. It also gives Jen the problem of figuring out who she can trust with this information and who might think she is crazy. The flip-side to this time travel element is it started to feel tedious during the second half of the book. I think the framing of the chapters starting with a time jump bogged down the pacing. I also found the epilogue to be unnecessary and wish the book had ended with Jen.
On a whole, I enjoyed Wrong Place Wrong Time. I don’t believe that I have read McAllister’s other books, but I will seek them out and look forward to her future works. Her character development is fantastic and I liked her twists.