TILL DEATH – JENNIFER L. ARMENTROUT

**Spoilers Ahead, Read On With Caution**

Finally back to a Jennifer L. Armentrout book, and this time it’s not a part of a series. Oh no, it’s a standalone thriller, which will be your perfect read for this spooky October season! Unless you’re a wuss like me, and are not into Halloween at all. Also because it brings out all the weirdos, and makes people dress terrifyingly, and you just don’t need it in your life. Honestly, things that go boo in the night are just not for me. Never have been, probably won’t ever be.

Ten years ago, Sasha Keeton left what was left of her life in her West Virginia hometown, after escaping the serial killer known as the Groom. Returning to help her mum with running the family inn, means returning to all the memories, and possibly being able to finally fully put the incident behind her. Returning to her mum and all her old friends from before the incident, is like a breath of fresh air. But when Sasha is suddenly threatened again, FBI agent Cole Landis steps in, and vows to protect her in the way that he couldn’t ten years prior when she went missing after they’d met up. When first one woman disappears, and then another, Sasha and Cole both know something more serious is happening in town again. When disturbing cards are being left for Sasha, and the Groom and how she’s the sole survivor of him, she knows something very bad is happening again. Cole’s never forgiven himself for what happened to Sasha all those years ago, and keeping her safe now is his top priority. But someone is watching, waiting. And Cole and Sasha could slip up again. 

I read this book so fast, and made me so freaked out by all the small noises I’d hear whilst reading it. Honestly, with the creepy exerts from the supposed Groom character, it really hiked up the tension a wee bit. As a character, Sasha was both sure, and unsure of herself. It was like she had this weird balance going, where some things she’d be completely fine and confident in, and then at the other end of the spectrum, she’d be incredibly unsure and quiet. Which I suppose is to be expected from someone who went through what Sasha went through with the Groom. The Groom was a man who abducted unsuspecting women, and dressed them up to be his bride; all while keeping them captive. The reason he kept collecting “brides” was because he never found the right one. Not until Sasha, but she got away. And so when she returns to the town ten years later, creepy things start starting up again. Only, the Groom died ten years ago, with Sasha’s escape. And having never seen his face the entire time she was held captive, it’s unlikely she’d find him now even if he wasn’t dead already.

The words page turner and unputdownable get thrown around a lot in the book community I find, and honestly, it’s not for a lack of better words to use. Some books are simply incredibly hard to put down. I find books by Jennifer L. Armentrout to be just that. Hard to put down, and impossible to stop thinking about. And TILL DEATH is no exception to this. I was utterly hooked from the get-go, and didn’t really put it down until the early hours of the morning where I had to talk myself into putting down, and then into sleeping. Many-a-time did I find myself turning the lamp back on, and reading some more. 

I liked Sasha as a character. I found her to be strong and affected as anyone would be. She had a real sense of knowing, but I did find that there were a lot of times during her dialect that I didn’t find the ellipsis needed. Having pauses within her talking just nipped me out slightly as it interrupted the flow for me. However, I loved Cole. From before the Groom ordeal and after, he was lovely and brilliant, and someone I wish I’d met when I was sixteen. Protective, strong and intelligent; everything any girl could hope for. 

You’ve gotta get your hands on a copy of this, it’s a real rollercoaster.