'Finding Magdalena' by Shannon Condon

Genre: Thriller/Drama

Overall, I did enjoy reading this novel; what kept me wanting to read ‘Finding Magdalena’ was the constant hyperbolic moments of intense drama.

I did find some aspects over-reaching and convenient just for plot progression which did take me out of the emersion of the narrative, and although at times the scenes of drama were very intense and a little uncomfortable I was unable to put the book down! The way Condon wrote these aspects of the novel was very well done and some of my favourite parts to the narrative.

What I did not particularly like was how many boys were interested in the main character, Maggie, and it always seemed that the boys/men in her life either loved or hated her, with no in-between. In spite of this, I did enjoy the differing friendships and relationships between characters, male and female, and I would be very interested in reading the next instalment in the series to see how these characters and their relationships progress.

As a whole, I did really enjoy reading this first book in the series. I thought Condon explored a nice range of subjects and themes, from mourning, anxiety, divorce, and abuse to love, sex, friendship, and family.

I think I would recommend this novel to a young adult audience that loves a bit of romance alongside their thriller/drama genre, as the romances made up a large part of the drama narrative.

Rating: * * * *

*I was sent this novel for free and asked to review it, however, all of these opinions are my own and completely honest, I was not paid to give this review.*