Judas Child

Rating:
Summary: Gripping, detailed, left me wanting more
Review: Are there 2 versions of this book? I can't understand how people found it dull. I also was late to work staying up to read it. Yes, you had to pay attention; but a good book will draw you back again and again to see the nuances you missed the first time. There are no easy answers in Carol O'Connell's books, you must make up your own mind sometimes about what has taken place, or what the characters will do after the novel ends. If O'Connell develops another line of books with Rouge Kendall as the lead, I'll buy them just as quickly as the Mallory novels.

Rating:
Summary: Hooked on O'Connell
Review: I had never read Carol O'Connell before and Judas Child was recommended to me by an American friend.

From the opening chapter of the man lurking in the lane I was hooked. The characterisation is stunning, especially Sadie and Rouge - I fell in love with both. The novels builds and becomes more complex just as you think you know what is going to happen. The characters change and develop - just as in real life no one is as they first appear and everyone is portrayed in their different and various shades.

The passages on the two girls are full of bravery and truth and are heartbreaking too - even thought they are best friends one knows they would put their own survival first.

The ending is pheonomenal - I did not see it coming and I found it heartbreaking yet uplifting at the same time. I now cannot wait to read all Ms O'Connell's other books.

Judas Child is simply the most imaginative and stirring novel I have read in a very long time. I have rarely felt so excited about a book and recommend it to everyone.

Rating:
Summary: Did You Get It?
Review: I'm giving this book just four stars because I'm inclined to agree with the other reviewers who say it starts out too slow and stays that way too long. (I originally thought it might just seem that way to me because I was expecting the intensity of the Mallory series.)

I'm so glad I stuck with it. First, although it takes her awhile in this novel, O'Connell creates really great characters, especially female characters. Second, I've read a lot of mystery and suspense novels in my time. It's rare for one to really surprise me, but this one absolutely stunned me.

I think the readers who rated it low either didn't finish it or didn't get it. It's easy to see how the latter could happen. You want to find out who the bad guy is and whether the girls are rescued in time. Once you do, you think, okay, that was pretty good, or not. But believe me, there's a lot more to this story--you need to THINK about it. I can't say more without spoiling it...

Rating:
Summary: Haunting and unforgettable
Review: O'Connell's Mallory series is good. This book is great. Unlike most thrillers, which mingle in memory with a hundred other books like them, this novel lingers on your mind for years. O'Connell's adult characters are well drawn and sympathetic, but the little girls steal the show. Be warned--you will be late for work, stay up past your bedtime, let dinner burn on the stove, just to find out what happens to these engaging children. The tension is sometimes almost painful, but delicious at the same time. I have never read another book that made me actually want to jump into the pages and help a character. I hate to use a cliche, but this is a must read.

Rating:
Summary: Incredible !
Review: This is the first book by Carol O'Connell that I read and if her other books are only half as good, everyone will well be worth reading. "Judas Child" had me gripped from the very first page. Due to circumstances I had to read this in little installments over about a week but everytime I opened the book it took only a few sentences and I was inside the story again. I had to be very careful when reading because time just flew by. This must be one of the best mysteries I ever read. Up until now I had that pedestal reserved for Elizabeth George and Minette Walters, but Carol O'Connell is definitely up there as well.

Just before christmas two children disappear from a small town. At first they are believed to be runaways, but soon this disappearance is tied to a crime that shocked the town fifteen years ago. A man had been convicted, but was it the right one ? A mad hunt for the children starts that involves many parties. Meanwhile the two children are trying to survive in a nightmare environment.

The story twists and turns while always keeping your interest. Strong main characters, interesting secondary characters. The children are smart, but not too clever. Everything seems believable. And when the crime is solved, Ms O'Connell has another surprise in stock that threw me off completely. One last twists that beats them all. Absolutely fabulous !