All the Dangerous Things by Stacy Willingham | Book Review
All the Dangerous Things by Stacy Willingham
Release Date: 2nd February 2023
Genre: Adult, Thriller
Source: Publisher, NetGalley
Rating: ★★★★
One year ago, Isabelle Drake’s life changed forever: her toddler son, Mason, was taken out of his crib in the middle of the night while she and her husband were asleep in the next room. With little evidence and few leads for the police to chase, the case quickly went cold. However, Isabelle cannot rest until Mason is returned to her—literally.
Except for the occasional catnap or small blackout where she loses track of time, she hasn’t slept in a year.
Isabelle’s entire existence now revolves around finding him, but she knows she can’t go on this way forever. In hopes of jarring loose a new witness or buried clue, she agrees to be interviewed by a true-crime podcaster—but his interest in Isabelle’s past makes her nervous. His incessant questioning paired with her severe insomnia has brought up uncomfortable memories from her own childhood, making Isabelle start to doubt her recollection of the night of Mason’s disappearance, as well as second-guess who she can trust… including herself. But she is determined to figure out the truth no matter where it leads.
It took me forever to read Stacy Willingham’s debut novel, A Flicker in the Dark, but as soon as I got my hands on All the Dangerous Things I knew that I needed to eat it right up. Willingham has such a way of drawing you into a story and getting you to care about her characters – which I think is a rare gift for a lot of thriller books!
The missing child storyline is what really drew me to this book, and then when I also saw this features a podcaster I wanted to know more. I’ve been really enjoying that trope lately, as someone who listens to a lot of podcasts!
All the Dangerous Things drew me in immediately and the pacing kept up the entire way through. I really enjoyed the darker ending, which I only started to expect partway through. I love it when thrillers throw in a dark twist!
This story proves that I get on really well with Willingham’s writing and I’m pleased that her sophomore book was just as good as her debut. I don’t think the characters are as memorable, but their actions certainly were. I’m really looking forward to seeing what she comes out with next!
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