THE PRETTY ONES by Ania Ahlborn

The Pretty Ones by Ania Ahlborn
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have a few of this author's books on my Kindle, so I decided it was time to sample her writing. I started with this novella.

It's 1977 in New York, and not only is the weather super hot, but there's a killer on the loose. Everyone in the city lives in fear of the Son of Sam, especially women.

But Nell Sullivan isn't afraid because she's not beautiful or popular.

Nell doesn't have any real friends, just her silent but judgemental brother, Barrett. Plus the office job that keeps a shitty roof over their heads and food on the table. But when she decides it's time to try and befriend some of her workmates, Barrett sabotages her attempts with violence...

Yikes. This book sure grabbed me from the very beginning! For being a novella, it's sure narrative heavy. Yet never dragged or got boring. Nope, I was gripped by Nell's simple but messed up life and couldn't stop reading.

Getting lost in this character's very confused mind was trippy, and kinda sad because Nell was a little nuts. Okay, maybe she was so much more: awkward, quiet, confused, angry and so self-conscious she doesn't give herself a chance to really breathe.

I thought all the details--big and small--and characters, even the atmosphere captured the 1970s perfectly. It was easy to slip back into Nell and Barrett's time and get lost in the crazy time when a serial killer held a city hostage. I mean, even the idea of setting THIS story during that time is genius.

Even though I worked out what was really happening before reaching the reveal, I still enjoyed the hell out of this story.

Now I'm looking forward to reading more Ania Ahlborn books. 😀

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