In My Dreams I Hold a Knife | Ashley Winstead |Book Review |An addictive thriller
In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley Winstead is her debut Psychological thriller that released on 3rd August 2021. This is an addictive thriller about a cold crime that comes back to haunt 6 friends back for a College reunion. So, read the book summary, publication date, genre, quotes, similar book recommendations and book review of In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley Winstead in this post below.
About In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley Winstead:
No. of Pages: 356
Publication Date: 3rd August 2021 (Sourcebooks Landmark)
Genre: Psychological Thriller, Mystery, Dark Academia, Crime Fiction, Debut, Thriller
Can this be read as a standalone? YES
Buy From: AMAZON
In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley Winstead Book Summary:
At an elite college, 8 different students come together and become friends. But then in the final year, one friend gets murdered, another gets accused of the murder, and the other six remain witnesses to everything. Now after 10 years, someone out there is suspicious that the accused didn’t kill Heather and is determined to bring the real killer to justice. And the 6 friends back for the college reunion are the intended targets because one of them is either the real killer or knows more than what they are telling.
What really happened that night?
A twisty and dark psychological thriller, In My Dreams I Hold a Knife will have you on the edge of your seat throughout!
In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley Winstead Book Review:
In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley Winstead intrigued me because of the unusual title and the blurb. So, I jumped to read and review it.
Told in dual timelines, this fantastic thriller kept me on my toes throughout. Had I not known beforehand that this was Ashley WInstead’s debut book, I would never be able to guess because this mystery-thriller is absolutely spellbinding!
Things I loved:
Plot and Narration:
The first thing I loved about this story is the attention to detail. Ashley Winstead has planned and executed an intricately ingenious plot.
The narration is fluid and engaging. So, I could clearly visualise the settings, people, and events. It was like watching a technicolour movie in my mind and I absolutely adored each second spent reading this book!
The world building is splendid and set in an elite college where only the super rich kids study, this is another dark academia gem.
Ashley shows through her magical storytelling that things aren’t always what they seem. Like the accused student had been a rule abiding, good student throughout. A kind teenager with a gentle heart but when accused everyone turned against him.
Looking at him now, radiating kindness, filled me with anger. Jack was undeniably good, so easy to read. The fact that so many believed he was capable of brutal violence was baffling. I’d met dangerous people—truly dangerous people—and seen the violence in their eyes, heard it brimming in their voices. Jack wasn’t like that.”
In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley Winstead Book Quote
This book starts a bit slow but then picks up speed all the while managing to keep and increase the interest of the readers.
Characterisation:
This book has many complex characters with their own back stories, hidden agendas, emotional profiles etc. So, in short this book is a character driven thriller and one of the best thrillers of 2021 that I have read!
Each character is completely different from the others and it was enlightening to watch them closely.
Jessica Miller, the narrator of the story is one of the 6 friends and was also friends with the murdered girl, Heather. Together they were close to each other but Jessica always felt inferior to the other girls in her group. Often overlooked and underestimated, she has fought the feeling of inadequacy all her life and now, for the 10 year reunion, she wants to show everyone that she has excelled in every aspect of her life. She wants all her friends and naysayers in College to be jealous of her.
Jessica’s character irritated me and sometimes, even made me cringe and feel disgust. But amidst all this, she also felt relatable with her dysfunctional middle-class family, her rich popular friends, self-doubt, being the poor friend, lack of confidence, and the yearning to be the centre of attention. Her journey all this story is eye-opening and had me applauding the author’s in-depth knowledge of human nature.
The other friends are a diverse group comprising of a people pleaser, a drug dealer, a snobby mean girl, a popular sports player, and a rich boy.
All the characters reveal hidden depths to their characters, and as their shiny veneers come off, the readers are faced with the murky, rotten depths of human nature.
Ashley Winstead expertly lets the characters take the story forward and successfully manages to keep the readers hooked!
Things that could have been better:
There is nothing that I can think of and I am so glad!
Conclusion:
All in all, In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley Winstead bowled me over. I picked it up with no expectations and was left raving about it!
With diverse, complex characters, this book is so much more than a thriller. It is part coming-of-age, part murder mystery, part about accepting oneself, and part finding true love. So, prepare to be enlightened, heartbroken, conflicted, teary eyed, angry, and wowed all in one book.
Then there is the ending which, though a happy close, will leave you morally conflicted just like Verity by Colleen Hoover did. So, if you love dark, twisted, mind boggling, character driven thrillers with multiple trigger warnings then this psychological thriller debut book is for you.
5 out of 5 super shiny stars to it, Njkinny recommends this amazing dark academia, murder mystery to all crime, mystery, thriller lovers above the age of eighteen who are okay with reading dark, warped books. Also if you loved, Verity by Colleen Hoover then you will enjoy this one.
Buy From:
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