Standing Still – Book Review

Standing Still by Kelly Simmons

I read the first 40 or so pages of “Standing Still” n New Years Eve as I was waiting for stuff to happen.  The morning of New Years Day, I woke up earlier than planned and decided to read a bit more until I was ready to get up.  Next thing I knew, hours had passed and the book was finished!

“Standing Still” is the story of Claire, a mother and journalist who suffers from panic attacks.  After years of fearing an intruder whenever her husband was not home at night, Claire hears a noise and finds out her worst nightmare has come true; there is a strange man standing in her daughter’s room in the middle of the night.  After begging the man to leave the girl and take her instead, Claire finds herself kidnapped and held for ransom.

As much as the plot sounds dramatic, most of this book was primarily internal.  What made it so interesting were Claire’s thoughts and feelings about what was happening to her, particularly as her relationship with her captor evolved.  I also loved the way that Simmons drew the reader deeper into Claire’s past and psyche, to discover what turned a vivacious reporter into the shell of a woman she became.

I thought that “Standing Still” was extremely well done for a debut novel.  I am very glad I requested and read it, and will be looking forward to Simmons’ future work.

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