The Anniversary | Book Review
- Lisa Harvey
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
By Alex Finley
A BRISK and ENJOYABLE THRILLER with GREAT CHARACTERS
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
SUMMARY
On May 1, 1992, Jules Delany, a rich and popular high school sweetheart, survives an attack by the elusive and terrifying May Day Killer. He has killed five girls over the past five years. Jules keeps the attack to herself and doesn't even tell her family. She struggles with the trauma, shame, and guilt. She is most perplexed by why she survived when his other victims were murdered.
On the same day as Jules’ attack, Quinn Riley's life is also changed forever. Quin is a good and caring boy from the wrong side of the tracks. He is in the same study hall as Jules and is arrested when he innocently tries to break up a fight, but ends up almost killing someone. A year after his arrest, he is released from juvenile detention and returns home to the unsolved murder of his mother. The story revisits the lives of Jules and Quinn over the next ten years, on the anniversary of the May Day attacks, as they both struggle to find their own truth.
REVIEW
A small town in Nebraska in 1992 is the setting of this emotional and intriguing read. I thoroughly enjoyed the jump in time from one year to the next on the May 1 anniversary when both Jules and Quinn’s lives changed. I loved the dual perspectives of Jules and Quinn and how their lives intersected over the next 10 years. I also appreciated both characters persistence and perseverance in finding the truth behind the tragedies in their lives. The pacing of the book and its twists were both carefully crafted.
Author Alex Finey is known for writing fast-paced thrillers, most recently Parent Weekend, which was an instant bestseller and has been picked up for a screen adaptation. The Anniversary should follow suit. His writing effortlessly blends the lives of Jules and Quinn, creating a suspenseful, fast-paced story. His engaging and well-developed characters are the pillars of the story, and together they drive the narrative, making you feel their struggles and pain.
It is a brisk, enjoyable read you don’t want to miss. Interestingly, I was a student in a sorority at Florida State University on January 15, 1978, when Ted Bundy attacked coeds in a nearby sorority. A friend of mine survived the attack. I mention this because Alex Finlay quotes Bundy in his epigraph; Bundy was truly a horrific man, much like the May Day KIller.
Thank you to Netgalley and St Martin’s Press for an advance copy of this book. All opinions expressed here are my own.
Publisher St. Martin’s Press
Published May 12, 2026
Review www.bluestockingreviews.com
