Tom Savage | VALENTINE

Plot (via Goodreads):

Jillian Talbot seems to have everything: a lovely home in Greenwich Village, a small circle of close friends, a handsome and passionate lover who has just proposed to her, and a glamorous career as a bestselling author of suspense novels. Her writing has captivated thousands of fans, but she has always been safe from the terrifying scenes she creates. Until now. Somewhere in the shadows of New York City, someone is watching her. He knows her every move, her every fear, almost before she knows it herself. He is as devoted as a lover, courting her in his own mysterious way - leaving notes in her mailbox, gifts on her doorstep, messages on her answering machine. His motives are as cryptic as the name he goes by: Valentine. But his intentions are deadly clear. For Jill Talbot, the terror has just begun. Wherever she runs, he will find her. And soon she will meet him on his terrible day of judgment. His triumphant day. Her darkest day. Valentine's Day.

Review:

I've always been the kind of person that has this need to read the book before the movie. I know I'm not alone in this, but my obsession with this has actually caused me to miss a movie in the theater if I don't get to the book in time. Well, being a huge fan of the late 90s and early 2000s slasher movies, when I was in high school I remember seeing the trailer for a movie called Valentine with Denise Richards and David Boreanaz (hellooo Angel!) and immediately began my research. When I found out it was originally a novel, I knew I had to get a copy. So, I went to my local bookstore and thankfully they had a mass paperback copy that I devoured within a week. Now, back then I wasn't as fast of a reader as I am now and that was a big deal for me with social obligations and school taking up most of my time. What I remember is a creepy tale of obsession with so many things that I kind of believe shaped me into the reader I am now. I mean, I'm enthralled with a good back story in a novel, I love thrillers with twists and turns and shocking endings, and whodunnits are the ultimate giddy reading experience. 

Well, here we are over 15 years later and I had a moment where I thought of this novel and knew it was the perfect time to revisit it. Now that my reading tastes have matured more and I have higher expectations in what I consider a good read, I wanted to revisit this one and see how I felt about it now. I was not disappointed and for once, the cover jacket is 100% accurate in stating this is a classic novel of terror. In choosing this one as a bookclub pick for my blog, it was great to see that some people really enjoyed this novel and others have already read it! I would definitely say this is the perfect read for a bookclub pick for you and your friends...and February is right around the corner!

Beginning this one was so nostalgic. It's funny how I remember certain things from this well over 15 years later and how some scenes completely escaped my memory. Tom Savage still has it all of these years later. I loved the backstory still and kind of got to absorb more details. The present timeline was really interesting as you're looking back on a novel before everyone had cell phones and social media and it just kind of added to the creepiness. Even in New York City, it seemed that everyone was in more danger by not having Facebook or an iPhone - which is silly to think now. 

I absolutely loved the characters, even though now they seem a bit cliche at times, but in the 90s they were all the rage and still enjoyable to read. Jillian Talbot is the ultimate final girl and this novel just portrays her as the typical All American Girl and she's still a fighter that is dealing with some pretty twisted and creepy things that come at her. The stalker aspect was still chilling. I mean, I don't know about anyone else but I still get creeped out by the possibility of what goes bump in the night and we've all seen the movies where someone is walking around their house at night not even realizing they are being stalked. Tom Savage really kicked it up a notch with the eeriness in this novel by allowing the reader to get a viewpoint from multiple characters and played it off well by combining a level of suspense, mystery, and adding a dash of slasher in the mix. 

While this one still holds strong to this day, there were a few moments that were either unrealistic to me or a bit cliche, but I can't hold that against this novel as it's still such a fun and entertaining read. Besides, these decisions the characters make might seem silly now but back then things were a different story, so who can really fault Savage for that? I was even more immersed in the ending to this one than when I read it the first time and the epilogue was something that just blew me away after I was reeling from my initial shock of the twists and turns and the huge revelation as to who Valentine really is. Maybe in another 15 years I'll check this one out again - if I can wait that long.

Rating: 4.5/5