Blog Tour: Within by Clare C. Marshall

"Trinity Hartell’s life changed after the accident. Left with irreversible brain damage, she becomes a burden to her mother, a cause for heartbreak for her boyfriend Zack, and a flattened obstacle for her jealous best friend, Ellie.

But then she starts writing. Perhaps it’s a coincidence that the psychotic, murderous protagonist of her novel bears a striking similarity to the charming Wiley Dalton, a mayoral candidate in the upcoming election.

Or, perhaps not…"


This book wasn't really what I was expecting, but I was somewhat surprised by how much I liked it in a hatred sort of way. Confusing I know, but you'll understand in a little bit.

The story is definitely original in its plot and characters. There are a number of twists in this book; it's sort of like a roller coaster. One minute I'd be in this heart-wrenching scene and the next I'd want to slap characters. (Yeah, I'm talking to you Ellie and Mrs. Hartell!)

The story does start off a bit slow and I did have to wait a while to really understand where the plot would go, but it wasn't anything that deterred me from reading. This brings me to the characters. Marshall was able to create an interesting array of characters that kept the story going. My only wish was that they were a bit more developed. I never really felt the best friend connection between Ellie and Trinity. Even after the accident, I found myself repeatedly screaming in my head, "How are you her friend?!" Alternatively, I did feel the love Zack had for Trinity even though there was little development in their story line as well. I believe it was due to how emotional Zack was throughout the book. His feelings always seemed to jump out from the pages and grab a hold of me.

The most enticing part of this book was the mystery of the plot. I never really understood what was going on until the latter half of the book. Dalton was one crazy psycho, and I'd really wanted to know more about him and where his story really stemmed from. Marshall did a great job writing a suspenseful yet heart-breaking plot that kept me reading to the last page.

Though different from what I first expected, this creepy page turner is for anyone who's looking for an intriguing love triangle with a twist. My only wish would be for the story to continue to get more into the lives of Trinity's family and friends. I'll definitely be watching out for Marshall's future projects! Thanks again to Faery Ink Press and Clare for letting me be a part of this amazing blog tour.