well done until the end
926346
I though the movie was well done but that the ending went over the top and was unnecessary. enjoyed it until the "hat trick".
2423422
This book was great up until the ending, which felt like a cop-out. The characters, even the two-year-old, were surprisingly well-developed for such a short read. The whole story had felt realistic in the way children would relate to a disaster, right up until the ending, which just felt too simple and easy. I wonder if the ending was changed from what the author originally intended to make room for a sequel.
345120
After seeing this book was #2 on the NYT bestseller's list, I read the jacket and dove in. The book starts extremely well with a modern and interesting narrative. The flashback scenes are well done and at no time lose the reader.

About 2/3's of the way into the book, the characters become well defined and start to gain a mild complexity. Unfortunately that is where the development stops. In an attempt to create a dramatic ending the book takes on a sit com like aspect. The characters become one dimensional, the story line predictable and you feel the author racing to create a tidy ending.

If the author had further developed the auxiliary characters and ending, it could of been on par with similar books in this genre like "The Bridges of Madison County".
341628
I liked this book because I had mapped out a really interesting and viable murder suspect/motive etc in my head and was certain I was right. Then to have the story fizzle out to a very lame ending was disappointing. I wish the author had pushed the boundaries more after all this was supposed to be a mystery/thriller.
3995508
Great location, interesting characters, author's research shows through but the book loses steam part way through and the ending is disappointing. Inserting brand names into the text should also be avoided.
2556554
The story went along at a good, steady pace until the final chapter. It seems like the author got tired of the story and rushed the ending. It seemed like there were several plot lines that could've drawn the story out further and rounded out the ending MUCH better, had she followed through with them. I hate when strings are left hanging and a cork is used to plug up the ending.
2100561
I liked this story.  It started slowly and then accelerated and became very engrossing.  It was so interesting until that I even recommended it to a friend.  The intensity and excitement built throughout the book until the very end when...... It was disappointing.  There was no real closure and I felt a massive let down.

I was determined that I might have missed something to clarify the ending and so I re-read the ending four or five times with no luck.  The end just did not follow and it makes me think that the author did this on purpose to try to force the reader to purchase the sequel to find what actually happens.

Overall, the book is great until the end which is a huge let down and so it only rates an "okay" for me and that is potentially being generous.
4549624
Positive:  Well written, intriguing story
Negative:  too long, ending predictable
1967393
This is all I have to say: The book was great, marvelous, very interesting, till she ruined it in the last 20 pages. The end was out of the blue, farfetched, a disapoinment. I would have given it a 5 stars rate but the end ruined the book for me.
4845941
I really liked the book until the near the end. The action seemed realistic in the mountains, but when the hero travels to England to catch the bad guy the book loses its realism.
3561562
As he's gotten older, Stephen King has wandered a bit from pure storytelling to preaching a bit (or I never noticed this as a kid loving every book he wrote).  This was a good, immersive read though - at least for the first 800 (?) pages.  Then it was like he hit his limit and had to quickly wrap things up and end it.  The notes at the end said his son suggested this "better" ending.  The original must have been pretty bad if that was better.  I still give it four stars because it was good reading before the disappointing end.
161103
Story was well done until the end.  Felt the ending climactic scene wrapped too quickly and wasn't as dramatic as the buildup.
3757541
As a long time Berg fan I enjoyed this book as well up until the last 2 chapters as many here have said.  The ending was abrupt and didn't ring true.  Surprise endings are one thing, but this packed a wollop!
4490438
For the most part it was a great book. It was totally engrossing until the end. The end was terrible. It just cut off. I felt like I had been robbed of an important part of the story.
1424160
Like many books, this one is very well written and indeed good literature, but I believe the ending kind of falls flat on its face.
3392100
I enjoyed the book for the most part, until I reached the end.  I read and enjoyed many of Stephen Frey's early financial thrillers and found this easy to read and exciting, but...

He became very politically preachy at times on both sides of the political spectrum.  Also, nothing annoys more when without warning the end of the book leaves a cliff hanger that is clearly trying to set up a sequel.  Very disappointing way to end what could have been a good read.
3136362
Endings are extremely important, and this one could have ended  much earlier and been a much better book for it. As it is, the climax for me came 80 or more pages before the book actually ended... Up to that point,  it moved  mysteriously and engagingly toward a deeply moving culmination, with a minimum of triteness and cliches, though not completely free of these disempowering characteristics.  Its bottom heaviness robbed me of the poignant flood of feelings that culminate earlier in the work, and left me in a mundane muddle. I felt like recommending this book without reservation at one point, but by the time I reached the end, I knew I could not. I guess the lesson is, know when to stop.