Hey, it’s Diego.

I just finished reading Not Our Daughter by Chad Zunker.

And it follows a family that has to go on the run to stay alive.

Murder thrillers are not a subgenre I spend much time in. The on-the-run premise is popular in them, though, and these are the best ones I have read.

Let’s go.

_{* This email contains affiliate links. I may earn a commission if you purchase through them, at no additional cost to you.}

On The Run Thrillers

I Will Find You by Harlan Coben

Five years into a life sentence for killing his son, David receives evidence that the boy is still alive, so he breaks out of prison to find him.

In I Will Find You by Harlan Coben, we follow David as he goes from convicted prisoner to fugitive, staying one step ahead of everyone trying to stop him while racing to reach his son.

The Last Flight by Julie Clark

Two women with no way out of their situations have a chance encounter at an airport and, on the spur of the moment, decide to swap plane tickets, each taking on the other's identity to escape the danger they are running from.

In The Last Flight by Julie Clark, we follow Claire and Eva as they each try to outrun their pasts by becoming someone else entirely.

Gone Before Goodbye by Harlan Coben and Reese Witherspoon

Another Harlan Coben entry. A disgraced surgeon is given a lifeline when hired to perform plastic surgery on a Russian oligarch, only to find out he is connected to her missing husband.

In Gone Before Goodbye by Harlan Coben and Reese Witherspoon, we follow Maggie as she goes from the operating table to running for her life across multiple locations while piecing together the truth.

And the newest addition to the list:

Not Our Daughter by Chad Zunker

Greg and Amy Olsen take in baby Marcy as foster parents, only for Marcy's birth mother to be murdered on their doorstep with a warning: they are in danger. With no other choice, they flee and spend 13 years living under assumed names to keep Marcy safe. But when an old bank account surfaces and triggers an FBI investigation, they have to run again, this time with a teenage daughter in tow and a political conspiracy closing in.

Not Our Daughter by Chad Zunker is a murder thriller spanning multiple locations.

Zunker's writing is utilitarian, which fits the book well. Dialogue is cheesy at times, though.

We follow an ensemble of characters in a single timeline, including Greg, Amy, and the investigators closing in on them. The story gets into the action fast and builds tension throughout.

The theme driving the story is what parents will do to protect their children, every risk Greg and Amy take circling back to keeping Marcy safe.

The characters are proactive, making decisions that drive the plot forward. Unfortunately, the story is rather derivative of 90s action thrillers and I didn’t find anything new in it. The whole thing runs on a familiar action thriller template. But for a reader who enjoys the subgenre and just wants it done at pace, this is right in their wheelhouse.

There is no romance in the story and no sexual content or swearing. There is murder, but no graphic depictions of violence throughout.

So, what about the ending? (No spoilers, obviously)

The ending was fine. The main threads were resolved, and I got what I was promised as the story developed. The denouement was short, giving us a glimpse into what the character’s futures.

Not Our Daughter by Chad Zunker is a popcorn thriller that delivers exactly what the premise promises. If you want fast action and an easy read without complications, this one gets the job done.

Latest Updates

• Watching You dropped on Hulu on February 20. Based on J.P. Pomare's psychological thriller The Last Guests, the six-episode series follows an engaged woman whose one-night stand at a friend's Airbnb is filmed by hidden cameras, and who must hunt down the voyeur before the footage destroys her life.

That’s all for this week. See you next time.

— Diego Dunne

P.S. Let me know how I did today by replying to this email.

P.P.S. I would love to hear your recommendations for thrillers you loved. Reply to this email, and I’ll add them to my TBR list. Thanks!