Pink Slips

Clarion Rating: 4 out of 5

Pink Slips is a fast-paced psychological thriller that sustains a sense of mystery throughout.

Beth Aldrich’s Pink Slips is a psychological thriller told from the point of view of pregnant suburban chef Betsy Ryan. The first-person perspective helps build suspense and heightens the action through the story’s many twists and turns.

Eight months pregnant, Betsy begins receiving notes on little pink slips of paper. At first, they seem somewhat innocuous, but the messages soon become threatening. With her potentially cheating husband out of town and a police department that is only minimally helpful, Betsy leans heavily on her parents and her neighbor, Misty, as she attempts to find out who her stalker is and what their motivations are. Everyone is a suspect.

The pace picks up after Betsy’s husband, Steven, is in an accident and the stalker begins to make good on threats. Clues start surfacing, and Betsy and her team begin to go on the offensive, seeking out answers and sneaking around trying to trap the stalker.

Characters and relationships are given plenty of depth, though at times their bulky backstories slow the pace and inhibit suspense without adding to the story. Characters like Betsy’s mom and dad are given the most depth, connection, and emotions, while Steven and Misty at times seem merely convenient for advancing the story or crafting dialogue; they aren’t given any emotional connection to or intimacy with Betsy.

Betsy’s discovery that she has psychic abilities adds a layer of depth to her story, but it is used mainly as a literary device to fill in dialogue and missing pieces when there are no other main characters around. While she can communicate with her comatose husband and possibly her dog, the powers tend to be nothing more than a distraction from the main story line, offering little new information and not advancing the action.

There are plenty of twists and turns, with pieces of information brought to light in a tantalizing, slow way. No indication or clue is given as to who the stalker is until the last moment, building suspense throughout. Even when the stalker’s identity is revealed, final twists in the plot reveal that not all is as it seems. The slow disclosure is effective in portraying the motivations of a crazy person.

Pink Slips is a fast-paced psychological thriller that sustains a sense of mystery throughout.

Reviewed by Jennifer Miller

Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book and paid a small fee to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. Foreword Reviews and Clarion Reviews make no guarantee that the publisher will receive a positive review. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.

Load Next Review