Once again separated from Jason, Elliott finds herself in a relationship with Anthony—a fling that unexpectedly turns serious. While this is the most self-aware and stable she’s been, part of her wants to scratch the itch of self-sabotage. Between therapy sessions and adventurous date nights, Elliott seeks out extracurricular activities of the criminal variety. By turning to her own brand of vigilante justice, she invites danger—and Jason—back to her doorstep. This time, there's a chance that neither of them will escape, “For I’d thrown myself into the abyss, and in the abyss I discovered something much more horrible than a monster: I’d discovered that I was capable of the terrible depths of love.”
Anna Madorsky’s THEN FINISHED is the culmination of Elliott’s intriguing yet turbulent character arc. Even as she slides back into old habits and doubts that feel like reopened wounds, her clarity of self is refreshing. Always an outsider, she seems to fully embrace the influence Jason has had on her—for better or worse. She uses that confidence of living outside of the normal boundaries of society to give herself a unique purpose. And it’s in these “activities” that she processes their relationship and the lens through which they view the world.
Elliott’s fling-turned-romance also becomes a stark contrast to her insulated world with Jason. Anthony is Jason’s narrative foil—and perhaps, by extension, Elliott’s: charming and emotionally balanced, gentle and generally well-adjusted. Amid all of the chaos Elliott invites into her life with her sometimes terrible choices, their dynamic is an anchor (for the most part).
The pacing of THEN FINISHED makes it the most urgent and tense of the series, as Elliott’s double-life consumes her. That ever-present wariness is like ambient background noise, even in scenes where things appear to be safe. Madorsky’s prose is, as always, concise but dense with thoughtful introspection and bleak humor—voice-driven and poetic. Elliott’s “hummingbird learner” persona adds anecdotes about the universe, history, and even mathematics to process her running thoughts. And when the book finally builds to its heart-pounding conclusion, it’s an appropriately gutting but satisfying final chapter in Elliott and Jason’s story.
Bittersweet but satisfying, Anna Madorsky’s thriller delves into the darkest parts of Elliott’s psyche, her fascinating metamorphosis, and the raw intensity of the human condition. Tightly plotted and twisted in equal measure, THEN FINISHED slowly builds to a heart-pounding conclusion.
~ Jessica Thomas for IndieReader