Killing the Butterfly


Fiction - Thriller - General
197 Pages
Reviewed on 03/04/2023
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    Book Review

Reviewed by Maria Victoria Beltran for Readers' Favorite

Killing the Butterfly is a thriller by Dale Ward. Patty had always wanted to be a travel writer and dreamed of visiting exotic places. It seemed to be an impossible dream for a girl from a dysfunctional family. When her mother died in an accident, she didn’t shed a tear during the funeral. She lived with her abusive father until the police hauled him away. At fourteen years old, she moved in with her Aunt Meredith and life seemed to be normal until she fell in love with Roy, a school bully who went on to spend a few years in jail. When Roy escaped, Patty was forced to join him in a violent crime spree across middle America. Trapped in a toxic relationship, Patty was almost resigned to ending up in jail herself. This was until they come across a man in a cabin by the lake.

Dale Ward’s Killing the Butterfly is an intriguing story about a girl hopelessly trapped in a cycle of abuse. Patty certainly is a flawed but likable protagonist. Her character is well-developed and easy to empathize with. The opening chapter is tense and compelling, setting the pace for the rest of the book. As the story unravels, the shifting point-of-view of the narrator adds interest and complexity. This is a novel with most chapters ending in cliffhangers so that it holds the reader’s undivided attention. The unexpected ending will stay with you for days. It surely came as a surprise and changed the entire direction of the story. This is an edge-of-your-seat thriller and it’s a really good read!