Sara-Jayne Townsend is a published crime and horror writer and likes books in which someone dies horribly. She is founder and Chair Person of the T Party Writers’ Group. http://sarajaynetownsend.weebly.com/
Julie Nowak went missing twenty years ago. Her father, Theo, is the only person who hasn’t given up on finding her, but his progressing dementia makes it increasingly difficult for him to focus.
On the twentieth anniversary of his daughter’s disappearance Theo is contacted by Liv, who co-presents, with her boyfriend Phil, a podcast on true crime cold cases. She thinks she’s found a new lead, and she wants to work with Theo to get to the truth.
This intriguing novel has all the hallmarks of a classic psychological thriller. There are several viewpoint characters, including Theo, whose dementia makes him very much an unreliable narrator. He switches very quickly from the present to re-living memories of the past. He forgets who he’s talking to, and where he is. This often makes for uncomfortable reading, but it starkly demonstrates the devastating effects of dementia. It’s difficult to talk in detail about this book without giving away spoilers, but in the best tradition of psychological thrillers there are twists that come out of nowhere, red herrings in unlikely places, and several – largely unlikeable – characters who are obviously hiding secrets. As the book progresses, they layers of deception are peeled away like the skin of an onion, revealing the devastating truth at the end.
Anyone who’s fond of psychological thrillers, family dramas and unreliable narrators should definitely check this one out.
