By: Sara Foster
Synopsis
From the book dust jacket:
Arabella Lane is found dead in the Thames on a frosty winter’s morning after the office Christmas party. No one is sure whether she jumped or was pushed. The one person who may know the truth is the office temp, Eleanor.
Having traveled to London to escape the repercussions of her traumatic childhood in Australia, tragedy seems to follow Eleanor wherever she goes. To her horror, she has no memory of the curial hours leading up to Arabella’s death – memory that will either incriminate or absolve her.
Caught in a crossfire of accusations, Eleanor fears she can’t even trust herself, let alone the people around her. And son, she’ll find herself in a race against time to uncover what happened that night – and discover just how deadly some secrets can be.
My Thoughts
I love books that grab my attention on the first page, and this one did just that. It wasn’t because of fast paced action or instant intrigue, but because of curiosity about the main character. Very quickly, however, I was pulled into the mystery. It was quite engrossing and I did not want to put it down. I enjoyed how the narrative went between present day adult Eleanor and past child Eleanor. I was anxious to get to the solution and at the same time not wanting it to end. I wouldn’t call it exactly fast-paced, but its slow burn made it intriguing. The mystery and the tension had time to build. While I didn’t agree with all of Eleanor’s decisions, I could feel her fear and insecurity that drove her to make the decisions that she did. Sometimes her decisions did seem at odds though. For example, she came across as kind of helpless and lost about what to do with the ring and being upfront with the investigators, but then bold and possibly stupid in confronting Caroline and then Nathan. She talks about being determined to find out what happened, but then doesn’t really do anything because she is constantly paralyzed by her memories. This didn’t make the book less enjoyable, just a little harder to figure Eleanor out and to have sympathy for her. The ending wasn’t a complete surprise and was a little rushed; it could have benefitted from a little more build up and suspense. The underlying themes of loneliness, dysfunctional families, and what happens when adults lie to children were compelling. The chapters about Eleanor’s childhood were even more interesting to me than the present day murder mystery chapters. All in all, a really good read. I’m excited to read more by Sara Foster.
How did you feel about this one?