“There was always something slightly dangerous about Joan. So, when she turns up at private investigator Henry Kimball’s office asking him to investigate her husband, he can’t help feeling ill at ease. Just the sight of her stirs up a chilling memory: he knew Joan in his previous life as a high school English teacher, when he was at the center of a tragedy. Now Joan needs his help in proving that her husband is cheating. But what should be a simple case of infidelity becomes much more complicated when Kimball finds two bodies in an uninhabited suburban home with a “for sale” sign out front. Suddenly it feels like the past is repeating itself, and Henry must go back to one of the worst days of his life to uncover the truth. Is it possible Joan knows something about that day, something she’s hidden all these years? Could there still be a killer out there, someone who believes they have gotten away with murder? Henry is determined to find out, but as he steps closer to the truth, a murderer is getting closer to him, and in this hair-raising game of cat and mouse only one of them will survive.”
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Publication Date: March 2nd 2023
There’s going into a book blind and there’s going into a book (and finishing) not knowing that it’s a sequel! This being said, I had no problems with reading this as its own, but it is clear that what I was reading included spoilers from the previous book, The King Worth Killing. This book is also the first I’ve read from and heard of Swanson (he/him).
Told across four characters, both then and now, Peter Swanson, tells the story of Detective Henry Kimball as he is looking into a case for an ex student of his. Joan knows that her husband, Richard, is cheating on her, so when Henry sets out on following him and his mistress, he uncovers things both about himself and Joan and her husband.Henry comes to find himself forming his own relationship with Richard’s mistress, so when the action happens, it could be argued that he is also effected; past events surfacing in his mind.
There are some twists in the book that I didn’t see coming, such as some character revelations, as well as the outcome of one of the characters, and for having four central characters, I can safely say that I am satisfied with how each of their story lines played out.
As this book was home to four different perspectives, most being both now and then, there was a lot of repetition of the same or similar events from different peoples memories and perception, and soon, I found myself wanting to just know how it was all going to unfold; there seemed to be a lot that could have been taken out of the final edit.
Thank you to Faber and Faber for the ARC!
All the love,
Jade x
Tea Stains and Book Spines 