My rating: 4 of 5 stars
“Integrity is telling myself the truth. And honesty is telling the truth to other people.”
----Spencer Johnson
Lisa Ballantyne, an international best selling author, pens her new thriller, Everything She Forgot that unfolds the story of three characters in three different locations, each unraveling a mystery of their own, finally leading them to meet each other on the crossroads of self-realization. The story revolves in so many time frame and from London to Glasgow o Wick in Scottish Highlands with three different mysteries with no connection with one another, yet keeps the readers guessing till the very end to find that one tiny thread of connection between these three stories.
Synopsis:
They’re calling it the worst pile-up in London history. Driving home, Margaret Holloway has her mind elsewhere—on a troubled student, her daughter’s acting class, the next day’s meeting—when she’s rear-ended and trapped in the wreckage. Just as she begins to panic, a disfigured stranger pulls her from the car just seconds before it’s engulfed in flames. Then he simply disappears.
Though she escapes with minor injuries, Margaret feels that something’s wrong. She’s having trouble concentrating. Her emotions are running wild. More than that, flashbacks to the crash are also dredging up lost associations from her childhood, fragments of events that were wiped from her memory. Whatever happened, she didn’t merely forget—she chose to forget. And somehow, Margaret knows deep down that it’s got something to do with the man who saved her life.
As Margaret uncovers a mystery with chilling implications for her family and her very identity, Everything She Forgot winds through a riveting dual narrative and asks the question: How far would you go to hide the truth—from yourself…?
In London, Margaret, a head teacher and a mother, is saved from a deathly car accident by a stranger who vanishes into thin air after saving her life. Lying in hospital bed, Margaret takes a trip down in memory lane when she was a child that makes her questions about the secrets that not only her parents are hiding from her but also herself.
In Glasgow, George, a tender yet a dangerous criminal, is unfortunate enough to be born into one of the most famous criminal families of the city, but when this young man becomes a father with no plan, things go haywire and finally changes his life thus questioning him the choices he made for the future of his child.
In Wick, Kathleen, a desperate mother, is trying hard to cooperate with the local Scottish police to help them find her abducted daughter. Meanwhile, an irrational and a cranky journalist, begin an investigation to find Kathleen's abducted daughter, which makes him point finger to each and everyone he meets in the process.
The first story occurs in the present day, whereas the second one, which is the central part of the main story line, occurs in 1985 followed by the third one. The reader traverses back and forth from one location to another and from one time frame to another, each unfolding the story of children born in distressed family and what kinds of problems are faced by them.
The book falls in the category of mystery/thriller, although the story revolves around a mystery, the outcome of which is a family drama or rather say a bit predictable one with lots of drama. The writing is extremely fantastic layered with suspense and deep, evocative emotions that has an ability to move the readers from their heart and mind. The story is absolutely captivating and heart wrenching that is smeared with so much pain and self-realization. The story has a dual narrative which is free-flowing and articulate enough to keep the readers hooked on to the story till the very end.
This multi-elements-type story finally come on to a cross-road where each story finally justifies the other story, that the author have portrayed in a skilled manner. The characters are quite well developed that reflect a realism in their demeanor highlighting their flaws, honesty, guilt and self-realization.
The stories have a lot of depth in them that lets the readers feel the emotions as well as the background of the story. Each of the location is painted with vividness thus taking the readers on a trip from one beautiful location to another. The atmosphere of the story line is very dark thus giving the readers an arresting reading feel. In a nutshell, this thriller styled family drama is quite appealing and touching.
Verdict: If dark thrillers are your poison, then do grab a copy of this book for sure.
Courtesy: Thanks to the author's publicist for giving me an opportunity to read and review this book.
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Author Info:
Lisa Ballantyne was born in Armadale, West Lothian, Scotland and studied English literature at University of St Andrews. She lived and worked in China for many years and started writing seriously while she was there. She now lives in Glasgow.
The Guilty One published to critical and commercial acclaim in 2012. Redemption Road is Lisa's second novel.
Visit her here
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