2.0 out of 3 stars --
Deliver me from the unreliable narrator and the stream of consciousness
narrative that almost makes me feel unbalanced from reading it.
The
main character in this novel is Dana Catrell, a woman with severe
bipolar illness that is not being treated because Dana has gone off her
meds and taken herself out of therapy. Hmmm. When her next door
neighbor, Celia, is found murdered, Dana can't remember what happened or
whether or not she murdered the woman. Dana claims she had passed out
after enjoying too much sangria with Celia that afternoon at Celia's
house. She remembers something about a picture on a cell phone and a
fight between them, but then she woke up on her couch at her own house
hours later.
In the throes of a manic episode, Dana can't think
straight. Her situation is complicated by her suspicions that her
husband is unfaithful. She's unhinged and has started to find
threatening notes saying she will "pay" for what she's done. The police
are investigating the murder, and Dana is interviewed by Detective Jack
Moss (who has issues of his own), and Dana becomes a person of interest
in the case.
Without giving away the rest of the story, I think
most readers will find the climax, the revelations, and the ending
predictable and unrealistic. It wasn't the psychological suspense I had
hoped for and I felt that much of my time spent in Dana's splintered and
confused mind via the writing style was not where I wanted to be. I did
not like any of the characters as they were one-dimensional
stereotypes. These novels all tend to end in the same way, as did this
one. I'm not sure who I'd recommend it to but others who like this style
will feel differently about it I'm sure.
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