3.5 stars rounded up to 4
This was an interesting way to write a psychological mystery with a bit of courtroom drama and contemporary social commentary.
Four wealthy members of an exclusive London club are poisoned at a private party after drinking some brandy laced with a lethal dose of cyanide. Almost immediately, a waitress who served the group is arrested. Katherine Cole is charged and remanded for trial. The story is told from the perspectives of 5 men in her life. Her father, a childhood friend who has a crush on her, a man she is obsessed with and stalks, her lawyer, and a journalist. Each offers a different view of this girl. Is she guilty?
Without spoilers, it’s hard to define what kept me from rating this higher. In many ways, it was predictable. Because we do not hear from Katherine (who has many different names given to her by the men), it’s hard to know what to think of her other than I felt she was a messed up young woman. The parts about the conspiracy nuts was disturbing. I did not care at all for the character, Katherine, nor most of the men. There was a bit of a twist, but still ended up being predictable and somewhat of a let down after all.
I was able to listen to the audio book while also following along in the e-book ARC, both provided by the publishers. The story was improved by the performance of the full cast with narrators including Sachin K. Sharma, Colin R. Campbell, Isaac Gryn, Maxim Ays, Louis Hill, Harvey Quinn and Florence Howard. Each did an excellent job of voicing the characters and providing appropriate dramatic flair. The production definitely enhanced my enjoyment of the book.
This is a standalone and is not part of any series.
Genre and tags - mystery thriller, suspense, crime thriller, psychological thriller, courtroom drama, conspiracy nuts, Covid
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