Crime

Well crafted crime thriller. Enjoyable read. ( )

The Publisher Says: When Cal Weaver stops at a red light on a rainy night while driving home, he ignores the bedraggled-looking teenage girl trying to hitch a ride - even when she starts tapping on his window. But as soon as he realises she's one of his son's classmates, he knows he can't really leave her, alone, on the street.

But nothing prepares him for the consequences of trying to help her out. The next morning he's gone from Good Samaritan to Murder Suspect, and with one girl dead and another missing, he's suddenly at the centre of a deadly puzzle that reaches right to the heart of the town - from its bullying police force to its strangely furtive mayor - and finally to one family's shocking secret.

LIBRARY CHECK-OUT. USE THE LIBRARY, FOLKS! OUR PATRONAGE IS THEIR LIFE'S BLOOD.

My Review: Not a bad read, though there's a serious TSTL issue running through the whole read...from the get-go, the teen girl who's murdered has no cellphone in the Teens? the ex-cop falls for a clear bait-and-switch? there's no instant suspicion about this particular guy's probable targeting due to what's happened to him (loss of his son to drug addiction)? The issues will either slam the cover on your read before p25/5%, or you'll think "okay, we're getting into a deeper North-by-Northwestesque entrapment plot" and have you settling the read-medium into your lap and moving on.

I'm in Camp 2.

This is very interesting from the standpoint of a reader whose interests are in psychological undercurrents and deeper reasons for evidently complex relationship problems. A family that has addiction ripping at its vitals is under stress constantly...but also causes stress far outside its immediate circle. The metaphysical gravity that Love represents is merely a feather pointing at the dark matter made up of Anger. The source of Anger in a family is always basal...but its influence is invisibly, inexorably warping the movement of every single thing the family resides among.

There's never a good answer to the question "Why?" Please believe me, the way Author Barclay reveals (most of) the "Why" we'd be just as happy not knowing. Paradoxically, there's just enough that doesn't quite add up to leave you, the reader, thinking, "...but...wait...what about...ah, heck with it." This is not my preferred ending to a thriller. It's a genre where, no matter how morally grey the situation and resolution are, Justice needs to prevail even if the law gets or remains broken (often again). So, not quite the read I signed up to experience. ( )

4.25 stars

On a dark rainy night, when PI Cal Weaver has a teenage girl knock on his window asking for a ride, he hesitates. But the girl knows his son (his son who died not long ago – via drugs that made him think he could fly… he tried to fly), so Cal feels he can’t refuse (and hopes maybe she can answer some questions for him).

When the girl, Claire, and her friend Hanna do a switch when Claire gets out of the car to use a washroom (Hanna is dressed to look like Claire), it’s not long before Cal figures out it’s not the same girl. But, Hanna refuses to answer questions on what they are doing and tries to jump out of the car. With reservations, Cal decides it’s better to let her out of the car than to have her jump out while the car is moving. The next day, he discovers Claire – the first girl – is missing. And it gets worse...

I really liked this (like most of Barclay’s books). It might not have been as fast paced as some of them, but in the wrap up, there were a couple of surprises, along with a couple of twists to go along with it. With the occasional short chapter from the POV of the “bad guy”, so to speak, I had a guess as to who it was, but I was wrong. To be honest, there is a lot more going on in this book – police corruption and a “fight” with the mayor, Cal and his wife trying to heal, and more. ( )

I looked forward to getting back to the book whenever I could so that says something about how I liked it and how it wasn't a chore.

It's the first book I read by this author and not my normal genre. It was a simple read. It reminded me a lot of a made for TV movie that is entertaining but not very deep. There were no loose ends, all questions answered. It did keep me guessing because whenever I thought I knew what was coming, I was wrong.

I didn't find it to be much of a thriller or very suspenseful but more of a mystery.

It was a fun read and I will probably check out something else by this author. ( )