BY EMMA POWELL

 

In this psychological thriller, the reader is drawn into becoming an amateur detective as we witness a series of gruesome murders.

When we meet Carla Roberts at the start of the novel, she is a lonely figure, betrayed by the infidelity of her ex-husband, with a distant daughter and she is becoming increasingly concerned by the strange use of the lift that stops and starts every night outside her high-rise flat with no-one inside.

Carla's worries and concerns become reality when she is brutally murdered and it is from this point on that the reader is desperately trying to find the murderer. This first murder appears to be the catalyst for further murders, equally gruesome and seemingly unconnected.

It is following the first murder that the reader meets Samson Segal, a young man with an obsessive nature, jobless, lonely and someone who lives his life through 'watching' and stalking others.

He is increasingly fascinated and obsessed with a family who he deems as 'perfect' and he is especially obsessed with the mother/wife of this family, Gillian Ward. Through watching Gillian closely, he gleans that she is having an affair with a school teacher and her family is not as perfect as he believes.

When Gillian's husband is murdered, Samson is immediately under suspicion and hides away unable to prove his innocence. That is until Gillian's lover, John Burton, an ex-policeman, finds him in order to try to locate the real murderer.

The novel moves at a fast pace, with lots of intriguing characters and plot twists and turns. When the murderer is revealed it is a huge shock but Charlotte Link cleverly brings the novel full circle, explaining why and how things have resulted as they have. At the end of the novel Samson Segal has a chance to redeem himself and is also given the opportunity of a new start, which puts a positive angle on a chilling story.

Although not an easy read, this novel is very well written, compelling, unexpected and full of suspense, with well-illustrated characters which engage the reader and create feelings of empathy with the characters throughout. It is a definite page-turner and is highly recommended.

 

This book was published by Orion and is available to buy for £7.99. It can also be borrowed from The Hive as well as other Worcestershire libraries. Click here to check availability and check it out.