Title: In The Dark
Author: Cara Hunter
Publisher: Penguin UK (Viking)
ISBN-10: 0241283205
ISBN-13: 978-0241283202
Date of Publication: 12th July 2018
Date of Review: 8th May 2018
Synopsis
A woman and child are found locked in a basement room, barely alive…
No one knows who they are – the woman can’t speak, and there are no Missing Persons reports that match their profile. And the elderly man who owns the house claims he has never seen them before.
The inhabitants of the quiet Oxford street are in shock – how could this happen right under their noses? But DI Adam Fawley knows that nothing is impossible.
And that no one is as innocent as they seem . . .
My Review
After I’d read the first few pages of this book, I had to google the author. Why hadn’t I heard of her before? The narrative was so compelling, I automatically assumed this author had written many books before. You can imagine my surprise when I learned this was only Cara Hunter’s second novel.
I don’t want to go into too much detail about the plot: you will be on the edge of your seat throughout most of this novel so I don’t want to give any spoilers, but let’s just say you better hold on to that seat while you take this ride or you might fall off. Although I did guess who Hanna’s murderer was; there are so many twists and turns I think this was just pot luck really. Ah I know, it was them; oh no it wasn’t; oh yes it was. Wasn’t. Was!
The narrative is a mixed one. There is a first-person narrative from the protagonist, DCI Adam Fawley, but there is a third person omniscient narration for the other characters. There is also some epistolary style narration in the form of police tape recordings.
The plot and the relationships between the characters is very cleverly twisted. Readers are in for a real treat with this one. There were times when I thought I was reading a Clare Mackintosh novel, so any fans of Clare’s will love this.
Another great author to add to my increasing list of favourites!
Under Literature Love’s rating system this book has met the criteria for a five star review within its genre.
I absolutely loved this book and couldn’t put it down. I recommend you stop what you’re doing and go and buy this book now! As well as having all the elements of a four-star review, this book transcends its genre. The language is original and compelling; characters jumped off the page; and twists in the plot left me gasping. This rare and exceptional book will be put forward for Literature Love’s top 10 books of the year.
Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin (Viking) for this ARC copy.
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