LOST VILLAGE

In Saver’s mystery set in 1970s Ontario, a small town is rocked by a series of murders.

The town of Conawalki was relocated in the ’50s to accommodate the St. Lawrence Seaway, and the legacy of that dislocation still lingers, leaving some townsfolk with a sense that their home suffers from a lack of authenticity. The novel opens with the murder of local municipal clerk Matilda Murgatroyd, who’s discovered dead in her home after a late-night disturbance; earlier that day, she’d seen a mysterious truck in her area. Three teenage friends, Mark Sheiffer, Seb Chateauguay, and Flix Sistilli—known locally as the “Three Smart Boys”—soon find themselves drawn into the aftermath as rumors and speculation ripple through the town. When a local psychiatrist is killed, the small police force finds itself out of its depth, unable to handle the corrosive gossip that threatens to overwhelm the investigation. The tension heightens further when two teenagers go missing. Interwoven with the central mystery is an account of Mark’s struggle with his sexuality; his growing, conflicted feelings for his friend Flix; and his tentative discovery of a local, discreet gay community. The book manages its large cast fairly well, and the pacing is consistent, though it doesn’t always generate the urgency that the plot seems to demand. From the start, the narrative offers glimpses into the mind of the murderer, who’s chillingly known as “the One” and who has dialogues with the “other voice, the foreigner in his head”; these passages add menace and tension, even as the killer’s true identity remains concealed. Some scenes meander, and the mystery occasionally loses sharpness. Still, the suspense steadily builds as the story goes on, which will keep readers interested—and all the plot threads are ultimately tied up.

An engaging and largely satisfying whodunit that captures the claustrophobic feeling of a close-knit community under strain.