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Skyward

Name: Skyward
Author: Philip David Alexander

by Philip David Alexander ‧ RELEASE DATE: N/A

A chilling, atmospheric crime procedural.

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Cops in a small Canadian town try to solve the disappearance of a young man and catch a killer in this complex thriller.

Alexander (Peacefield, 2014, etc.) uses multiple perspectives in this story of a criminal on the loose, set against the backdrop of the vacant Skyward fairgrounds. It begins with a seemingly innocuous car chase; Detective Matt Sharp and his partner are on the trail of a man whom they caught drinking while driving. However, as the perspectives switch throughout the novel, it soon becomes evident that the driver (known only as “Pursued”) is guilty of far worse crimes, including murder. Meanwhile, local troublemaker Stan Hill finds himself the prime suspect when his young brother, Jarrod, goes missing; he’s the third such young boy, in fact, to disappear from the Skyward fairgrounds. Finally, Constable Sheila Warfield, who secretly has the power of psychic premonitions, gets involved when she senses evil and danger in the case of the aforementioned driver. As the suspense escalates and the true identity of Pursued is revealed to readers, the characters must figure out who the killer among them is before he strikes again. Alexander has a sharp eye for detail and a keen sense of place, which bring scenes at the deserted fairgrounds, once home to a “giant, twinkling freak-show with a big top,” to life for readers. Some of the overlapping perspectives make the narrative a little confusing to follow, especially at the beginning; there are enough people who have absent or disappointing fathers that it can be tricky to remember who’s who. But as the story races on, it becomes clearer who the culprit is and the suspense ramps up enough to keep readers hooked. A few of the players, such as Sharp’s wife, Ingrid, could have been fleshed out more, but generally, the narrators are well-developed and compelling—even if the passages narrated by Pursued are a little gruesome in their murderous detail. Overall, this is an unusual but well-crafted and smartly paced thriller.

A chilling, atmospheric crime procedural.

Pub Date: N/A

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Now or Never Publishing Company

Review Posted Online: July 19, 2016

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

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BETWEEN SISTERS

by Kristin Hannah ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 2003

Briskly written soap with down-to-earth types, mostly without the lachrymose contrivances of Hannah’s previous titles...

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Sisters in and out of love.

Meghann Dontess is a high-powered matrimonial lawyer in Seattle who prefers sex with strangers to emotional intimacy: a strategy bound to backfire sooner or later, warns her tough-talking shrink. It’s advice Meghann decides to ignore, along with the memories of her difficult childhood, neglectful mother, and younger sister. Though she managed to reunite Claire with Sam Cavenaugh (her father but not Meghann’s) when her mother abandoned both girls long ago, Meghann still feels guilty that her sister’s life doesn’t measure up, at least on her terms. Never married, Claire ekes out a living running a country campground with her dad and is raising her six-year-old daughter on her own. When she falls in love for the first time with an up-and-coming country musician, Meghann is appalled: Bobby Austin is a three-time loser at marriage—how on earth can Claire be so blind? Bobby’s blunt explanation doesn’t exactly satisfy the concerned big sister, who busies herself planning Claire’s dream wedding anyway. And, to relieve the stress, she beds various guys she picks up in bars, including Dr. Joe Wyatt, a neurosurgeon turned homeless drifter after the demise of his beloved wife Diane (whom he euthanized). When Claire’s awful headache turns out to be a kind of brain tumor known among neurologists as a “terminator,” Joe rallies. Turns out that Claire had befriended his wife on her deathbed, and now in turn he must try to save her. Is it too late? Will Meghann find true love at last?

Briskly written soap with down-to-earth types, mostly without the lachrymose contrivances of Hannah’s previous titles (Distant Shores, 2002, etc.). Kudos for skipping the snifflefest this time around.

Pub Date: May 1, 2003

ISBN: 0-345-45073-6

Page Count: 400

Publisher: Ballantine

Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2003

Categories:

GENERAL FICTION

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Awards & Accolades

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118

New York Times Bestseller

IndieBound Bestseller

THE SILENT PATIENT

by Alex Michaelides ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 5, 2019

Amateurish, with a twist savvy readers will see coming from a mile away.

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Awards & Accolades

Likes

118

New York Times Bestseller

IndieBound Bestseller

A woman accused of shooting her husband six times in the face refuses to speak.

"Alicia Berenson was thirty-three years old when she killed her husband. They had been married for seven years. They were both artists—Alicia was a painter, and Gabriel was a well-known fashion photographer." Michaelides' debut is narrated in the voice of psychotherapist Theo Faber, who applies for a job at the institution where Alicia is incarcerated because he's fascinated with her case and believes he will be able to get her to talk. The narration of the increasingly unrealistic events that follow is interwoven with excerpts from Alicia's diary. Ah, yes, the old interwoven diary trick. When you read Alicia's diary you'll conclude the woman could well have been a novelist instead of a painter because it contains page after page of detailed dialogue, scenes, and conversations quite unlike those in any journal you've ever seen. " 'What's the matter?' 'I can't talk about it on the phone, I need to see you.' 'It's just—I'm not sure I can make it up to Cambridge at the minute.' 'I'll come to you. This afternoon. Okay?' Something in Paul's voice made me agree without thinking about it. He sounded desperate. 'Okay. Are you sure you can't tell me about it now?' 'I'll see you later.' Paul hung up." Wouldn't all this appear in a diary as "Paul wouldn't tell me what was wrong"? An even more improbable entry is the one that pins the tail on the killer. While much of the book is clumsy, contrived, and silly, it is while reading passages of the diary that one may actually find oneself laughing out loud.

Amateurish, with a twist savvy readers will see coming from a mile away.