From the publisher:
What if mother doesn’t know best…?
https://amzn.to/3MhVbzM
In a close-knit English village, Chrissy and Alice were once best friends. So were their sons, Leo and Robbie. Until the night Leo killed Robbie with a single, devastating punch. Now Leo has gone to prison, Chrissy has lost her pub, and Alice has been pouring her anger into a twisted project . . .
As Leo’s parole date approaches, the villagers are incensed and fearful about the prospect of his return. But when Chrissy arrives to collect Leo from prison, he isn’t there. The staff tell her he has already been released, but nobody knows where he’s gone.
As the village closes ranks, Chrissy realizes her former friends are suspects in her son’s disappearance, not the least of which is still-bitter Alice. Is Leo being punished for what happened that terrible night? Or do the answers lie further back, in a dark past none of them wants to revisit?
Helen Cooper’s latest thriller after The Couple in the Photo gets off to a slow start. Alice and Chrissy have been best friends for years, and their sons are also best friends. Chrissy’s son, Leo, and Alice’s son, Robbie, play music together in the pub that Chrissy owns until the fateful night when they get into a fight. In a freak accident, Leo punches Robbie, landing a blow that kills him. Convicted of manslaughter, Leo goes to prison while everyone in this small English village shuns Chrissy. As Leo’s release date approaches, a woman moves to town and befriends Alice, but even Alice doesn’t know why. Feeling very much alone, Chrissy, a widow, is counting down the days until Leo will be released from prison, but when she goes to pick him up, she learns he left earlier, and no one knows where he is. Told in turn by the various characters, their disparate viewpoints offer tantalizing misdirection. Eventually, secrets start to come out, further complicating these relationships and turning the story of Leo gone missing into something much darker.
Verdict: Readers who like the slow burn of a mystery will enjoy this atmospheric novel. Recommend to fans of Tana French or Kate Morton.
©Library Journal, 2024
12/2024 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
MY DARLING BOY by Helen Cooper. G.P. Putnam’s Sons (December 3, 2024). ISBN: 978-0593719930. 352p.
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