Nina Garrity is a busy mom of two. She helps at the kids’ schools and is always on the go. Her husband, Glen, works a lot but he has a time-consuming job. Nina’s world turns upside down when her husband suddenly goes missing. His boat is found at the lake with the family dog and blood on the deck. In the course of the investigation, she soon discovers she really didn’t know her husband. Did he really have a mistress? How could she not know this? The police search but have no leads. If he fails to return or they fail to find his body she can have him declared legally dead in two years. She struggles to parent her children and manage the home by herself.
To make matters worse, the family dog goes missing. Thankfully the person that finds her is a teacher from the kids’ middle school. He sees a family in crisis and tries to help. His kind support is welcome by Nina. It’s good to have someone to lean on. This man, Simon, seems to say and do all the right things. He even cooks her eggplant rollatini – her favorite dish. How can he be so understanding and always say the right things? Nina finds herself falling in love.
Soon Simon and Nina buy a house together and begin making plans for their future. It will be an adjustment for everyone but Nina knows that in time they will all mesh. The children simply have to accept the fact that their father is gone. Conner is getting to know Simon but Maggie steadfastly insists that there is something peculiar about Simon. Is Maggie detecting something or just holding on to a shadow?
Simon begins exhibiting some odd quirks. He believes the family should be together constantly. Weekends should only be family time. He doesn’t like Nina spending any time with her friends. Her girlfriends have been a source of support over the years and suddenly Simon resents Nina seeing them even at the gym. He buys her a home gym so that they can work out together and she will be with him.
Simon tells Nina that he can support her and the children on his teacher’s salary. Nina feels awkward asking him for money and guilty for him paying for things for the kids. After thinking about this and the growing isolation in her life, Nina decides that she is ready to enter the work world again. As a working mother, she will need to find a position that can accommodate her schedule. She finds a position that allows her to work as a social worker.
Simon does not approve of Nina’s new job. He tries to convince her that staying home for the children is truly the best solution. On her first day, Simon calls her incessantly at work. It impedes her work and she tries to explain to him that his calling must stop. He turns his focus to Maggie. He presents a talk to the entire school about bullying. Simon reveals, without using her name, all of the bullying that Maggie has been enduring. His talk humiliates her to the point that she walks out of the assembly. She is convinced that she will never trust Simon. Then she receives a text that purports to be from her father. Could he still be alive?
Maggie verifies the texter is her father by asking a series of questions known only to him. She wants to tell her mother and brother of this wonderful event but her father urges her to keep quiet and wait. She wants to know when she will see him or talk to him. Finally, a phone call is planned. Maggie has become convinced that Simon is hiding something and that he isn’t not who he claims to be. She tries to explain to her mother, but Nina doesn’t listen. At this point, both Nina and Maggie embark on investigations. Nina is looking into her husband’s disappearance and Maggie is investigating Simon.
As Nina looks into Glen’s disappearance she also begins questioning her relationship with Simon. Why does she always feel on edge around him? Cracks begin to appear in the relationship. Can Simon and Nina work through their issues and marry? What happened to Nina’s husband, Glen? Will the police ever find anything?
My rating: 🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻
D.J. Palmer has crafted a gripping psychological thriller that won’t let go. Like a roller coaster ride, as the story builds you know the bottom is going to fall out. You just don’t know when. This book frustrated me because I couldn’t read fast enough and I couldn’t walk away from the story. It consumed me until the end. Life can resume once you finish this story. What an ending! This fantastic story illustrates D. J. Palmer’s mastery of the genre.
Additional thoughts:
Psychological thrillers are becoming more and more popular. People react in many unusual ways. I like thrillers and enjoy them even more when you don’t see the ending coming.