THIS DAY NEVER HAPPENED.
YOU HEAR ME?
By a frozen lake, ten-year-old Jesse waits for his father.
It’s New Year’s Day, and his dad promised a fresh start.
But Jesse messed it all up.
And that’s when he meets the woman.
In the months ahead, the woman’s sudden disappearance sets off a chain of events in Whale Bay, spanning out like fracture lines into the lives of her husband, the detective trying to solve her case, and of Jesse and his family – a young boy cracking like ice under the weight of a terrible secret. How A Woman Becomes a Lake is a chilling literary mystery that asks what happens when we are failed by the ones we love.
How A Woman Becomes A Lake is an absolutely mesmerising read, I’m not even sure how to describe it in the context of genre – the mystery element is very low key, whilst there is an eventual reveal of what happened on “the day that never happened ” it’s not what the novel is about, nor is it at all unexpected.
I think the multi arc character drama of it is what makes it rise above- the writing is purely beautiful, the lives being lived within the pages utterly compelling. The voice of a dead woman resonates throughout, whilst those close to her and those involved and knowledgeable about her final moments, live with the very personal mental consequences.
The years flow by, the relationships ebb and flow, ever changing with the seasons…all the while as a reader you are completely gripped, until the final, emotional pages.
Very good indeed. A little literary delight.
You can purchase How A Woman Becomes A Lake (Virago) Here.
Happy Reading!
