I picked up the hardback copy of this book at a book fair where I was hoping to sell some of my own books. There was a very large stall selling pre-read hardbacks for £1.00. Having read other books by this author, I felt the expense was worth the risk! I’d enjoyed the other titles, but I’m pleased this one came to me cheaply.

The characters in the book are usually what keeps me reading a story. I have to be able to empathise with at least one, otherwise I see no good reason to continue the read. In the case of this story, I was originally drawn to the considerable confusion felt by Jinx following her recovery of consciousness after what she quickly discovered to be an accusation of an attempt to kill herself using a car accident. It was clear her confusion over the incident was profound. She was surrounded by people, some of whom clearly didn’t have her best interests at heart. But that was where the clarity ended for me.

I’m not generally a lover of crime fiction, we’re surrounded by such things daily and rarely seem to escape it, so I usually look for my literary escapes elsewhere. This book, in particular, seemed designed for those who love their crime wrapped in multiple clues, most of them misleading. After a while I became tired of trying to link information, often contradicted, and found the deliberate confusion of the plot and those involved in it just too much for my aging brain to deal with comfortably. Nevertheless, I carried on.

I was not particularly taken by the resolution of the story. Although events became clearer toward the end, I felt I’d been lead an unnecessarily overcomplicated dance through them.

So, not for me. But I imagination the puzzle-solvers and those more interested in such details than in the emotional aspect of a story would find it worth their while.