The Death of Us
A Novel
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- £5.99
Publisher Description
From the award-winning author of Death at Greenway and The Lucky One comes a chilling suspense novel in which the discovery of a submerged car in a murky pond reveals betrayals and family secrets that will tear a small town apart.
One rainy night fifteen years ago, a knock at the door changed Liss Kehoe’s life forever.
On that night, Ashley Hay stood on Liss’s front porch and handed over her brand-new baby Callan.
She was never seen or heard from again.
Since then, Liss has raised Callan as her own, and loves him as fiercely as any mother would. But in the back of her mind, she’s always wondered whether Ashley is still out there somewhere—and feared what might happen if she comes back.
When Ashley does reappear, it’s not in the way Liss expected. After all these years, Ashley’s car has been found… in the quarry pond on Kehoe property. But the discovery of the car dredges up more questions than answers. What really happened on the night of Ashley’s disappearance? Was it a tragic accident, or something far more sinister? Someone in town knows the truth, and they’ll go to great lengths to keep it quiet.
As tensions rise in the small community, Liss must fight to protect her family and keep her own secrets hidden—or risk losing everything she loves.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A car accident revives a dormant small-town mystery in this unsteady thriller from Rader-Day (Death at Greenway). High school guidance counselor Liss Kehoe has centered her life on Callan, the boy she's raised for 15 years, ever since his birth mother (and Liss's former classmate) Ashley Hay brought him to Liss's doorstep as an infant. After leaving Callan with Liss, Ashley disappeared, and Liss constantly worries she might one day return out of the blue. One afternoon, Callan and his friends crash their car into a water-filled quarry abutting Liss's home, and as they extricate themselves from the wreckage, they spot another vehicle submerged in the water. When the authorities arrive, Ashley's bludgeoned remains are retrieved from the second automobile. Evidence of murder casts suspicion on people close to Liss, including her estranged husband Link, whose father, Key, was the town marshal when Ashley vanished. The investigation gets messy for Key's successor, Mercer Alarie, who's been romantically involved with Liss since her separation. Rader-Day maintains suspense by cycling through several characters' perspectives, including that of Key, who has been afflicted with a neurological illness that constrains his ability to communicate with the outside world. Unfortunately, it all culminates in an unsatisfying climax, squandering the strong characterizations and intriguing plot. Rader-Day has done much better before.
