High Season
A Novel
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4.1 • 34 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
"Bishop finds heart and poignancy at the center of her artfully crafted thriller." —Associated Press
NEVER SPEAK OF THAT SUMMER.
On a beautiful summer’s night twenty years ago, troubled seventeen-year-old Tamara Drayton was found floating face-down in the pool of her family’s idyllic mansion in the south of France, leaving her twin brother, golden-boy Blake, to pick up the pieces of their shattered family.
Also left behind was their sister Nina who, at six years old, became the youngest person ever to testify in a French murder trial. Because she’s the only one who saw what happened—who watched as her babysitter, Josie Jackson, pushed Tamara under the water, and held her there until she stopped breathing.
Didn’t she? Twenty years later, Nina's memories have faded, leaving her with no idea of what really transpired that night. When a new true crime documentary about her sister’s murder is announced, Nina thinks this might be her chance to finally find out.
But the truth always comes at a cost. Who will pay the price?
Set over two unforgettable summers two decades apart, High Season is a dark, tense exploration of the nature of memory, the enduring power of truth, and all the gray areas in between.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
A witness fears that her flawed memories convicted an innocent woman in this gripping mystery. Nina Drayton testified at her sister’s murder trial—something no child should ever have to do. But 20 years later, she’s gripped by the fear that she accidentally ruined the life of her once-beloved nanny, Josie. Katie Bishop, author of the novel The Girls of Summer, sets her sophomore stunner in the posh, steamy French riviera. She masterfully builds tension, jumping between past and present and contrasting the daily struggles of the area’s townies with the unmitigated opulence of its seasonal socialites. High Season is a suspenseful read about what happens when one person’s imperfect memory threatens to upend everyone’s lives.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This wobbly psychological suspense novel from Bishop (The Girls of Summer) breaks little new ground in its exploration of class tensions on the Cote d'Azur. Privileged 25-year-old Nina has built a satisfying life for herself after surviving a traumatic childhood under the care of her self-absorbed mother and manipulative older siblings. Her fragile peace is threatened, however, when a true crime documentary seeks to reopen the case that catapulted Nina into the headlines as the youngest person ever to testify in a French murder trial: when she was five, her troubled sister, Tamara, was found floating in the family pool during their mother's lavish birthday party. Nina's testimony led to the conviction of the family's babysitter, Josie Jackson, for Tamara's murder, but now Josie has been released from prison, and the public has begun to relitigate her guilt. Josie returns to the Cote d'Azur with hopes of putting the past behind her, but for Nina, her reemergence drags the memory of that fateful day screaming into the present. Bishop toggles between the frenzy around Tamara's death and the present day, spreading narration duties across multiple characters who never really come to life, with Nina's heartless and ultrawealthy family in particular verging on cliché. Despite an intriguing setup, this fails to ignite.
Customer Reviews
Good read
This was a good book. Sometimes the names and position of the characters was confusing. So many main characters. Overall really enjoyed this book