Jenny Blackhurst | HOW I LOST YOU
A while back, when speaking with a representative of Atria Books about another novel, I was happily surprised with a couple of novels that I had a hard time getting to and one of them is HOW I LOST YOU by Jenny Blackhurst.
Plot:
I have no memory of what happened but I was told I killed my son. And you believe what your loved ones, your doctor and the police tell you, don't you? My name is Emma Cartwright. Three years ago I was Susan Webster, and I murdered my twelve-week-old son Dylan. I was sent to Oakdale Psychiatric Institute for my crime, and four weeks ago I was released early on parole with a new identity, address, and a chance to rebuild my tattered life. This morning, I received an envelope addressed to Susan Webster. Inside it was a photograph of a toddler called Dylan. Now I am questioning everything I believe because if I have no memory of the event, how can I truly believe he's dead? If there was the smallest chance your son was alive, what would you do to get him back?
Review:
Rating: 5/5
Plot:
I have no memory of what happened but I was told I killed my son. And you believe what your loved ones, your doctor and the police tell you, don't you? My name is Emma Cartwright. Three years ago I was Susan Webster, and I murdered my twelve-week-old son Dylan. I was sent to Oakdale Psychiatric Institute for my crime, and four weeks ago I was released early on parole with a new identity, address, and a chance to rebuild my tattered life. This morning, I received an envelope addressed to Susan Webster. Inside it was a photograph of a toddler called Dylan. Now I am questioning everything I believe because if I have no memory of the event, how can I truly believe he's dead? If there was the smallest chance your son was alive, what would you do to get him back?
Review:
I will admit, when I received a copy of HOW I LOST YOU by
Jenny Blackhurst, I had been expecting a more emotional psychological thriller
as this deals with the death of a child. What I received was heartfelt,
gut-wrenching, captivating, and unlike any other thriller out there. Not that I
wasn’t expecting a good book, I always start a new book with an open mind but I
was floored with Jenny Blackhurst.
This novel is not only emotional, but the suspense is intense,
dark and brooding. Including so much suspense and wickedness in a psychological
thriller is not only effective, but a real treat when reading a book with a
plot like this one. In fact, looking back I am surprised this novel is a
whopping 384 pages as it flew by so quickly. Not one page of filler is found in
this one. The characters are not only three-dimensional, but believable and all
beautifully flawed in their own ways. The pacing in this novel is not only
intensely perfect, but doesn’t take long to get into the meat of this plot. Another
thing that always works for me is the multiple story lines taking place all the
way from the 1980s to present. The reason for me why this was so effective with
this plot is I was finding myself thinking of not only the main plot, but the
subplots within this novel when I wasn’t reading it. I was hungry for more and
eagerly anticipating the next time I could sit down and dive into this.
Reading the plot alone to this novel does not do it justice
as there are so many other things included that will jump out at you like a
black cat on Halloween. I would highly recommend this novel for fans of
psychological thrillers and suspense novels. With a writing style similar to
Chevy Stevens, the heart of Jodi Picoult, and the twists and turns of Gone Girl;
this is sure to be a novel you will kick yourself if you don’t pick up your copy
when this is released on October 10, 2017. My only complaint about this novel? That I don't have a physical copy in my hands yet. This is one I will definitely want to read again.
*Special thank you to Atria Books for providing me with a
copy of this one in exchange for my honest review.
Rating: 5/5
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