Clare Mackintosh | I LET YOU GO

Plot:

On a rainy afternoon, a mother’s life is shattered as her son slips from her grip and runs into the street…
I Let You Go follows Jenna Gray as she moves to a ramshackle cottage on the remote Welsh coast, trying to escape the memory of the car accident that plays again and again in her mind and desperate to heal from the loss of her child and the rest of her painful past.

At the same time, the novel tracks the pair of Bristol police investigators trying to get to the bottom of this hit-and-run. As they chase down one hopeless lead after another, they find themselves as drawn to each other as they are to the frustrating, twist-filled case before them.

Review:

If you hadn't noticed, this blog is solely reviews on thrillers, psychological thrillers, suspense, and mystery novels. Those are my genres. It's what I love to read. I LET YOU GO is the perfect book for me. Why? Because it is a thriller. It is a psychological thriller. It is a suspense. It is a mystery. It is amazing.

Following the tragic accident, I really was torn between where this could go and how Mackintosh would execute this novel. What I really loved was the alternate perspectives between Detective Inspector Ray Stevens and Jenna Gray. Dealing with the stress and the emotional turmoil after poor Jacob is hit and killed, Jenna's chapters are ones of strength and are more heartfelt as she goes through life trying to move on, the memories still clutching her. While these chapters are more emotional for a thriller, it's a nice break to go back and forth with DI Stevens as his chapters are colder and more of a mystery/policy procedural. Going back and forth between the two was just such a delight as it was like two different people telling the story.

Then, I turned the page and noticed a big bold "PART TWO".

Then, all hell broke loose. While I cannot say much more in regards to this phenomenal thriller, I will say that this book was fantastic on its own...and then it just got spectacular. The twists and turns are not only unexpected, but thrown at the reader with force. A third perspective is thrown into the mix that I never saw coming and highly enjoyed. 

I LET YOU GO is clever, atmospheric, cinematic, and brilliant. The characters are real (whether you like them or not), the plot is unlike any other, the pacing is fantastically executed, and the ending made me anxiously gasp. My only negative thought with this one is wondering why I didn't read it sooner. Clare Mackintosh is right up there with Ruth Ware and Paula Hawkins on my list of favorite authors and she's staying there.

Rating: 4.5/5