My favorite thriller of the year thus far is the novel “Greenwich Park” by debut author, Katherine Faulkner. An engrossing tale of domestic and psychological suspense, this one had me turning pages until late into the night.
Helen’s life appears to be idyllic. She has a handsome and successful husband, a lovely home in the upscale London suburb of Greenwich Park, a close circle of longtime friends, and after four miscarriages, a pregnancy that seems to be going perfectly.
However, all that changes the day she attends her first prenatal class and meets mom-to-be Rachel. Confident and dynamic, Rachel is a force of nature.
At first Helen is intoxicated by the breath of fresh air Rachel infuses into her life, but soon she begins to show up every place that Helen goes and she claims to know things that Helen doesn’t remember. Eventually, even Helen’s family and friends become concerned by the situation and it becomes increasingly apparent that Rachel is not what or who she appears to be.
Who is Rachel and what does she want?
As Rachel insinuates herself more deeply Helen’s life, secrets tightly guarded for years begin to bubble to the surface with catastrophic results.
Told from multiple perspectives and shifts in time, Faulkner manages to construct a tale that is at once complex and yet easy to follow. The shifting narratives keep the reader off balance and you are never quite sure which character is telling the truth.
This sophisticated and character-driven thriller begins as a slow burn but quickly picks up in pace, and the suspense continually increases until it reaches a fever pitch that leaves the reader desperate to know the final answer to the puzzle.
As with any good thriller, Faulkner leaves enough breadcrumbs along the way to keep the reader engaged, but is also able to shock and surprise with twists and turns.
This is a story that took me someplace I hadn’t expected to go and I loved every second of the journey. And just when it appears that all the secrets have been revealed, the last line of the novel reveals a twist that you will not see coming — and that will leave you thinking about it for years afterward.
Faulkner is clearly a talented writer and this is an impressive debut. It will be interesting to see what she does next based on this initial effort. If you are a fan of psychological suspense, put this one on your to-read list immediately.
Eve Hall, a former bookseller, has been an employee of the Hopkinsville-Christian County Public library for five years. Her favorite genres to read are thrillers, mysteries, horror, historical fiction and true crime. She has called Hopkinsville home for 30 years.
