Novels No. 19 (LL337)

 

Taylor Adams. The Last Word. Ebook download from TPL. USA: William Morrow, 2023.

Emma is house-sitting for Jules Phelps near a beach called The Strand in the off-season; it's isolated, just what she wanted. Her only neighbour is Deek, an old man she hasn't met in person, but who communicates by messages printed on a whiteboard. With a telescope she can read them, and so they exchange amiable notes. Emma's main occupation is reading book after book, a lot of them trashy, to keep her mind off grief and suicide. One book, Murder Mountain, was so bad she penned a vicious one-star review online. The author, H.G. Kane, did not appreciate it—to a hostile point, insisting she remove it.

Credible so far? Allusions to Emma's deceased husband account for her grief. Already depressed, she gets creepy feelings from the old house; at night she dreams a scary figure stands in her bedroom watching her. It must be the influence of the horror genre she's reading? Deek wants to meet in person but she's afraid to let anyone in; she thinks H.G. Kane is stalking her. What follows is reality versus the way Kane is fictionalizing their encounter in his next novel, Murder Beach. It's not clear which version is happening in real time. The litany of Emma's dreary thoughts only subsides with descriptions of murderous attacks that she deflects. Or does she? Every assumption the reader makes is likely shattered.

What I expected from a story that begins with literary disagreement was an intellectual exchange of wits. What I got was a construct around second-rate horror that slowly developed a magnetic force. I confess to some speed reading before I was tardily hooked. With elements of irony and absurdity, Adams pulls off surprise after surprise. There are bodies. And a faithful dog.

Bits

▪ She's here to run the heaters, watch for roof leaks, and bring in Jules's mail. (24)

▪ Emma doesn't like to be seen. Being seen burdens you with an image you have to maintain. (40)

▪ Raising both hands to her mouth, she screams her dog's name again. (110)

▪ The convenient horror "tropes" for which she'd one-starred Murder Mountain were now her inarguable reality. (120)

▪ His tactical boots landed on glass fragments—crunch, crunch—and he searched the dark interior for the woman he was here to murder. (142)

▪ She can't trust her own memory. She can't trust time. (150)

▪ "Did your stun gun get here?" (232)

▪ "I can't say what I mean to. People stress me out, even when they mean well." (237)

▪ "I'm the only one who can save you from yourself. You understand that, right?" (250-1)

▪ The warble in her ear drum intensifies, an unearthly chorus of screams, a broken radio picking up back channels of hell. (275)

Jaime Lynn Hendricks. I Didn't Do It. Ebook download from TPL. New York: Scarlet/Penzler Publishers, 2023.

Authors again! A whole conference of thriller writers, from unpublished fledglings to bestseller authors: Murderpalooza! Attendance is swollen with all the supporting players—publishers, editors, agents, and publicists. A highlight will be the Thriller of the Year award. Nominees include Kirstin Bailey, Vicky Overton, and three men. But that morning someone stabs Kirstin to death in her hotel room. And four people are targeted as being "next to die" by an unknown phone texter. Does each of them have something in common with Kristin? Enough to be another victim? Or to be the killer? Maybe they can sort this out together.

Vicky heard the rumour that her boyfriend Jim was also sleeping with Kristin; she plans to confront him if she can prove it to herself. Mike Brooks is an author of past glory; his recent books have not been selling as well. Mike's secret is that Kristin had co-authored his newest manuscript and their plot is being enacted in real life. Then there's the celebrated golden-boy-of-the-moment, Davis Walton. He's not forthcoming to the others about a connection to Kristin. The dark horse is Suzanne Shih, a young newbie whose manuscript has not yet been read or accepted anywhere. Suzanne idolized Kristin, to the point of stalking, which finally generated a restraining order. Yet so many other characters play into the lives of these suspects, especially among floods of cutthroat Twitter accusations, any of them could be the taunting killer.

What better setting for a murder mystery? The chapters alternate from one perspective to another as the four suspect each other; "I didn't do it!" is a constant refrain. You can count on the obligatory red herrings, midnight visits, and an amazing climax—very hard to put this one down until the end.

Vicky

▪ Now, my boyfriend's girlfriend is dead, and it doesn't look good for me. (55)

▪ I search the hashtag for Murderpalooza along with Mike's name, and these people are brutal. (226)

▪ Not the same handwriting? Who wrote it, then. Who wanted Jason dead? (250)

Mike

▪ She doesn't like to drink during the day. Something about "drinky wrinkles." (145)

▪ Everyone must think I'm such a garbage human being, myself included. (234)

▪ When I first became well-known, there was no social media. (237)

Suzanne

▪ Please don't let this be about me and what happened this morning. (29)

▪ I'm here for connections, to be noticed. This is my shining moment. (73)

▪ Fear paralyzes me as I slide down the wall and huddle into a corner, gripping my knees into my chest. (242)

Davis

▪ Everyone came out to celebrate me over hundred-dollar steaks. Why not? I'm worth it. I'm Davis Walton. (14)

▪ ... all I can think of are the promises Kristin Bailey and I made to each other. (18)

▪ Too many writers around me have died. (41)