Title: She Lies Close
Author: Sharon Doering
Publisher: Titan Books
Publication date: November 10th, 2020
400 pages
3/5 stars
Goodreads Synopsis
A compulsive debut thriller about motherhood, obsession and how far we’d go to protect the ones we love.
Five-year-old Ava Boone has been missing for six months. There have been no leads, no arrests, no witnesses. The only suspect was quiet, middle-aged Leland Ernest.
And Grace Wright has just bought the house next door. Recently divorced, Grace uprooted her two small children to start again and hopes the move will reset her crippling insomnia. But now she understands bargain-price for her beautiful new house.
With whispered neighbourhood gossip and increasingly sleepless nights, Grace develops a fierce obsession with Leland and the safety of her children. Could she really be living next door to a child-kidnapper? A murderer?
With reality and dream blurring more each day, Grace desperately pursues the truth – following Ava’s family, demanding answers from the police – and then a body is discovered…
Review
She Lies Close follows a single mother of two, recently divorced, who also has mental health issues and is just trying to keep her kids safe. Unfortunately, her new house is next door to the man who is suspected of kidnapping a young child in the neighborhood, and this sends Grace into a tailspin. She tries to solve the disappearance of Ava while struggling with insomnia and paranoia. But when her next door neighbor turns up dead and she dreamt of killing him the same way, that same night, she starts to wonder if she is the killer….
So, I found the concept of She Lies Close to be compelling, but there was something lacking in the execution. I don’t mind irredeemable characters, but Grace had nothing positive going for her so it was hard to root for her. Parts of the story were unbelievable, as she continued to spiral and did more illegal things without getting caught. Also, her kids were brats and rude and it was just hard to read.
I appreciated the twist ending (as most thrillers/mysteries boast). One tiny detail of the ending was a let down, but overall it was a satisfying conclusion.
Thank you to Titan Books and Edelweiss for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Happy reading, folks!
Baltimore Bibliophile 