Publication Date: Available now
Source: Netgalley
Five footprints are the only sign that Daniel Buck was ever here.
And now they are all his mother has left.
Every day, Anna Buck guards the little prints in the cement. Polishing them to a shine. Keeping them safe. Spiralling towards insanity.
When a psychic offers hope, Anna grasps it. Who wouldn’t? Maybe he can tell her what happened to her son…
But is this man what he claims to be? Is he a visionary? A shut eye? Or a cruel fake, preying on the vulnerable?
Or is he something far, far worse?
This was a clever and evocative novel from the pen of Belinda Bauer – I love her writing for its haunting quality and sense of emotion and this was no different.
In The Shut Eye we find Anna, who is falling apart after the disappearance of her son, her husband who is losing his wife to grief and various other characters including the brilliantly drawn Jack Marvel who I absolutely fell in love with. When Anna turns to a psychic in the hopes of getting some closure, things take a sinister turn. In her indomitable style, Ms Bauer then manages to take you on a spiralling, often creepy but terribly emotive journey towards the truth..
This is a story that manages to capture the essence of grief beautifully, the differing reactions and ways of coping – whilst also telling a terrific story and using the mystery element perfectly to get us into the heads of the people we meet here. Offset with some truly hilarious moments (Jack on the hunt for a missing dog) it is a terrifically compelling read throughout.
Whilst “Rubbernecker” remains my favourite so far of this authors novels, I would say that this is probably very close to it as far as addictive reading and great story quality go. She never fails to make me lose a bit of sleep whilst pondering themes explored and that to me is the sign of a darned good book.
Highly Recommended.
Happy Reading Folks!
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