Review by Darcie Czajkowski
Julie
Prentice’s life changed dramatically when her novel, The Murder Game, was published. It became an international
bestseller, which brought in more money than she ever could have imagined, but it
also spurred Heather, a former law school classmate, someone who’d always
seemed a little off to Julie, to start stalking her. When the threats and
pranks become too much for Julie to bear in Tacoma, she, her husband, and their
young twins relocate to Ohio where they plan to start a new life with high
hopes that Heather won’t follow them.
Initially,
Julie is charmed by her new neighborhood, and in particular her new neighbor,
John, who lives across the street. They start running together, which brings a
measure of comfort to Julie’s feeling of displacement in a new town. But soon,
the close-knit nature of the friendship starts to spark jealousy in John’s
wife, Hanna, and suspicion among the neighbors about the nature of their
friendship.
As
the deadline for Julie’s second book looms and she is far behind her on word
count, the pranks start up again and she wonders if Heather has found them. The
police, however, are no help. They find nothing to suggest that Heather is in
Cincinnati. Could Julie herself be behind the pranks in some twisted cry for
help, or is it the neighbors who are sending a message that she is not welcome
in their lives?
“Fractured”
by Catherine McKenzie is an intriguing psychological thriller that I really
enjoyed. The characters and their emotions and responses felt very real, and I
breezed through this book. The chapters alternated between John and Julie, both
in the past and present, all leading up to the big reveal about a referenced
“accident.” Throughout the book, the reader knows that someone died in the
accident, and I raced through the pages to find out who, guessing all the way.
If you enjoy mysteries and thrillers, with a hint of romance, I would highly
recommend “Fractured.”
Purchase
the book at:
About the author:
A
graduate of McGill University in History and Law, Catherine practices law in
Montreal, where she was born and raised. Catherine's novels, SPIN, ARRANGED,
FORGOTTEN, HIDDEN and SMOKE, are all international bestsellers and have been
translated into numerous languages, including French, German, Portuguese,
Polish, Turkish, Slovakian and Czech. HIDDEN was also a #1 Amazon bestseller
and a Digital Bookworld bestseller for five weeks. SMOKE was named one of the
Top 100 Books in 2015 by Amazon and one of the Best Books of October by
Goodreads, and was an Amazon bestseller.
ARRANGED has been optioned for film, and SPIN has been
optioned for a television series. A short film of ARRANGED was made in 2014 and
won a Canadian National Screen Institute Award. Catherine was on set while they
filmed it. It was one of the cooler experiences of her life.
Connect with the author at:
LakeUnion Publishing is giving
One lucky
winner a print copy of
Fractured
by Catherine McKenzie