The Lie of You

April 27, 2015
Lythell (After the Storm) effectively interweaves the perspectives of two women in this well-written and creepy, though familiar, psychological thriller. Kathy Hartman has just begun working as the editor at Britain’s “most prestigious architectural magazine,” and is struggling to balance the heightened professional demands with motherhood. Unbeknownst to Kathy, things are only going to get more stressful. One of her staff, Heja Vanheinen, is still obsessed with Kathy’s husband, Markus, her former lover. Heja, who was a well-known television personality in Finland, has insinuated herself into Kathy’s life and begins a campaign to undermine her, both professionally and personally. When Kathy leaves her keys in the office, Heja sneaks them out to make a copy. Able to enter Kathy and Markus’s home whenever she likes, Heja derives a sense of power and control from watching Kathy asleep and vulnerable. The arc of the plot offers few surprises, though Lythell is adept at maintaining suspense as Heja’s net tightens around her prey.

June 1, 2015
Returning from maternity leave to fill a new post at the helm of England's premier architectural magazine, Kathy Hartman finds that the exhaustion of new motherhood and the increasing coldness between her and her husband, Markus, are draining her focus. Then, Heja, a writer on Kathy's team, develops a hostile obsession with Kathy and begins stalking her. Lythell builds sympathy for warm, messy Kathy as she tries to recapture her connection with Markus, while, at the same time, suggesting that Heja's fixation has greater depth than a lunatic's revenge. This breathless, streamlined tale is built on contrasts, as Kathy and Heja's alternating narratives duel in terms of plot, mood, and pacing, moving toward a climax that's equally terrifying and heartbreaking. Lythell's spare, powerful language and her ability to map dimension into the desperately insane mind combine to forge a stellar psychological thriller that's a shade warmer, but no less haunting, than Karin Fossum's haunting tales.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)