Six Weeks to Live

March 29, 2021
After a doctor tells Jennifer Barnes, the 48-year-old protagonist of this lackluster novel of suspense from McKenzie (You Can’t Catch Me), she has brain cancer and about six weeks to live, she decides she wants to be surrounded by her 25-year-old triplet daughters and receive emotional support from her estranged husband, Jake Gagnon. But her daughters are oddly remote and almost unconcerned, believing their mother is just being her usual dramatic self. And Jake, a successful lawyer, only wants to push for a divorce. The sisters are used to Jennifer’s theatrics—she pushed them as children, billed as the Gagnon Triplets, to participate in talent shows and media events across Canada. Their suspicions heighten when Jennifer insists she developed brain cancer as a result of Jake poisoning her. Though she’s dying, Jennifer elicits little sympathy, and her relationship with her daughters continues to fray as old grudges and memories surface. A clever twist comes too late as the plot stalls early with little tension and uninspired characters. McKenzie has done better. Agent: Abigail Koons, Park & Fine Literary and Media.