Never Let You Go

April 4, 2016
Fans of Never Tear Us Apart will be pleased that this sequel fulfills the promise of Murphy’s decidedly unconventional contemporary love story, set in an unspecified part of the U.S. Years before the story opens, serial killer Aaron Monroe imprisoned young Katie Watts. Aaron’s son, Will, saved Katie from his father and then disappeared. As an adult, Will renamed himself Ethan Williams and manipulated Katie, now called Katherine, into falling in love with him. It’s been a few months since Katherine discovered her new lover’s true identity and kicked him out of her life, appalled by his deceit. Along comes ratings-hungry TV reporter Lisa Swanson, who had once gained fame by exploiting Katherine. Now she’s skating on the edge of journalistic ethics by attempting to arrange a meeting between Katherine and Aaron, who’s currently on death row. Inevitably, Katherine and Ethan/Will are drawn back into each other’s lives. Tension mounts as the charismatic but broken lovers struggle to heal each other while dodging media attention. The superior characterization and compelling plot are enough to outweigh the awkward prose and clunky structure. Agent: Kimberly A. Whalen, Trident Media Group.

Two narrators deliver this tense mystery. Rachel Fulginiti delivers the chapters told from the point of view of Lindsey, who has escaped her abusive husband, Andrew. She's starting over with her daughter, Sophie, whose story is narrated by Caitlin Davies. The descriptions of Andrew's escalating abuse are difficult to listen to but essential to understanding Lindsey's terror when he makes a reappearance. The claustrophobic suspense is beautifully conveyed by the measured desperation in Fulginiti's voice. Davies is perfect as the teenage Sophie, who is both struggling to understand her mother's situation and longing for a father. The intimate portrayals of the female characters help to compensate for an overly long story that lacks enough twists to sustain it. However, the climax more than makes up for any shortcomings. C.A.T. � AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine