The Liar's Room

November 15, 2018
Psychologist Susanna Felton likes to end her work week with colleagues from neighboring offices, unwinding over a few drinks. On the Friday evening dissected in this somber thriller, however, things turn out awfully different, emphasis on awfully. Susanna's final patient tells her that she must answer one question to his satisfaction or he will carry out a dire threat. The planned hour turns into the longest night of Susanna's life as she is forced to revisit events in a past she thought she'd hidden and to examine the intricacies of victimhood. While it includes numerous flashbacks, this study of a damaged psyche is essentially a long conversation between two characters, a difficult plot device that Lelic (The New Neighbors, 2018) pulls off with considerable skill. A central theme of the book?How much is a parent responsible for a child's behavior??is presented in a thought-provoking way that will stay with readers long after the final twist. Hand this one to readers who enjoyed Lionel Shriver's We Need to Talk about Kevin ? (2003).(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)