Half Moon Bay

May 14, 2018
In this well-crafted novel of psychological suspense from bestseller LaPlante (Coming of Age at the End of Days), 39-year-old Jane O’Malley moves from San Francisco to a village on the California coast near Half Moon Bay, where she works with plants at Smithson’s Nursery in an effort to get over the death of her 16-year-old daughter, Angela, in a car accident and her divorce from husband Rick, which was a consequence of that tragedy. Then, five-year-old Heidi McCready disappears, and her body turns up carefully wrapped in a blanket left in a field eight days later. More children go missing, much to the consternation of the members of the little community. Jane feels empathy for the bereaved parents, but her erratic behavior causes the FBI to consider her a suspect. The seductive Edward Stanton, an environmental activist, and his beautiful companion, Alma Godwin, who happen to know about Jane’s losses, challenge her to move beyond her pain as a surprising climax approaches. This complex character study will appeal as much to mainstream fiction readers as genre fans. Agent: Victoria Skurnick, Levine Greenburg Literary.

This audiobook is a chilling psychological thriller that explores the ways grief, loss, and fear can change a person and make them question who they are. The story is told from the perspective of Jane, who has recently relocated after the death of her daughter. When her new community starts experiencing abductions and murders, Jane is forced to ask herself if she could be involved in what is happening. Narrator Gabra Zackman is masterful at expressing Jane's thoughts and actions. At first, it can be difficult to listen as there is no cadence in her tone and her thoughts and dialogue seem disconnected. However, it becomes obvious that this flatness is intentional as it puts listeners inside Jane's mind and makes them feel that they're part of the story as it unfolds. K.S.M. � AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine