Conviction

Starred review from April 1, 2019
Anna McDonald, the heroine of this spellbinding thriller from Edgar finalist Mina (The Long Drop), fled her personal problems in London and started over in Glasgow nine years earlier. She’s now engrossed in true-crime podcasts such as Death and the Dana, about a murdered family, a sunken yacht named the Dana, and a wrongful conviction. After Anna’s partner, Hamish, runs away with her best friend, Estelle, she and Estelle’s despondent husband, anorexic former rock star Fin Cohen, embark on a road trip, bingeing Death and the Dana while investigating its claims. Anna soon discovers that she has multiple ties to the tale. When a picture of her and Fin goes viral on social media, dangerous figures from Anna’s past get on their trail. The mysteries of Anna’s tragic history and the Dana’s true fate unfold in tandem, with podcast transcripts peppering the colorful narrative. Anna and Fin alternately bolster and antagonize one another, balancing introspections on modern life and human nature with laugh-out-loud humor. Mina delivers a metafictional marvel that both endorses and exemplifies the power of storytelling. Agent: Henry Dunow, Dunow, Carlson & Lerner Literary.

Mina's latest thriller is a spellbinding listen featuring a superbly talented narrator. Cathleen McCarron expertly portrays numerous characters spanning several ages, accents, genders, and emotions. She particularly shines as protagonist Anna McDonald. Anna lives a simple life as a wife and mother. She fills her days with books and podcasts, losing herself in stories. However, on the same morning that her husband announces his affair with her best friend, Anna discovers a connection to the topic of her most recent true-crime listen. McCarron transitions seamlessly between the podcast Anna is listening to and her personal journey and creates unique identifiers for each component. As the truth comes to light, so do the secrets from Anna's own past. Anna is a quirky, compelling heroine, and McCarron is a narrative force. K.S.M. � AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine