Dying for Christmas

September 19, 2016
Jessica Gold, the unreliable narrator of this exciting, chillingly complex psychological thriller from Cohen (First One Missing), is prone to blackouts and hears voices; even her own family calls her a misfit. Two days before Christmas, while loaded down with packages, Jessica stops at a coffee shop, where she meets a stranger, the charming, smiling, dimpled Dominic Lacey, who says she reminds him of his former wife. Recklessly, Jessica rides with Dominic to his apartment, located in an isolated area outside London. There he holds her captive, torturing her and making her sleep in a dog crate, with a so-called gift for each of the 12 days of Christmas. Jessica is sure her death will be the final present. Meanwhile, ambitious policewoman Kim Harper digs into Jessica’s disappearance, hoping the case will bring a promotion. A deliciously dark twist midway through turns the plot around while keeping the story believable. Cohen realistically shapes her self-centered characters, with Jessica perhaps the most emotionally well-balanced. Agent: Deborah Schneider, Gelfman Schneider/ICM Partners.