The Jump

June 13, 2016
Ellie Napier, the heroine of this suspenseful psychological thriller from British author Johnstone (Gone Again), grieves over the loss months earlier of her 15-year-old son, Logan, who threw himself over the Forth Road Bridge in South Queensferry, Scotland. Ellie spends her time in a haze, going on long walks or swims, which seem to ease her pain somewhat, while her husband, Ben, devotes all his spare time hoping to uncover some physical reason that will explain his son’s suicide. One day, while making her daily pilgrimage to the bridge, Ellie spots a teenage boy, whom she later finds out is Sam McKenna, poised to jump, talks him out of it, and takes him home. Noticing that Sam’s clothing is spotted with blood, Ellie realizes that there’s more than simple depression behind Sam’s attempted suicide. Ellie promises to protect him, feeling that if she couldn’t save her own son, she could try to save someone else’s. A horrifying series of events builds to a less than credible conclusion.