This is my first thriller by Linwood Barclay, an American-born Canadian author, a past columnist for the Toronto Star, whose book No Time For Goodbye was a runaway bestseller, and his previous novel to this - Trust Your Eyes - is to be filmed.
Keisha Ceylon is a psychic who uses her gift to help families find their missing loved ones. Actually, she's a con artist who looks for vulnerable people, drops by their house and tells them she has had a vision she'll tell them about for a price - up front. Pulling vague clues off the top of her head, she can sometimes fool them into thinking she's right. She even has faithful clients who regularly call for advice.
Visiting Wendell Garfield, who's wife has disappeared, she starts to work her routine and convinces him she has 'seen' where his wife is. Trouble is, she doesn't realize she's hitting close to home. Trouble is, Wendell already knows where she is - at the bottom of an ice-covered lake! Did he put her there? - or knows who did? - I'm not saying, but his attack almost kills her. Enter Detective Rona Wedmore, clear-headed and direct, she can quickly see Keisha and her no-good boyfriend are mixed up in the mystery. While they desperately try to cover their tracks, there is a horrible murder, an unlikely admission of guilt, and Keisha gets pulled even deeper into all of it.
Never Saw it Coming is a perfect little thriller - tight characters and an engaging premise that kicks off and keeps rolling. Not a lot of violence (except for an exceptional knitting needle murder!), it relies on it's characters, switching between Rona's investigation and Keisha's attempts to climb out of the mess she made. There is a lighter side for the reader as we watch Keisha's plans fall apart.
I read this in one sitting, it rips right along. If you are looking for a thriller with a twisted plot and enjoyable characters, check this out. You won't be disappointed.
2012 / Tradeback / 252 pages
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