I don’t know if it’s because I read most of this book while trapped in 2 Chicago airports, but it didn’t hold my attention. The mother, Margaret, was too starkly detached one minute, and a completely wrecked shell of a woman who was completely enslaved to her emotions the next. Which was she? She claimed to love her daughter so intensely that it drove her to track the killer & foist upon him her own brand of justice, but yet she could deceive her daughter for her entire life that her ‘father’ was dead.

Not true, the ‘father’ of memory was a complete fiction. Margaret even bought props to back up this fantasy. A few books, a watch, a handkerchief. All forged a dead father’s identity. The real father was still alive and after Mary’s death, Margaret confessed all to him. He believes her and has a confession of his own; he has always loved her and was now free of the wife that had prevented their union all those years ago. He helps Margaret manipulate Jimmy.

In the end, they leave Jimmy in a shed in the country. Bound, gagged and injured he is discovered by the cop investigating the case. It appears that he left Jimmy there as Margaret wanted. The cop went a little over the edge during the investigation. He has fallen in love with Margaret and that underscores his apathy and repulsion to his own wife. Luckily, his wife has much those same feelings for him. He drinks too much and in the end nearly ruins his career.

Margaret & the real dad go to New Zealand and live out their lives. I guess I did remember more of it. The mother & daughter were really strangers to each other. Mary didn’t know of the circumstances of her birth, and Margaret never knew that Mary had been pregnant with Jimmy’s child. Jimmy had a fake ‘normal’ relationship with Mary as a way to get close to her so he could kill her. Mary never told her mother. It was weird. Margaret was a shrink and she never could understand her own kid.

An interesting thriller that starts with a dead body and passes through an investigation and court case. Some interesting twists as the background of the characters unfolds.

I did enjoy this one and it had a nice sense of Dublin without falling into the twee or too nasty to be realistic. Did drag occasionally though. ( )

Julie Parsons is a gem of a writer, just another of those fabulous british women mystery writers