More of a Polic Procedural than Psychological Thriller

When Leah runs into a deer and crashed her car on a deserted country road on the other side of their village, she makes her way to the nearest house to ask for help. The door is answered by a handsome and charismatic man who introduces himself as Martin Tate. He’s not only helpful but there’s also a certain chemistry that leads to a secret kiss. His friendly and caring attitude stands in shrill contrast to the reaction of her own husband Elliot when he finally comes home. The next morning Leah goes over to Martin’s place with a bottle of wine to thank him. The place is swarmed by the police who tell Leah that the house owner, a woman called Alice Booth, was murdered the previous night. So, Leah did not only came face to face with a killer but she kissed him. That last detail she leaves out of her statement though and she gave him her address as well. But contrary to the expectation, he’s not after her to kill her but has taken a shine to her and wants a relationship with her, and will do anything to get that as well.

I read an earlier book by this author “While You Slept” and expected this to be another psychological thriller. This story contains more elements of a police procedural than those of a psychological thriller, although there is a compact cast of characters and a psychological cat and mouse game. It was suspenseful and sometimes even funny and once I knew what I was dealing with, I enjoyed what I read even when it was different, from what I expected.
I had to suspend my disbelief a bit to accept the premise of this book. Why does the killer open the door at all? He could have remained silent and pretended that the light was left on to ward of burglars as that’s something that happens often enough. The reason he gives her for that later on, are meagre and not realistic.
Apart from his unconventional problem solution, Martin is a very charming and friendly man. If he likes you, that is. Elliot on the other hand is a right prick. It’s a wonder that Leah stuck with him as long as she did, but she’s just too nice for her own good and she has low self-esteem. If the situation was reversed, I don’t think he would think twice about saving his own bacon. So in a way, Elliot gets what he deserves.
I understand completely why Leah omits the kiss from her police declaration. It’s not something that you go telling about. But later on, when she receives the first text messages, she could have told the police. But then again, until you find yourself in the situation, you don’t know how you’ll react.
The best and funniest scene is that of the dinner party, reminiscent of the one that Hannibal Lecter served to Clarice. But I think that Clarice has a lot more class than Leah but she manages to her best ability.
I thank Harper Collins, One More Chapter and Netgalley for the free ARC they provided and this is my honest, unbiased review of it.