Title: If I Die Tonight by Alison Gaylin
Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 384 pages
Book Rating: B+
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through Edelweiss
Summary:
Reminiscent of the bestsellers of Laura Lippman and Harlan Coben—with a dose of Big Little Lies or Stranger Things—an absorbing, addictive tale of psychological suspense from the author of the highly acclaimed and Edgar Award-nominated What Remains of Me and the USA Today bestselling and Shamus Award-winning Brenna Spector series, in which a seemingly open-and-shut police case with a clear-cut hero and villain turns out to be anything but simple.
Late one night in the quiet Hudson Valley town of Havenkill, a distraught woman stumbles into the police station—and lives are changed forever.
Aimee En, once a darling of the ’80s pop music scene, claims that a teenage boy stole her car, then ran over another young man who’d rushed to help.
As Liam Miller’s life hangs in the balance, the events of that fateful night begin to come into focus. But is everything as it seems?
The case quickly consumes social media, transforming Liam, a local high school football star, into a folk hero, and the suspect, a high school outcast named Wade Reed, into a depraved would-be killer. But is Wade really guilty? And if he isn’t, why won’t he talk?
Told from a kaleidoscope of viewpoints—Wade’s mother Jackie, his younger brother Connor, Aimee En and Pearl Maze, a young police officer with a tragic past, If I Die Tonight is a story of family ties and dark secrets—and the lengths we’ll go to protect ourselves.
Review:
Opening with a heart wrenching prologue, If I Die Tonight by Alison Gaylin is a spellbinding mystery about a carjacking that leads to the hit and run of a popular high school student.
Jackie Reed is a single mom raising her two sons, seventeen year old Wade and thirteen year old Connor, in the small town of Havenkill, NY. Over the past several months, Wade has drastically changed and he is now secretive and a bit of a loner. Despite these changes in her son, Jackie has complete confidence her son would not do anything to harm anyone. However, suspicion falls on Wade following the carjacking that leaves her son’s classmate, popular and well-liked Liam Miller in a coma. Jackie never wavers in her faith that Wade has nothing to do with what happened to Liam, but the other people in their small town are not as willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.
Police Officer Pearl Maze is on duty the night Amy Nathanson, a washed up musician, reports her vintage Jaguar has been carjacked. She is also a witness in the accident in which Liam was struck by the car thief, but Pearl has doubts about her story. When Pearl uncovers information that proves her intuition is correct, Amy revises her explanation, but is she telling the truth?
Jackie’s belief in Wade is never shaken but she is frustrated by his refusal to tell her where he was the night of Liam’s accident. She is already concerned by a puzzling text that was sent to him but she also wants to respect his privacy. But as the situation becomes more dire since everyone in town is out of blood and Wade is the easiest target, will Jackie try to find answers to the questions that are troubling her about her son?
Younger brother Connor is also deeply affected by the unfolding events. The antipathy toward Wade spills over onto Connor and he is forced to deal with bullies and out of control gossip fueled by social media. He wants to protect his brother and when he becomes a social pariah, Connor makes a decision that he immediately regrets but is unable to take back.
Written from multiple points of view, If I Die Tonight is a slow burning yet incredibly engrossing mystery. The characters are richly developed and multi-dimensional. The storyline is quite riveting and realistic. While some elements are somewhat easy to figure out, Alison Gaylin does an outstanding job keeping the truth about who is responsible for what happened to Liam and the perpetrator’s identity cleverly under wraps until the novel’s conclusion. A suspenseful and fascinating novel that fans of the genre are sure to enjoy.
