28 December 2010

Review: NEVER LOOK AWAY, Linwood Barclay

Publisher: Orion Books 2010
ISBN 978-0-7528-9743-1
415 pages
Source: Local Library

Publisher's Blurb
A warm summer Saturday. An amusement park. David Harwood is glad to be spending some quality time with his wife, Jan, and their four-year-old son. But what begins as a pleasant family outing turns into a nightmare after an inexplicable disappearance. As David struggles to restore his family, he discovers that the people we’re most close to are the ones with the biggest secrets.

My take
This is one of those books where you can't reveal too much of the story without spoiling plot surprises for readers. It is a stand-alone so you don't need to have read anything else by Linwood Barclay. On the other hand, I'll be very surprised if you don't go looking for other titles by this well established Canadian crime fiction author if this is your first.

As he often does, Barclay has taken a scenario that others have explored, or that many parents have often thought about, and given it a strong twist. And then he delivers more shocks in rapid succession.

My rating: 4.6

Media release from Linwood Barclay's website, including a sneak peek at about 11 pages from the beginning of NEVER LOOK AWAY.

Other Reviews
Petrona: an exciting read
The Lit Review: A fast-paced thriller

Other reviews of Barclay titles on MiP
NO TIME FOR GOODBYE
TOO CLOSE TO HOME
4.5, FEAR THE WORST

3 comments:

kathy d. said...

This was a good, unputdownable thriller, which just grabs the reader in the first few pages and doesn't let go until the last page is finished.

Barclay is so good at focusing on the average guy facing a dire situation. Few writers equal him in this regard.

Bernadette said...

I liked this one too, the twists are well done as is the father's character who reacts fairly normally in the bizarre circumstances he finds himself in.

raidergirl3 said...

He's become a very reliable author for me too. I've read the 3 you have, and just added this to my library list. There are some much older books by him at the library too.

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