"The Liar's Diary" Causes Delightful Bedevilment

Gather membership does have its rewards well beyond the points. I love mystery/suspense novels. It was right here at Gather that I learned of “The Liar’s Diary” written by first-time novelist Patry Francis and that turned out to be a reward for me.

Francis begins with one suburban housewife, Jeanne Cross. Jeanne has everything – a nice home, a son who is one of the most popular kids in his high school and she is married to a handsome doctor. Sounds idyllic and we know idyllic is boring – but wait!! Before you have time to come to that conclusion, Francis introduces Ali Mather, the “un-Jeanne Cross.” Their mismatched friendship sets events in motion that never stop twisting and turning until the end of the book. And the ending is worthy of the best mystery/suspense novels.

Francis skillfully weaves subtle clues throughout the story. The characters are well rounded. Just as in real life, there are no angels here. Even the best intentioned characters make bad choices. This gives the story authenticity as the characters advance the plot. Well, this is difficult to write about because I want to tell you what happened, yet I don’t want to give anything away. Someone ends up dead, someone else ends up dead, someone ends up in jail, and many secrets are uncovered. As you read each chapter, you will think you have it all figured out. To your delighted bedevilment, you will find you are wrong. That makes this a great read!

Another Gather reward is that through Gather, I have learned that Patry Francis is working on another book. I can’t wait for that one!