Say My Name by Joe Clifford


Say My Name
Title : Say My Name
Author :
Rating :
ISBN : -
Language : English
Format Type : Kindle Edition
Number of Pages : 266
Publication : First published June 6, 2023

SAY MY NAME is a true-crime story about a crime that never happened—or did it?

On the heels of a divorce, a midlist mystery writer returns to his hometown in Central CT and is dragged back into a decades-old, unsolved case involving former missing classmates to expose the horrific secrets of a quaint, idyllic New England town.

Fusing the modern domestic psychological thriller with popular unsolved mysteries ( Girl on the Train meets In Cold Blood ), this meta blend of true crime and fiction plays with expectations and perspective before its mind-blowing conclusion.


Say My Name Reviews


  • Dez the Bookworm

    This was an interesting premise. Set up from the MC’s POV (Main character’s point of view), this is heavily laden with inner monologue about his own life and experiences.

    We follow a writer who is being somewhat like an investigator journalist to find out what he can about the disappearances of twin girls back in his hometown when he was younger. The new disappearance of another set of twins in the here and now are eerily similar to the girls from his past childhood and now he wants to figure out the mystery and write all about it.

    As our MC starts to uncover details and connections surround the disappearances, he finds himself in precarious positions that could have life threatening consequences. As we unravel the story, we slowly piece together what could be happening but there are some mild twists involved here.

    Overall, I would say this is a decent read that kept my interest for the most part. I did find some character flaws for the MC but since that builds on who he is, that seemed to hit the mark. I took off one star for story development as I felt certain things could have been less predictable. Other than that, this was an entertaining read that easily passed the time while I had to wait in lines or in Dr.’s offices.

    ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

  • Sherri Thacker

    Say My Name by Joe Clifford was just ok for me. I really couldn’t connect with anything Joe was doing or saying so for that reason I’m giving it 2 stars. Sorry Joe! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this early release.

  • Dave

    Say My Name (2023) is Clifford’s latest novel. It is a novel about a writer who is writing (or at least researching) a true crime story about two fifteen-year-old girls, Annabelle and Ana Rodgers, who disappeared from the mall back when the author was fifteen too. Indeed, one of the missing girls had been his first big childhood crush, although he always believed she was out of his league. The character who is the author in this book is sort of Joe Clifford and sort of not. They are both writers. They both grew up in Berlin, Connecticut, and lived in San Francisco, before returning. Both are it seems introspective writers. So it is a part true crime story about a writer writing about a writer about a place where both the writer and the writer character grew up. Also, there are a few references to the Jay Porter series Clifford wrote (but as if the main character wrote the series) set on Lamentation Mountain about a handyman.

    Beginning with the author’s note at the front of the book, it is hard to determine whether it is a true crime story or not or whether the “author” speaking at the front is Clifford or the character in the novel. We are told that the twins disappeared from the mall in 1985 and forty years later had never been found and it remained a black mark on the idyllic New England town and was still shocking to those who grew up there and knew the two girls. The other major point scored in the introduction by the “author” is that perhaps monsters do not just life in closets and under beds. Perhaps monsters are hiding in plain sight in our home towns, shopping at the same stores, eating at the same restaurants. “We don’t recognize them, Because they look just like us.”

    Coming off a bitter divorce, the narrator returns to his hometown (where his only living relative is an oddball uncle Iver), he intends to write a true crime story about the missing twins from 1985 and maybe, just maybe, come up with answers to the town’s leading mystery. Much of the novel is introspective thoughts about a writer often lost in his own thoughts and disconnected to the outside world. He investigates though and is warned off the investigation and beaten till he was hospitalized, but doggedly still thinks he can resolve this old matter.

    There is an introspective feel to the narration similar in many respects to what is found in Clifford’s Jay Porter novels, but this is a different character and a different story.

  • Dianne

    Not quite dark and gritty. More depressing.

  • Reeca Elliott

    This is a true crime novel…what??? Is this a thing…Yep! With Joe Clifford as the author, anything is possible. The main character, is a writer and he has decided to write a true crime book about the disappearance of twins from his hometown. Needless to say, this does not bode well for him. He is attacked on all fronts. But why? What exactly is he exposing?

    This book is intriguing from start to finish. And the ending…oh boy! You better pay attention! Now, the only reason for the 4 star rating is the main character (which I don’t think his name is ever mentioned…hence the title of the book!) is a bit of a mess. He is researching a “true crime” book but he ignores all phone calls and unplugs a great deal. But, like I said…the ending opens a lot of truths!

    I have read every single one of this author’s books. And I will continue to try and read every one he writes. He is so diverse and different in every book. And this one tops the diversity list. But, my favorite is still The Shadow People.

    Need a good thriller with an ending that is not at all what anyone will expect…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!

    I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

  • Riley K.

    SAY MY NAME is a true crime story about a crime that never happened … or did it?

    On the heels of a divorce, a midlist mystery writer returns to his hometown in Central CT and is dragged back into a decades’ old, unsolved case involving former missing classmates to expose the horrific secrets of a quaint, idyllic New England town.

    Fusing the modern domestic psychological thriller with popular unsolved mysteries (Girl on the Train meets In Cold Blood), this meta blend of true crime and fiction plays with expectations and perspective before its mind-blowing conclusion.

    I really enjoyed this story. I like the unique take on this thriller. My first and not last read by Joe Clifford. Will recommend to others.

  • Mysticpt

    Another good one from Joe Clifford. This one is a great ride where we spend most of our time in the MC's headspace, and what makes this so interesting is the MC is the author, although i assume in a (somwhat) fictionalized portrayal. There is a mystery or two in this one and they are engaging, tho the conclusions are not too far out there if you have been paying attention...or are they. The ending may leave some guessing as to what was really going on.....but i really enjoyed the ride and seeing the world through this characters eyes. 4 stars

  • Shelby Brown

    Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

    Unfortunately, this book didn’t really work for me. I felt like we spent most of the book watching the main character drink and then drive drunk, smoke and flail about, unable to make a decision about anything. I got SO TIRED of this guy drinking and driving, telling himself what a piece of garbage he was for doing it the next day, and then doing it again the next night. Gross. I was able to guess the plot twist in this one halfway through, and the main character remained oblivious until the last possible second. Half of the books issued stemmed from miscommunication, because the main character acted like a child and ignored any phone call or conversation he didn’t want to have, and just hoped his problems would go away. I had high hopes for this, but it did not deliver.

  • Janalyn

    The main character finds hisself back in Berlin Connecticut after a divorce he reconnect with old friends some willingly and some clearly by accident but when he gets an amber alert for two girls that witnessing in a town a couple of cities the way from Berlin he is reminded of the twins that went missing when he was 12 he had a crush on Annabel even though they’re going missing would’ve been a loss had it just been a schoolmate it was made even more severe by his first teenage crush, he decides he’s going to write a nonfiction book about the girls going missing in the crime that took place but was is there a crime? I guess he’s left out to the readers to decide I really like the approachable feel he gave till I guess himself the main character I didn’t like the way he treated his uncle Iver who clearly cared about him but that is a small small part of the plot this was a great book if you love a great fiction book then you will Love “say my name” by Joseph Clifford I felt like we got a Flys eyeview of the behind the scenes in inner dialogue of writing and the writer. I received this book from NetGalley and the publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

  • Bonnye Reed

    I received a complimentary ARC of this excellent mystery novel from Netgalley, the author Joe Clifford, and publisher BooksGoSocial on June 5, 2023. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have read Say Miy Name of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work. I am pleased to recommend Joe Clifford to friends and family. He writes a fine tale, one to keep you up way too late, but worth the loss of sleep.

    Our mystery takes place in the small town of Berlin, Connecticut, and our protagonist, a novelist, is newly divorced, hired at the local university to teach writing but laid off before his first day, and still pleased to be 'home' after many years in Sunny California. Winter though, that's something he had almost forgotten. Even before he finishes unpacking, he has decided to write a 'true crime' novel about the disappearance from the mall in a neighboring town nearly 40 years ago of twin girls he went to high school with. The girls have never been found, and coincidentally two sisters about the same age have just disappeared from a different neighboring small-town mall, bringing the disappearance of Annabelle and Ava back to the minds of Berlin natives. It becomes essential to him - Annabelle was the first girl to ever break his heart. He and his best buddies from those days will try to solve this crime, and find closure for the community. Yes, he will write a true crime novel. If he lives that long...
    Pub date June 6, 2023
    Reviewed on June 6, 2023, at Goodreads, Netgalley, AmazonSmile, and Barnes&Noble. Not available for review at BookBub or Kobo.

  • Benoit Lelièvre

    Not gonna lie. This is a quirky book to get into, but I did. It might have something to do with the positive karma tab between Joe Clifford's novels and I though. It's a jagged, ugly story about a man's diffuse sense of guilt and grief. Yep, this is another novel about grief.

    It's fine, it's what he does best.

    Written as a first person investigation from an unnamed narrator you assume is Clifford himself (everyone else has the name of a real world person he knows), who's investigating the disappearance of twin girls from his hometown a hair short of forty years prior. It's not just a "true crime novel". It's a story about how we're reframing our life events as our own story to try and make sense of the past. It's quite confronting, but it's also super well embodied by the character of Mel McPhee who steers our trainwreck of a protagonist towards answers she doesn't even know herself.

    It's a twisty and turvy novel, but I'm still obsessing over it.

  • William Bentrim

    Say My Name by Joe Clifford

    This was a strange book. It may be strange because I am an author and it was a book about an author talking to himself. I do that a lot too. He was telling a story but also talking about being an author. This purports to be a true crime story about a crime that never happened. Returning home after a decades-long hiatus reminiscing about the Rodgers twins and their disappearance, the author does a wealth of soul-searching.

    Again, part of the strangeness, I, too, had a heartthrob on a set of twins as a preteen. Since the story has the author being very strange, personality disorder strange, you can imagine why I struggled not to find parallels with my own life. Of course, the author in the story sold far more books than I have so the parallels aren’t one hundred percent.

    The book has arrogance, nostalgia, some action, and lots of treachery with bounteous confusion.

  • Jen Ryland

    Say My Name begins as a mystery writer returns to his Connecticut hometown. His mind are on two classmates (female twins) who vanished from a local mall in 1985, and he's pondering a recent similar case in which two sisters also disappear. He decides to research the cases.

    The narrator (does he have a name?) was clearly a bit of a quirky guy. His first person account is conversational and also a little off-putting.

    Is this true crime, is it metafiction, is it a big twist book? Kind of all of the above. I don't think the ending was completely successful, but it was interesting for sure.

    Thanks to the publisher for providing an advance copy for review!


    Read more of my reviews on
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  • Ron

    A brilliantly written novel with an extraordinary story about an unbalanced author trying to write a true story about a childhood crime. Impossible to put down as you journey through the twists and turns in the story that lead to a surprising finale. A highly recommended read and worthy of five stars.

  • Jamie

    This is the first book I've read by this author and I was impressed. I love his style of writing and subject matter that kept me interested from beginning to end and these days, those types of books are few and far between.

  • Sharon

    A 2* ok read for me. The main character returns to his hometown to teach, having written several successful crime novels. Two twin girls disappeared when he was a teenager and upon his return, two more disappear.
    Unfortunately, for me, the writing was disjointed and the protagonist really frustrating and irritating. I struggled to finish it, but, persevered. Just not for me, but, an ok read.

    Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to preview.

  • Scott Cumming

    Hard to blame a book for what's it's not, but all the mentions of those depressing books in the snow had me wishing this was a Jay Porter novel. Instead, we are treated to a snide, self pitying version of Clifford himself, spinning out following a divorce and pondering the disappearance of twin girls in his teenage years.

    It's partly way too meta and following Clifford on social media and having listened to interviews means I know too much about the real Clifford to get invested in this version of him.

    On the plus side, the mystery plays out in tandem with this so you don't see the parts come together until they do.

    This was a little too knowing in what it was trying to do and while I admired the concept, it didn't fully hit the mark for me.

  • Crystal

    First of all, I want to thank the author and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Say my name by Joe Clifford is coming out on June 06, 2023.

    This was a hard book for me to get into and follow. I found myself stopping a lot and not ready to pick it back up. I’m not sure if it was the type of book (true crime) or if it was the way the author wrote the book. #SayMyName #NetGalley

  • Katie

    It's not that this book wasn't good - I just feel like I've read so many of this type of book (some vague spoilers ahead). The premise is one we've all seen - guy investigating cold case murder, has obvious suspect - obvious suspect isn't the actual culprit - actual culprit is the guy investigating the cold case's right hand man. I knew from early on that the bad guy was the actual bad guy. I did enjoy the misdirect of the uncle being involved, that really threw a wrench in me trying to figure out what was actually going on. Ultimately, I was unable to connect with the main character and it felt like they were dragging out the story with less investigating and more background/unimportant information. It's not a bad read, decent mystery with an "unexpected" ending, just wasn't for me.

  • Kerri

    A unique mystery told from the perspective of the main character, who is an author. The author moves back to his hometown and decides to write a non-fiction true crime novel about two girls (twins) who disappeared over 40 years ago, when he was in high school.

    This was a really unusual read because most of the story plays out inside the author's head. It was fast paced but also felt like I was reading a long rant or ramblings of the author. I wanted to like this book but after a depressing and confusing ending, I felt let down. I was also really frustrated with the drunk driving throughout the book.

    Thank you to Joe Clifford, BooksGoSocial, and NetGalley for an advanced eBook in exchange for my honest review.

  • Tina B.



    Fresh off the heels of a divorce, a midlist mystery writer returns to his hometown of Berlin, Connecticut to accept a teaching job at his alma mater. Renting a house from a childhood buddy, he’s excited for a new start and the opportunity to take a break from writing. But when an Amber Alert is issued for two girls in a nearby town, memories of his past in Berlin come flooding back, specifically the unsolved disappearance of two teenage twin girls in 1985 when he was 15.

    He’s never forgotten Annabelle and Ava Rogers or the day they disappeared all those years ago. How could he?   They were his friends, and Annabelle was the first girl to break his heart. Now, all these years later, the similarities between the girls in the Amber Alert and the Rogers twins have his mind whirring. When his teaching job falls through, he decides to write a true crime novel about their disappearance, which means doing some investigating of his own. However, it's quickly made clear that those around him, including the police, aren't thrilled with his digging. In fact, the closer he gets to answers, the more danger he's in. He's hot on the tail of the man he suspects took the twins, but the true culprit is hot on his tail, willing to do anything to keep him from discovering the truth. Who it is will shock him – and make for one helluva final twist for you.

    As taut and twisty as it is fast paced, "Say My Name" by Joe Clifford is guaranteed to tie your mind into knots. A perfect blend of metafiction and psychological thriller, the author uses a stream-of-consciousness narrative style to tell the story of writing a true crime novel about a crime that never happened. Because this style mimics the non-linear way our brains work, we get a deeper view into the narrator's thought process and mental state, which makes the book all the more edgy and addictive.

    "Say My Name" is full of twists that start early on and keep on coming. Combine the twists with a few red herrings, and you won't be able to figure out what's actually true and what's not, not even when it comes to the narrator. Is the narrator a liar? The police have their suspicions. I did too. And who is the narrator anyway? The title of the book seems like a challenge for you to figure out. Could the narrator be a version of the author himself, making the author the main character? With the references in the book to the Jay Porter crime fiction series (written by Joe Clifford), it very likely could be. You'll have to read for yourself to decide.

    Psychological thrillers are a dime a dozen nowadays. They can start to feel cookie-cutter and predictable when you read as many as I do. That's not the case with "Say My Name". It's unique and compelling. The whodunnit aspect of the book can be figured out, but not on the first try and not long before the author reveals it to you. It feels wrong to say a book about missing teenagers is refreshing, but (in the world of psych thrillers) "Say My Name" is exactly that. I highly recommend it.

    Thank you to BooksGoSocial, Netgalley, and Joe Clifford for the free eARC in exchange for a fair, unbiased review.

    4.5 stars rounded up to 5

  • Carolyn Walsh

    This was my first introduction to author Joe Clifford who has written a series of mystery novels. Say My Name is a unique book that combines clues in researching a forty-year-old cold case with an unnamed author's process in writing a true crime story about that case. I felt I might have appreciated the novel more if I had known about Clifford and his books. His series was mentioned several times. Is the writer a version of Clifford and his writing experiences or a fictional invention?

    Returning from California to his hometown in Berlin, Connecticut, this fictional author believes he has a job teaching writing at a local university. He is depressed following his divorce and has anxiety attacks. He is presented as self-pitying and morose. The job has fallen through. He only has one relative still living in town, a beloved uncle, and a couple of old friends from high school. He decides to spend time researching and writing about twin girls, age 15, who vanished from a mall in 1985. He was also 15 then, had a crush on one of the girls and still recalls the tragic event. Two sisters have now vanished from a neighbouring mall, and he believes there may be a connection and intends to investigate the disappearances for a true crime story. He soon seizes on his two suspects, a man with a criminal reputation and a relative. He discusses his investigation with a man he knew in the past who is now a policeman and a couple of buddies from his old school.

    It becomes evident that someone in the town does not want him digging into the past, and they do not want the truth revealed. He is badly beaten and hospitalized while searching for clues. He is lost in his thoughts, and the narration is often a stream of consciousness. He expresses many self-doubts, anxiety attacks, drinking while driving, taking up chain smoking and gulping down pills while pursuing clues and suspects. He ponders thoughts about coincidences, cause and effect, and alternate realities while trying to organize his book. He is failing to check his messages and emails. How many of his recollections are unreliable and finding their way into his upcoming book?

    A couple of his old friends present him with a partial solution to the mystery of the twins vanishing in 1985. This twist was unexpected and a brilliant conclusion to the story, but how much truth was involved?
    This was a gripping mystery story, but its presentation did not engage me. I am interested in reading some of Clifford's crime fiction.

  • Lynda Kelly

    I have had to call time on this, though I did get as far as 38%, and I rarely give up once I manage to get past 20%. The main reason is the lack of any consideration for international readers. Too many times I had to stop reading to look up some American pop culture reference, till in the end I got cheesed off having to keep interrupting my flow to do just this.
    It's referred to as a true crime fiction, which in and itself is a paradox and made me roll my eyes, especially when I read in his disclaimer that 'no identification with actual persons...should be inferred'....really ? Cos' if the author can't make up his mind what category it falls into then I've sod all chance !! He persistently reminds us he's a writer as well, which got tedious. However, when he describes the crime itself I do recall something very similar being featured on a true crime podcast so I will take a look online when I finish this review and look up any developments if I'm remembering it right. The tape recorder reference I definitely recall......
    He used an expression I found pretty unpleasant, and it was another of his funny little Americanisms...."choking on heart meat"......made him sound cannibalistic !! I had to look up red hats, AWP, clouding coffee and when Dan Fogelberg was mentioned and I had to yet again consult Google I just lost the will to live with it altogether. There were more of these but I didn't highlight them all.
    At one point he was dropping a signed book into a police station, stating he wanted to see the local cop in person, then on the next page we're told he plans on leaving it with a secretary ! Too many times he needed to use hyphens and didn't, as with smoky boy in the cold months or print out or about face or record shops turned spas.......painful. He also wrote sheriff as sherriff.
    I liked he dedicated the book to his old pal Jack. I never reached the end so I'm unsure whether he ever learned if Jack's alibi was a fiction or not, which I personally suspected.
    I know some publishers release American and British English versions of books and I have often wondered why but this pretty much showed me why !!

  • Chris Humphrey

    Say my name by Joe Clifford is one of those classic crime novels that Truman Capote would be proud of. Now is it perfect? No, but it does a good job at upping the tension and anxiety of being a combined true crime novelist and trying to solve some kidnappings and murders.

    The plot is as easy as it goes and that is what makes this book wonderful to digest. It is about a writer trying to find his way in this sleazy world, make some money, solve some crimes, maybe connect two missing persons cases forty years apart.

    What people are not going to like is that it takes a very long time for it to get to where it is going. To me that is okay, it just means the writer is stretching his fingers to get his point across, but some people may not like that. Also, some people may feel the anxiety that the writer felt writing this in such a time crunch. I mean, he only mentioned that he was a writer and worked better with a deadline a million times in this novel.

    Now, if you can overcome that, then you are really going to enjoy this book. The author does a fantastic job getting into the head of what it is like being a writer and the pressures we put on ourselves to always do better. I think that is what hit home with me the most. It felt like the writer was breaking the fourth wall by telling me that is anxiety and depression induced trauma if you want to be a writer. Plus, the pay stinks unless you become rich.

    Overall, i liked it enough to go out and order a physical copy and another one of Joe Clifford's book, because I wanted to see if it was a fluke that he was able to make me feel so anxious reading a book. So far, I do not want to give him an ego, but it is his writing style, which is a good thing when a writer can make you feel the words that he is writing.

    Don't take my word for it, go out there and get your own copy and find out if you like it as much as I did.

    Happy reading, but stay out of trouble.
    Chris Humphrey

  • Suanne

    Say My Name is an interesting blend of true crime fiction and somewhat autobiographical fiction. Clifford writes of an author who, post-divorce, has returned to his childhood home to teach a summer session at a local university. When the job falls through and two girls disappear from a mall a few towns away, he begins researching/writing a true crime story, trying to connect their disappearance with that of two girls, fifteen-year-old Annabelle and Ana Rodgers, who disappeared from a mall when he was fifteen. The older case remains unsolved. The author, whose name remains unknown throughout, had his first crush on one of the girls.

    This book intrigued me from the beginning. The list of potential suspects in the little town is vast: everyone from the local sexual predator to the author’s kindly elderly uncle to everyone present at the mall on that fateful day, including childhood friends of the author, and there are plenty of red herrings to keep the reader intrigued. 

    From the onset with the author’s note, it’s hard to tell how much of the actual author is part of the fictional author, which is an interesting idea. It becomes even more interesting when the fictional author’s therapist wonders if he is not a character in another author’s book, sort of a meta-author. The protagonist, like many of Clifford’s main characters, is a rough-around-the-edges, self-destructive guy dealing with emotional and physical problems and addictions of one sort or another, but the meta-fiction aspect raises it above Clifford’s usual works.

  • Lynda Stevens

    This novel works on more than one level, as there are hints from the very beginning that the narrator, damaged, an alcoholic. may be unreliable. We don't even ever get to find out his name, though his character enjoys modest fame as a crime novelist!

    As the story warms up, it becomes more conventional crime tbriller. The middle-aged writer has returned to his small town to lick his post-divorce - then realises that a real-life cold case remains on his very doorstep: that of a pair of winsome twins who had disappeared without trace in his teen years. However, his old mates at the local don't seem enamoured of the idea of his stirring up the pond - to say the least. Neither do the local cops. Real life is messier than whatever neat whodunnit you might be able to come up with, they earn him.

    Those looking for a good old-fashioned reveal here won't be disappointed, though the biggest reveal is that all of this could still be more Twilight Zone than Chandler.

    The writer manages to build up the suspense so that the pages keep turning nevertheless. The main turnoff is that neither the writer nor many of the main characters seem particularly pleasant. There is the grubby selfishness of those most complicit, alongside what comes across as the vanity and even narcissism of the the writer. It's a great idea but possibly a little more greatness needs to have been built into the characters.

  • Kasia Hubbard

    Say My Name by Joe Clifford is one of those books that has layers that go deeper than originally meets the eye. First off, Joe Clifford writes the book as himself, a writer, though he doesn't name himself as the writer, so first person point of view, a real person, real events from a real town, but then you kind of forget about all that as your pulled into the story. I noticed others wrote that he hinted and referenced his other real books, which I didn't catch, as this is the first book I've read by this author, but definitely has connections that reach deeper than I understood at first glance. It pulls you into an intriguing storyline of two girls who he kind of knew growing up, and after he moved out, grew up, life imploded and left him reeling, he returns back to his hometown only to be caught back up in to the whole mysterious disappearance of two more girls, whose details are scarily similar to the original event, that he can't help himself but get entwined into digging for the truth. As he uncovers new information, he's also being told subtlety and not so subtlety that his search for truth is not wanted. There are many twists and turns that make you think you know what's going on, and then you're left retracing what you know to figure it out. Kept my attention and curiosity and appreciated the creativity of a multi-layered story. Well done, and looking to read more from Mr. Clifford.
    *I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. This review is my own opinion*

  • Joan

    I was fascinated with this novel. It reads like a true crime investigation. As others have commented and as the book is described, it is a novel. It is fiction but it does not read like it is. Reading this book was really an interesting and almost disconcerting experience.

    I did have trouble liking the hero. I liked the idea of him trying to get a new start on life after so many things had recently happened to him. But he got drunk way too often and checked out of a conversation right when someone was telling him some important information. I am sure his character was deliberately crafted that way, considering the twist at the end. In a sense, this novel is a mystery but also a character study.

    The plot was well crafted. It certainly could be predicted that digging into a decades old unsolved crime in a relatively small town would cause trouble. The villain was not expected, but the other people involved did not come as a surprise. There were suitable twists and red herrings that kept me reading as new facts were uncovered.

    Perhaps we are left with a creepy question at the end. How much of our life do we create like an author writes a story? This is a good novel for readers who like an unusual spin on a cold case investigation.

    I received a complimentary egalley of this book through Swell Media. My comments are an independent and honest review.