A father and son enter a ghost house at a theme park. They never come out.
This isn’t Private Investigator David Raker’s case – he is hired to uncover what happened to Fiona Murphy, a mother who walked out of her house on boxing day 40 years ago and was never seen again – but when Raker finds a connection between the disappearances, his investigation becomes more dangerous than he could have anticipated…
What’s it about?
The search for answers. Rebekah Murphy was only three when her mother disappeared, but this event has coloured her life. Lately, her mother appears to be writing to her, but why now? And is it really her?
Meanwhile, Raker is under severe pressure in his personal life, related to his friend Colm Healey. As the screws tighten, can Healey be trusted to hold the line, or will Raker finally have to face the consequences of his previous actions in support of Healey?
What’s it like?
Full of twists and turns, this is a crime thriller that, at points, begins to blurs the line between villain and hero. How far can you ape the behaviour of the killers you search for before you become a villain yourself? I enjoyed this questioning thread, while also wondering how much more trauma Raker can endure in the course of his very dangerous missing person cases!
I found the main story interesting, although as ever in a book with two strands, it can be tricky to get the balance right between the two. I was fascinated by the disappearance of Tom Brenner and his son, but for at least 100 pages early on, there is no development of this narrative thread after the initial set up. Actually, this makes perfect sense: Brenner doesn’t reappear until we can start to consider how and where he fits into the Murphy case, but it still felt frustrating at the time!
Expect short chapters, a fast pace, a lot of characters and dark themes.
Final thoughts
This is my second Tim Weaver book this month and the premise is just as intriguing as ‘No One Home’ – and equally as complex in development, with a terrifying villain and, ultimately, a satisfying resolution to the heart of the story, but perhaps not to the hook. (How does one disappear in a ghost house? Much as you would expect, if you really thought about it.)
I was able to read this, Raker’s twelfth outing, perfectly easily, having only read one earlier book in the series, but I can see how satisfying it would be to read them in order and am tempted to start from the beginning, just as soon as I’ve slimed down my TBR pile a little…
