I Let You Go
THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER One of The New York Times Book Review’s 10 Best Crime Novels of 2016! The next blockbuster thriller for those who loved The Girl on the Train and Gone Girl...“a finely crafted novel with a killer twist.”(#1 New York Times bestselling author Paula Hawkins) On a rainy afternoon, a mother's life is shattered as her son slips from her grip and runs into the street... I Let You Go follows Jenna Gray as she moves to a ramshackle cottage on the remote Welsh coast, trying to escape the memory of the car accident that plays again and again in her mind and desperate to heal from the loss of her child and the rest of her painful past. At the same time, the novel tracks the pair of Bristol police investigators trying to get to the bottom of this hit-and-run. As they chase down one hopeless lead after another, they find themselves as drawn to each other as they are to the frustrating, twist-filled case before them. Elizabeth Haynes, author of Into the Darkest Corner, says, “I read I Let You Go in two sittings; it made me cry (at least twice), made me gasp out loud (once), and above all made me wish I'd written it...a stellar achievement.”
Honestly when I first decided to read this it was because I was looking for a new author to try out and this book had good reviews by established authors such as Paula Hawkins’ who I fell in love with after reading The Girl on the Train. I figured if Hawkins liked it then it must be good. She was right.
Once I started this I could not put it down. Clare Mackintosh’s experience in law enforcement very much shines through in her police/detective characters, scenes and dialogue. I’ve read some books, especially lately, where the characters are talking and all I can think is there is no way people in these positions would actually talk like this. What makes this author even better is she makes these scenes interesting! You know how, and you can admit this because we’ve all done it, you have that tendency to skip or blow through scenes involving police so you can get to the ‘better’ parts of the novel? We do that because who the heck really cares to read about police procedures and all the stuff they’re doing to help the victim/track down the criminal; all we want to see who is do it and why/how. Mackintosh writes these areas so well that in reading them, which was thankfully not boring, you learn more about what motivates these characters to do the job which end up playing an important part towards the end.
As much as there was a ton of action scenes, mystery, the necessary crime and criminal, most of this story is character driven. Thank the heavens Mackintosh actually succeeds at character development. I have to admit, as a mother, it was incredibly painful reading the opening of this book because I’ve been in those shoes where you are holding your kid’s hand then the next second they let go out of excitement and you can feel your heart jump into your throat. She wrote about this in such a detailed way even though I knew my kids were sleeping safely in their beds I still went to check on them and today as we were heading out to the car I kept them practically in a Vulcan death grip because it only takes those few seconds. She just captured the nightmare of every parent.
In another area she deals with domestic violence and that too was very hard to read. Once long ago I was in a relationship where I felt like I couldn’t leave and no one saw my bruises or the reality of what was being done to me. Again, the author just captures the details of what it’s like to be in something like that and the nightmare when no one is there to help you, not even the police, so accurately there was a part of me that felt some vindication that at least someone on this planet understands this stuff happens; someone knows the nightmare is real.
When Part 1 concluded the way it did I felt complete shock because everything I thought was true got completely upended. She knows how to write the perfect thriller that will keep you from guessing the truth until the very end and even then you will still feel shocked at how the events unfold.
She is definitely an author to watch out for and pre-order the next book she releases.