A Book A Week

Sometimes things are just too good to be true. As an avid reader, I love to browse my local library's digital catalog. I usually listen to audiobooks on my daily commute, so I've grown to love the options my library has available. My only complaint with this free resource is that sometimes the wait to read or listen to newer releases can be unbearable. Even 5 or 6 people waiting for a book ahead of you can equate to months of waiting to read. Because of this, I was excited to see that Alice Feeney's latest novel I Know Who You Are was available to listen to. I've had her popular Sometimes I Lie on hold for months now, so I eagerly downloaded her latest. I thought it was my lucky day, but after finishing the novel I realize there may have been a reason no one else had downloaded it.

The novel alternates between two time periods. In the present day sections, we meet Aimee Sinclair, a budding actress who is on the brink of becoming a huge star. She comes home to discover that her husband is missing. His phone is still there and it doesn't look like he packed any clothes, but he is nowhere to be found. The couple's relationship had been on the rocks for a while, but he would never leave without saying something. As the investigation into his disappearance starts to mount, Aimee finds herself turning from worried wife to suspect number one. After years of pretending to be other people, Aimee isn't sure who she really is. Could she be responsible for her husband vanishing?

The flashback sections of the novel see Aimee as a six-year-old. She has an abusive father, so she often turns to her brother for refuge. One day as she is out wandering the streets, she encounters an older woman. The woman convinces her that Aimee is lost, so she should come with the woman to contact her parents. Aimee complies, leaving with the woman and never seeing her family again.

I Know Who You Are sees Alice Feeney play out two storylines into a thriller that tries too hard to shock. I was initially intrigued by the premise of the novel, a kind of Room meets Gone Girl setup, but Feeney seemed unsure of where her story was going. She kept throwing in new narrative darts seemingly hoping that any of them would stick. The end result is a story that moves at a rapid pace but with no clear direction. There's an obligatory twist at the end that really shocked me with pure disgust at the revelation. I'm all for the dark or taboo subject matter, but this one wasn't earned. Because I wasn't truly invested in the character or the narrative, the twist came off as simply distasteful. Clearly, I didn't love this novel. I'll hold out hope that Sometimes I Lie is as good as everyone says it is, but I Know Who You Are did not live up to my expectations.

For more information visit the author's website, Amazon, and Goodreads.
(2019, 23)