A Book A Week

Laura Lippman has consistently been one of my "go-to" authors for years. With each new title in her ever-growing catalog, she blends touches of mystery and suspense with a plethora of various genres. I was a bit underwhelmed with her last novel, Sunburn, so I was eager to see Lippman redeem herself with her latest.  Lady in the Lake is a return to form for the author and the kind of novel that made me a fan of her writing in the first place.

Maddie Schwartz is living the quintessential, picture-perfect life of a housewife in 1966. She has a husband with a successful career, a teenage son who she adores,  and she spends her days keeping up with her home and friends. Despite all of this, she can't help but feel like something is missing. When an old fling turns up at a dinner party, Maddie is reminded of the youthful zeal and promise that she abandoned in favor of her current life. Not content to leave well enough alone, she bolts from her marriage and life as she knows it. She spent twenty years being the person everyone else wanted her to be, but now it is time for Maddie to discover her own passions and desires.

Maddie quickly sees how her previous life sheltered her from the realities of the world. She lives in a dilapidated apartment in the African-American part of Baltimore, the only place she can afford. Looking to make her mark on the world, she stumbles upon the body of a murdered girl. Maddie quickly parlays this discovery into a job at the Star newspaper and begins to work toward her goal of becoming a columnist. When everyone else dismisses the murder of young Cleo Sherwood, Maddie suspects something more. She follows her intuition to dig into the untimely death. If she uncovers something big, this could mean the beginning of a prosperous career. At every turn, Maddie is discouraged from proceeding with her investigation. Someone wants their secrets to be buried with Sherwood and will stop at nothing to prevent them from rising to the surface.

Lady in the Lake is Laura Lippman writing at her best. She mixes an underlying mystery with historical fiction that soars from the pages. Lippman alternates between chapters about Maddie with others written from the perspective of various people that Maddie encounters. This gives the narrative a depth that further enhances the world Lippman creates. There are also the occasional soliloquies of the dead Cleo Sherwood commenting on Maddie's investigation. These ghostly speeches only add to the suspense and dread that lies just beneath the surface of this story. While I wasn't really shocked by the revelations at the end of the book, I don't think that's the point of the novel. The mystery is there more to aid in the telling of the historical story and the growth of Maddie as a character. This book expertly combines compelling characters with historical details and a touch of mystery that makes it into a really solid read.

For more information, visit the author's website, Amazon, and Goodreads.
(2019, 29)