This is the newest release by Jeneva Rose, a New York Times bestselling author of several novels, including the million-copy bestselling thriller The Perfect Marriage. She currently lives in Chicago with her husband and her English bulldog.
When their mother passes away after a lengthy illness, three estranged siblings reunite to sort out her estate. Beth, the oldest, stayed at home with her mom, caring for her until the very end. Nicole, the middle child, has been kept at arm’s length due to her ongoing battle with a serious drug addiction. Michael, the youngest, lives out of state and hasn’t been back to their small Wisconsin town since their father ran out on them seven years ago. While going through their parents’ belongings, the siblings stumble upon a collection of home videos and decide to watch them to reminisce about happier times. Their nostalgia is immediately cut short when one of the VHS tapes reveals a night back in 1999 that none of them were aware of. On screen, their father appears covered in blood and directs their mother, who is filming, to the dead body of the neighbour’s daughter. There is no explanation of how the body got there, but their parents make a pact to get rid of it, and then the video abruptly ends. Beth, Nicole, and Michael immediately decide that no one can know about this video, but they also want to know more about this dark secret that their mother took to her grave.
When Beth emails her father again to tell him of her mother’s death, she gets the first response since he left. He tells her he’s sorry and he’s made terrible mistakes, but he won’t be in touch again. Fueled by new hope of finding him by his IP location, Michael and Nicole venture out. Meanwhile, Beth reconnects with her ex-flame, who is also the brother of the dead girl in the video. As Beth and her ex-flame get closer, Beth is torn as to whether to reveal what she saw on the video to him. When she finally decides to show him the video, most of it has been erased. At the same time, someone breaks into their home, searching desperately for something. When the siblings reconvene, they know that something is terribly wrong, and it’s all connected back to what they saw in the video. Determined to discover the truth behind what their patents did, Beth unravels everything in the end, only to discover the danger lies closer than she ever realized.
This is a slow-burn thriller with great character development and a captivating storyline. In addition to the suspenseful plot, the book deals with many different subjects, including loss, missing people, addiction, dark family secrets, and sibling rivalry, just to name a few. All of this adds to the intrigue and complexity of the novel. The first half of the book is mostly a set-up for the twists and suspense that happen later on. If you’re expecting a fast-paced, edge-of-your-seat, thriller you will be disappointed. The VHS tapes, and all the mechanics around them, definitely bring a nostalgic element to the story that many listeners will relate to.
The audiobook is blessed with a stellar cast of narrators including Brittany Pressley, January LaVoy, Cassandra Campbell, and Andrew Eiden. Pressley’s performance of addict Nicole is especially authentic, as she uses a lot of emotion and attitude to convey an unstable, deceitful woman desperately trying to come clean. LaVoy’s portrayal of Beth is more subdued, perfectly reflecting the character’s emotional ineptitude, but her performance definitely becomes more intense and expressive as the story moves forward. Overall, this is a compelling domestic thriller with a few pleasing twists that you have to be patient for. Given the calibre of the narrators’ talent and their top-notch performances, the audiobook is the highly preferred format for enjoying this one!