Dr Anna Fox struggles with agoraphobia: fear of open spaces. She hasn’t left her house for 11 months and her days consist of (over)drinking merlot, playing online chess, speaking to people online, watching old thrillers and spying on her neighbours through the window. Then she meets the Russels, the new neighbours across the road. Ethan, a modest and polite teenager pays Anna a visit. Followed days later by his mother Jane Russel with whom Anna enjoys spending an evening of wine, chess and conversation.
A couple days later, Anna on her window-espionage sees her neighbour, Jane across the window with something resembling a knife in her chest. Jane has been stabbed, but Anna hadn’t seen the murderer. Something tells her its Alistair Russel, the husband. The one Ethan is afraid of. The one Jane said can be ‘difficult.’ Helpless and scared, she tries to act. Enter Detective Little and his partner Norelli. Anna explains the murder she witnessed but there’s a problem— Jane Russel is alive. But she’s not the woman that came to Anna’s house. What happened to the real Jane Russel? Did she even exist? The police refuse to believe she did. Anna is left with the torment of her own thoughts and warped sense of reality. But when looking into Ethan’s eyes, she sees something— fear. She knows that the Russels are lying. But how can she prove it?
This is a massively impressive debut. The twists are completely unexpected and so crisply executed. A lot of gasps escaped me while reading this novel. I appreciate the integrity put into the construction Anna’s character. The author did a lot of research on agoraphobia as a psychological disorder and in turn made her three-dimensional and believable. Finn‘s style of writing is gripping, terse and cleverly descriptive. The short chapters and jump between past and present make the novel a consuming read from all angles.
If someone can do a list of all the movies mentioned this book— I’d be much obliged to you!
Have you read this book? Let me know what you think!