In Lemaitre's (Camille) adrenaline-charged stand-alone novel, Sophie Duguet is typically a gentle, quiet woman, but an increasing number of forgetful moments and bizarre behavior she can't recall has her doubting her sanity. She's unable to remember where she parked her car the night before, if she had really shoplifted from a local store, or whether she murdered the six-year-old boy in her sole care. The police have noticed that bad things happen to the people around Sophie, and while Sophie desperately tries to figure out what's happening to her, she also manages to evade a massive manhunt. In the process, she reveals herself as a great deal cleverer and more resourceful than anyone suspected. Verdict The narrative is reminiscent of Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl with numerous twists and turns as the story exposes layers of motives of the main characters. Highly recommended for all mystery fans.-Deb West, Gannon Univ. Lib., Erie, PA © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Like an ingenious long con, this devious psychological thriller from Prix Goncourt-winner Lemaitre (The Great Swindle) promises a satisfying eventual payoff-but only to readers willing to persevere through a depressing first half centered on a protagonist who's pretty hard to root for, despite the many tragedies in her young life. Down-on-her-luck Parisian Sophie Duguet becomes the subject of a nationwide manhunt, accused of cold-blooded murders-including the strangulation of the six-year-old she was caring for-which she has no recollection of committing. From there things swiftly worsen for the fugitive, who seems to be struggling more with paralyzing nightmares and other manifestations of what she interprets as mental illness than with evading capture-until a second main character, the mysterious Frantz, bursts onto the scene. His arrival turns everything you think you know about Sophie and the story so far on its head, setting up an intensely suspenseful, if wildly unbelievable, cat and mouse game. (Sept.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.