Nicci French’s Losing You is a suspenseful thriller with motherly love at its core
Nicci French’s recently reprinted thriller, Losing You, offers readers a suspenseful story with motherly love at its core.
Back in October, Nicci French released The Lying Room, a book that chronicled an affair gone horribly awry. And to kick off 2020, the author saw one of her earlier stories reprinted by William Morrow Paperbacks: Losing You. With its updated look, Losing You could easily grab the same attention The Lying Room did last year. And that’s not to mention the compelling story beneath it’s stunning new cover.
Losing You picks up as Nina Landry is about to leave for a holiday in America with her boyfriend and two kids. Her plans are uprooted when her daughter, Charlie, never returns home from a sleepover. Stumped, because Charlie was excited to head off on vacation, Nina begins investigating the disappearance — one that the police insist is probably just an act of teenage rebellion.
As the disturbing clues start piling up, however, it becomes evident that Charlie didn’t run off by choice. In fact, all the evidence points to some sort of abduction — and if the police aren’t willing to hurry up and find her daughter, then Nina is hellbent on doing their job for them.
Of course, detective work isn’t as easy as it looks, especially once Nina realizes how many secrets her daughter has. Readers follow the concerned mother as she learns more about her child than she necessarily wanted to, and as she connects the pieces that help her understand why she went missing.
With the continuous reveal of different aspects of Charlie’s life, Losing You keeps its readers on edge, constantly waiting to discover what new unsettling thing we’ll learn about the protagonist’s daughter. In addition to that, French’s writing will have readers going back and forth between siding with Nina and siding with the police. It’s hard to tell at first whose theory about Charlie is correct, and that only adds to the novel’s central mystery.
When things do become clearer, the plot intensifies, leading up to a suspenseful climax that forces the audience to question whether Nina will ever see her daughter return safely home.
Although French’s Losing You is a roller coaster, it also offers readers the cozy, domestic thriller vibes her stories are known for. Anyone looking for a mystery to snuggle up with on a rainy or snowy evening will definitely appreciate this book.
The Lying Room is the perfect domestic thriller to snuggle up with. dark. Next