Kind of Cruel

“There's nothing most of us love more than a plausible lie.”

Amber Hewerdine can't sleep. She has suffered chronic insomnia since the death of her best friend in a mysterious house fire over a year ago. As a last resort, she decides to see a hypnotherapist for treatment and leaves in a hurry, disturbed by a phrase she utters while hypnotized - a phrase she at first assumes the therapist spoke first, but later realizes she has seen before. Soon after, Amber is arrested for the murder of a woman, and cannot clear her name until she remembers where she saw those words.

As with the previous novels in this series, Hannah focuses on developing her characters, allowing the reader to get inside their minds and fully understand their motivations, which in turn drives the plot. This results in a slightly meandering plot which can sometimes be confusing, but ultimately makes for a more compelling story (and series), since the reader never feels short-changed by having unanswered questions at the end. I especially enjoyed the insights of Amber's hypnotherapist, Ginny - they provided an interesting insight into Amber's memory and sleep issues, as well as occasionally bringing up a chilling question or observation that, on more than one occasion, led to an “aha!” moment for me in terms of the “whodunit” aspect of the plot. It was an interesting twist on the “unreliable narrator” idea, since Amber's memory is frequently not trustworthy, and her understanding of her motivations are frequently muddied by her biases regarding her current situation.

The fun in reading this novel, as well as the previous installments in the series, is following Simon Waterhouse as he follows a trail of disconnected clues to put together an incredible story to explain the novels central crime. Also, we get to spend some time with other less developed characters, including his unit chief, Sam, and his coworker, Gibbs. We also see what Charlie and Simon are like as a married couple, and get a peek into Charlie's sister Oliva's life.

As with all of Hannah's novels, the plot is twisting and dark, and sometimes feels convoluted. I enjoy this aspect - I've never yet been able to predict an outcome in one of her novels, not because they're not plausible, but because - like in a real investigation - there's a tremendous amount of information evidence to sift through before reaching the truth. For readers that might find these novels confusing, I would recommend reading them in several large sittings if at all possible. These are not books to read casually over the course of several weeks. Overall, this was a great installment in the series and I highly recommend it to fans of Hannah's, and I can't wait to read the next.

(I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a review.)