Review: A Double Life by Flynn Berry

Claire has spent her life looking over her shoulder. When she was a child, her father attempted to murder her mother. He was, thankfully, unsuccessful, but managed to escape and remains at large. Since that day, Claire may have a new name and a new home, but she forever feels his presence, lurking and haunting.

Nursing her suspicion that her father’s wealthy friends helped him escape, Claire has been watching them for years; hoping for clues. Yet when the police contact her to report a possible sighting of her father, despite her hesitancy, she decides to find him herself, which will mean reaching out to the very friends who have hidden him all these years. Concocting an elaborate plan, Claire goes in search of her father, and the secrets that he harbours.

A Double Life is an adventure from the first page. It is a stylish thriller that’s addictive and filled with unexpected twists, and a daring heroine who shucks her fear to seek answers. Berry has created a story that is exciting and dark, yet easy to read. A clever commentary on the class divide in matters of justice and an intriguing plot with a dash of the macabre and unanswerable questions combine to make this a mystery of exceeding complexity and riveting action. Berry completely reinvents the family drama in the best manner – from murder, death, and drugs, Claire’s family is anything but ordinary.

The unique mix of violence, mystery and suspense will undoubtedly give this book mass appeal – and deservedly so – it does not conform to any single genre, and is written with such a compelling style that it has something for everyone. A Double Life is an exciting, fast-paced story that I highly recommend – here’s hoping you enjoy it as much as I did.

A Double Life by Flynn Berry is published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson, an imprint of Orion Books, and is available in South Africa from Jonathan Ball Publishers.