Book Stop Corner

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



"Every father should understand that one day his son will follow his example instead of his advice. "




Ben McPherson, a television producer, director, and writer, pens his debut psychological thriller, A Line of Blood that traces the life of Mercer family after the father and the son discover the dead body of their neighbor which thoroughly changes their lives or rather say fills up their minds with lots of questions and doubt about one another.




Synopsis:

You find your neighbor dead in his bath.
Your son is with you. He sees everything.

You discover your wife has been in the man’s house.
It seems she knew him.

Now the police need to speak to you.

One night turns Alex Mercer’s life upside down. He loves his family and he wants to protect them, but there is too much he doesn’t know.

He doesn’t know how the cracks in his and Millicent’s marriage have affected their son, Max. Or how Millicent’s bracelet came to be under the neighbor's bed. He doesn’t know how to be a father to Max when his own world is shattering into pieces.

Then the murder investigation begins…


Alex Mercer lives with his son, Max and wife, Millicent in a small neighborhood of Finsbury Park, London. The book opens with the discovery of the dead body of the Mercer's neighbor in his bath tub, electrocuted to his death and without any choice or rather say, out of shock, Alex lets his eleven year old son see the dead body, instead of protecting it from the scene. Gradually Alex falls into the suspect list by the local detectives and the neighbor's presumed-to-be-a-suicide rules out as a murder with a motive. This whole incident unravels a lot of secrets not only about the neighbor but also about Millicent, whose bracelet was found under the bed of that neighbor, and amidst of all the domestic drama, one person remains clam despite of his young age, Max, who registers everything casually and with any repercussion which his parents though would be very obvious. But as the cracks of their marriage comes to light with their neighbor's death, Alex's life changes forever, when he realizes that it is too late to consider himself as a good father.


First I'd like to hats off to this first time author by writing such a compelling psychological thriller and his writing style can be easily compared to that of Gillian Flynn's. From the very first page itself, the author gets into the minds of his characters by jotting their intricate thoughts, bad and good both. The pacing of the book is steady since there are lots of layers in this book and this book can be projected from so many angles, a mystery as well as a family drama. The eloquent and engaging way of story-telling by spilling twists here and there kept me glued till the very end.

The author's intention was to provoke domestic issues inside a family with a murder that the whole family has nothing to do with. The characters are etched out as if someone who will instantly fill your heart with rage and despise. Their flaws are so vividly captured and portrayed which makes the characters even more vulnerable. Although the book is a first-person POV of Alex, still the author have managed to captured each and every character through Alex's eyes.

Almost every other character projects an impulsive attitude except the eleven year old boy who looks so calm all through out the book. Not only that, the characters' flaws are inspired from the reality and it made me contemplate with their demeanor, like too much anger, trust issues, psychotic nature, holding on, etc. The author have strikingly captured the child's voice through Max and how a child actually behaves in front of his parents when he is scolded or loved is very apt.

The mystery is mind-blowing and it kept me guessing till the very moment that author chose to unravel the identity of his true culprit and all the while this story disillusioned me to think about a wrong culprit. So the mystery is very strongly wrapped into layers of twists and secrets, that only made me anticipate till the very end.

The book focuses on the values of relationships, especially a family value. The father-son relationship is the best thing in the book and it is the only light amidst of all the darkness. Marriage is yet another relationship that is layered into the plot from the very beginning till the end. The author also sheds light on the fact that how a small crack in marriage can affect a child's behavior, because a small boy only wants to hold on to his parents at the end of the day. So, yes, holding onto one another matters a lot, if there is a crack in the ship due to as sudden storm.

Overall, this is an edgy psychological thriller which I'm pretty sure will take you on a roller coaster ride filed with emotions, hate and anticipation. And to be honest, the book kept me intrigued till the very last page.

Verdict: A must-read book for all thriller and mystery lovers, and if you want to taste something promising, scary yet engaging read, then this book perfectly fits the bill for you.

Courtesy: Thanks to Harper Collins India for sending me over a copy for the book, in return for an honest review. 
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Author Info:

Ben McPherson is a television producer, director, and writer. He studied Modern Languages at King’s College, Cambridge, and worked for many years in film and television production. From 1998 to 2007 he was a director and producer for the BBC.

In 1998 Ben met the woman he would go on to marry at the Coach and Horses in Soho. Similarities to the characters in his novel, A Line of Blood, end there.

Ben speaks fluent Norwegian and lives in Oslo with his wife and son. In 2012 he covered the Breivik trial for TheForeigner.no. He is now a columnist for Aftenposten, Norway’s leading quality daily newspaper.


Book Purchase Links:

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• Amazon India