✍ Can't Find My Way Home - Carlene Thompson

Genre: Mystery & Thrillers
Published 1 February 2015 by Severn House
Number of pages: 280

My rating: ★ ★ ★ ★  I really liked it

"Brynn Wilder must confront a dark and dangerous walk back into her traumatic past

Eighteen years ago, twelve-year-old Brynn Wilder’s life changed forever when her father and a teenage girl were severely injured in a brutal attack in the woods.

Jonah Wilder died, but fifteen-year-old Tessa Cavanaugh survived to tell the world about her horrific ordeal, and Brynn’s devoted father was soon identified as the infamous Genessa Point serial killer. Brynn and her family fled the town, and Brynn swore never to return.

But the scars of the past won’t heal, and when Brynn’s tormented brother, Mark, goes back to Genessa Point only to suddenly disappear after telling a friend he has new information about his father’s death, Brynn resolves to find him.

She may not want to confront her traumatic past, but a series of creepy and menacing incidents show that someone is determined Brynn won’t escape it. Can she find Mark and uncover the truth about their father’s death?"

"Can't Find My Way Home" by Carlene Thompson is a complex psychological thriller that keeps you guessing again and again.

The story is presented through the main character Brynn Wilder, as she recalls events from her childhood and as she re-acquaints herself with the Genessa Point residents that shaped her past and that of her family. 

Will Brynn find her brother Mark?
Will she finally be able to discover who the Genessa Point Killer really was?

The sordid truth is revealed piece by piece, interlocking into a climactic finale.

Although I had worked things out about two thirds into the story, I was captivated by the narration until the very end to fully understand the motivations behind it all.

Carlene Thompson's writing is a pleasure to read and her characters are very well developped and therefore easy to identify with. You really do get the full flavour of a small town and its secrets, behind closed doors. 

This author always tries to include one of her real-life pets into her novels; I thought this was a really nice touch. On this occasion we met Henry, a "half Irish Setter, half yellow Labrador", who loves doughnuts and her owner, whom he protects with his life.

I don't quite understand why the tagline for this title is "A Novel of Romantic Suspense", as, although there was the speckle of a romantic aspect, this was absolutely minimal and very mild in tone.

All in all, "Can't Find My Way Home" was a very enjoyable page turner.  I would not hesitate to read other works by Carlene Thompson.

[ARC received via Netgalley]