Starred review from December 5, 2016
Divorced middle-aged mum Zoe Walker, the narrator of this outstanding psychological thriller from Mackintosh (I Let You Go), is stunned when, during her daily commute to work as bookkeeper/office manager at a London real estate firm, she spots a photo of herself in a newspaper ad for sex chat lines. But the real fear kicks in when she combs through earlier ads and recognizes one face as that of a recent crime victim. After another woman she recognizes from the ads is murdered, Zoe connects with police constable Kelly Swift, who’s chafing under a disciplinary demotion. As Kelly and the task force she worms her way onto race to crack the baffling case, an increasingly terrified Zoe starts to turn a suspicious eye on just about everyone in her life, including her solicitous live-in boyfriend and her overbearing boss. Although some shocking final twists don’t quite convince, Mackintosh scripts a hair-raising ride all the scarier because its premise—that our predictable routines make us easy targets—is sadly so plausible. Author tour. Agent: Sheila Crowley, Curtis Brown (U.K.).