Cold Light

They found a body. I know who it is.

Such a great tag line!

Three teenage girls and the jealousy-filled triangle of their friendships are at the center of Jenn Ashworth‘s dark, contemporary British murder mystery.

The author is currently on a virtual (blog) tour of the U.S. that started Tuesday.

ASHWORTH, Jenn. Cold Light. 352p. Morrow. 2012. pap. $14.99. ISBN 978-0-06-207603-8. LC number unavailable.  

Adult/High School–Chloe was Lola’s best, and only, friend. The relationship seemed to be a miracle to Lola, because why would a beautiful blonde girl choose her as a friend? After Chloe’s death, the community deified her as a tragic figure who martyred herself for love. Ten years later, a grown-up Lola is watching a televised groundbreaking ceremony for a summerhouse to be built in Chloe’s honor. When the first spade rams into an obstruction beneath the ground, Lola immediately realizes they have discovered a dead body. And she knows who it is. This foreshadowing frames the backstory of Chloe, as told by Lola. Lola’s narration is skewed by her need for Chloe, which leads readers to suspect that reality is far more dreadful. For example, Lola found Carl, Chloe’s creepy older boyfriend, an annoyance who pulled Chloe away from herself. But Carl’s actions were tinged with something much darker than Lola perceives. The prevalence of other unexplained tragedies, including the disappearance of a local man, sexual assaults on young girls, and the death of Lola’s own father, add to the inescapable suspense. Compare this to other psychological thrillers such as Laura Lippman’s The Most Dangerous Thing (William Morrow, 2011) or Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl (Crown, 2012).–Diane Colson, Palm Harbor Public Library, FL