The novel opens with the murder of Luke Whitney who has been stabbed to death by his wife Anna. She herself confesses the crime as soon as she gets arrested and she is ready to go to jail for the unplanned murder of her husband. She gets arrested by the police on the spot as they consider her to be the prime suspect based on the prima facie evidence.
But police are not convinced about her confession and soon they start to notice holes in her confession. There seems to be an evident mismatch between what they have found at the murder scene and what Anna is confessing at the police station. So, they decide to dig deeper in order to solve the mystery behind a high-profile doctor like Luke Whitney.
As police start to unravel different aspect of the seemingly perfect and privileged façade of Luke Whitney’s life, they manage to find several complicated aspects of his personal life. While the police investigation continues, we get to know the more intimate version of Luke Whitney’s life from Anna. These discoveries bring to light his narcissistic nature, philandering ways and fraudulent business practices.
So, it’s no surprising then the story is carried forward by other narrators such as Luke’s former wife and girlfriend. Since this story is narrated by four different women from their own perspectives, it becomes interesting to read where these fault lines culminate to reveal the truth behind Luke’s unfortunate demise.
As we can see that the plot and its characters look familiar. There are tell-a-tale signs of oft used tropes and cliches throughout this novel. This somehow blunts the shock of the final reveal. So, we are left surprised rather than stunned by the ultimate unveiling of the truth behind Luke’s death.
Does this make it a boring or uninteresting read? I don’t think so. Although the central premise of this novel is somewhat predictable, we can still give it a try as the author’s writing still shines across few critical places. I would certainly ask you to give it go if you are looking to read an interestingly cozy mystery book aptly suitable for the autumnal vibes.
If you have already read it then please share your opinions/ thoughts in the comments below.