When You Find Me by P.J. Vernon

☆☆☆☆
ebook, 264 pages
Expected publication: October 9th 2018 by Crooked Lane Books
About the Book:
Her husband is missing.
Visiting her family’s South Carolina estate, socialite Gray Godfrey wakes from a night out to an empty bed. Her husband Paul is gone and a thrashing hangover has wiped her memory clean. At first, she’s relieved for the break from her tumultuous marriage; perhaps Paul just needed some space. But when his car is found abandoned on the highway, Gray must face the truth: Paul is gone. And Gray may not want him found.
Her life is unraveling.
When a stranger named Annie calls claiming to know Paul’s whereabouts, Gray reluctantly accepts her help. But this ally is not what she seems: soon Annie is sending frightening messages and revealing disturbing secrets only Gray could know. As Annie’s threats escalate and Gray’s grip on reality begins to slip, the life she thought she had and the dark truth she’s been living begin to merge, leaving an unsettling question: What does Annie want? And what will she do to get it? A chilling look at marriage, madness, and the lives we think we lead, WHEN YOU FIND ME is a daring debut from a talented new voice in psychological suspense.

If you stand for nothing, you’ll fall for anything.
The characters, despite being loathsome the majority of the time, also manage to evoke feelings of sympathy despite some pretty sinister thoughts and actions. The lengths people will go to to satisfy a burning need along with betrayal are the key underlying themes in this story. Truly a dysfunctional cast of characters to put it mildly, their manipulations in this book are surprising, served up with a side of secrets and lies, the author weaves a veritable tale of intrigue that I as a reader was powerless to do anything about but follow avidly. You can actually feel the intensity building as each secret is revealed.

The idea of an unfaithful husband burdened her heavier than a missing one.
Vernon provides an electrifying narrative that, seen through the main characters separate viewpoints, takes the reader through their many emotions. Mostly, they are repellant feelings with resultant hard consequences. The author demonstrates good characterizations, intriguing story plotting, and realistic dialogue.

He’s gaslighting me from god-knows-where.
The writing is solid and captivating, so overall, I am very impressed by this novel by Mr. Vernon. It is a thriller that makes one think. It also has a rich canvas of characters, solid plotting, excellent pacing, surprising turns, and an ambience sustained throughout. I enjoyed the story a lot and feel many others will too. A powerful novel of survival, justification, revenge, greed, power, control and betrayals on all sides.

Thank you NetGalley, Crooked Lane Books and P.J. Vernon for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an impartial review; all opinions are my own.

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