Title: Eyes Like Mine
Expected
publication: 25 January 2018
My
Rating:🌟🌟🌟🌟1/2
People will lie about anything, anytime.
Book Description (Goodreads):
It's late. The phone rings.
The man on the other end says his daughter is missing.
Your daughter. The baby you gave away over fifteen years ago.
What do you do?
Nora Watts isn't sure that she wants to get involved. Troubled, messed up, and with more than enough problems of her own, Nora doesn't want to revisit the past. But then she sees the photograph. A girl, a teenager, with her eyes. How can she turn her back on her?
But going in search of her daughter brings Nora into contact with a past that she would rather forget, a past that she has worked hard to put behind her, but which is always there, waiting for her . . .
The man on the other end says his daughter is missing.
Your daughter. The baby you gave away over fifteen years ago.
What do you do?
Nora Watts isn't sure that she wants to get involved. Troubled, messed up, and with more than enough problems of her own, Nora doesn't want to revisit the past. But then she sees the photograph. A girl, a teenager, with her eyes. How can she turn her back on her?
But going in search of her daughter brings Nora into contact with a past that she would rather forget, a past that she has worked hard to put behind her, but which is always there, waiting for her . . .
My musings:
Every now and then a character captures your attention so
fully that they feel like real life people and evoke a fervent prayer to the
literary gods that the author will write a sequel – and another one, and
another one! For me, Nora Watts was that protagonist – she was so compelling
and intriguing that she instantly swept me up into her world and kept me
enthralled. Nora may initially seem like your classical flawed character with
the obligatory traumatic childhood having shaped her adult self, but she has a
few additional features that make her stand out from the fray. Firstly, she can
tell a liar as soon as the other person opens their mouth. Secondly, she has an
irresistible sense of self-deprecating humour that had me laughing out loud in
what was otherwise a rather dark and disturbing story – she is so astute in her
observations! And whilst hse admits embracing her role as an outsider, she is also a badass – in a humble, invisible
sort of way, but she is not one to give up easily, especially when it comes to
righting an injustice. Even though she may not always seem likeable, I simply
adored her. She would of course not appreciate the sentiment, preferring to
keep herself to herself with the equally irresistible Whisper by her side.
Kamal does such a brilliant job with her characterisations –
even now I can clearly see the cast of Eyes Like Mine clearly in front of my
eyes, as if I had met them all personally. In her author’s notes she says: “I
learned how important it is to have compelling characters, raise the stakes and
to take risks.” She has certainly achieved all of that. The characters, the
sense of time and place, the atmosphere of the seedier side of Vancouver and
Vancouver Island were so well executed that the story played out movie-like in
my mind until I could not tear myself away even for the most essential of
needs. And what a story it was! A dark, disturbing thrill ride that had my
hackles rise on quite a few occasions as Nora put herself in the firing line.
There was both mystery and suspense as well as action, a balance that is tricky
to achieve but was perfectly done here. Nora’s antisocial tendencies and her
ability to stay under the radar created the type of tense, claustrophobic
atmosphere I simply love in a good mystery. Even the few tiny moments of having
to suspend disbelief did not mar the pleasure, and everyone who knows me will know
I’m usually not very good at that.
Summary:
If you’re looking for two-dimensional cardboard cut-out
characters in a run-of-the-mill mystery that has been done a thousand times
before, do not read this book, because it is quite unique and the characters
pack punch. There are many themes running through this book that make it
relevant: childhood trauma, abuse, adoption, alcoholism, homelessness, racism
just to mention a few. It is confronting at times, disturbing for most of the
time, and just very very good. I was ecstatic to read that the author is
working on a sequel. I will most definitely pick that one up, too! Very highly recommended to all lovers of the
genre.
Thank
you to Netgalley and Bonnier Zaffre for the free electronic copy of this novel and
for giving me the opportunity to provide an honest review.
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