cover image Unquiet Night-C

Unquiet Night-C

Patricia Carlon. Soho Press, $22 (0pp) ISBN 978-1-56947-194-4

Readers looking for a gripping tale of suspense in the classic mode need look no further. Carlon, an Australian writer whose superb mysteries (Crime of Silence, etc.) have only recently become available in the U.S., tells the story of just a few days in the lives of Rachel Penghill, her nine-year-old niece, Ann, and the deeply troubled Martin Deeford. Mart has strangled a young woman he's met by chance, and rolled the body into a lake. As he leaves the scene of the crime, he encounters Rachel and Ann, who are picnicking in the woods. Although they haven't seen him commit murder, Mart decides that he must kill them, too, in case they can identify him to the police. But he doesn't know their names or where they live. How can he find them before the body is discoveredDand how will they be able to stay safe from this deranged criminal? As the long night after the strangling passes, a cat-and-mouse game between the stalker and his victims ensues, with each step carefully choreographed for maximum tension. Carlon strips this novel down to the bare bones of narrativeDwhich only highlights her storytelling prowess and mastery of the form. Those who have compared her to Hitchcock are not overstating the case, for this clear, concise thriller is like a limpid distillation of the best of the suspense genre. Readers are in for a treat indeed. (June)