Love and Other Lies

A fictionalized version of terrorist Anders Breivik’s slaughter of 77 people at a Norwegian summer camp in 2011 provides the backdrop for this stunning psychological thriller from McPherson (A Line of Blood). British journalist Cal Curtis, who’s based in Oslo, and his Norwegian wife, Elsa, have been happily married for 17 years. They have raised their teenage daughters, Alicia and Victoria, by a code of stringent moral honesty, but their Scandinavian ideals of fairness, openness, and freedom begin to collapse when Alicia disappears from her summer camp outside Oslo during a terrorist attack. Cal is hopeful that Alicia’s alive, but why is Victoria holding back something about her sister from her parents? Meanwhile, Bror , Elsa’s former lover and the leader of a far-right quasireligious cult, criticizes the way Black police chief Ephraim Tvist is handling the investigation, causing Cal to suspect Tvist’s competence and motives. McPherson dramatically highlights the tensions between Norway’s native and immigrant populations as the plot builds to a devastating conclusion. This powerful, thought-provoking novel deserves a wide readership. Agent: Grainne Fox, Fletcher & Co. (Feb.)