Take Your Breath Away

The disappearance of Andy Mason’s wife, Brie, from their home in Milford, Conn., drives this well-paced standalone from Thriller Award finalist Barclay (Find You First). Andy was on a fishing trip with a friend at the time, but Milford police detective Marissa Hardy decides that Andy was involved, yet try as she might, she can find no hard evidence. Meanwhile, Andy becomes “a public spectacle, fodder for true crime shows and social media speculation.” Needing a fresh start, he changes his last name and moves to the nearby town of Stratford. Now, six years after Brie went missing, Andy is living happily with his girlfriend. Then, a woman shows up at Andy’s former address in Milford. She seems frightened and leaves before the police can be summoned. Surveillance footage shows she looks like Brie. Barclay shifts among multiple viewpoints to keep the tension high, including the original witness statements taken by Hardy. Everyone is a plausible suspect, and the disparate plot pieces eventually fit together with the precision of a Chinese puzzle box. Barclay reliably entertains. Agent: Helen Heller, Helen Heller Agency (Canada). (May)