If you think you know your friends, think again. A page-turner of a thriller for fans of The Couple Next Door.When Shea Walker, a sunny, easygoing mom, is found dead in a bathtub with a stomach full of booze and pills, the shocking discovery shatters the complacency of her comfortable suburban community.Kat Burrows, Shea’s longtime friend and former neighbor, is hit hardest. How could a woman she … hardest. How could a woman she thought she knew so well come to such a sordid end? What could lead happy, well-adjusted, responsible Shea to accidentally overdose on alcohol and narcotics? Or, worse, drive her to suicide?
Compelled to uncover the truth of Shea’s final months, Kat delves beneath the orderly surface of her familiar world to discover a web of thwarted desire, shameful secrets, and shocking betrayal that suggests a scarier explanation for what happened to Shea. As her carefully constructed reality begins to crumble, Kat must question every reassuring assumption her life is built upon to solve the mystery…and summon the courage and resourcefulness to survive it.
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This review is also available on my blog: Wine Cellar Library
This book expertly captures human nature. How does one cope with the suicide of a friend? How does one cope with conflicting evidence from close friends? This page-turner was impossible to put down. I look forward to reading more from E.C. Diskin.
Update:
Over a year later, I am still potently aware of the feelings generated by this novel. Kat’s pain and remorse are nearly tangible as she struggles to find out just what happened to Shea. Convinced Shea would not have committed suicide no matter the circumstances, she is determined to uncover the truth. This novel is definitely deserving of a re-read to experience that deep connection all over again.
First thing first, this book has definitely exceeded my expectations! I was just a few chapters into this book and I knew instantly I am in for an amazing read.
The novel starts with Shea Walker’s death. Did Shea commit suicide? Was it an accident or murder? Kat Borrows, a long-time friend and former neighbor of Shea, has been hit hard by such tragic news and starts her own investigation to uncover the truth about her friend’s death – only to discover lie after lie.
I’m a big fan of mystery/thriller books and I was (over) confident that I will have the story all figured out (before I read 50% of it) but I was wrong. This book proved me wrong. E.C. Diskin knows the right time to leave a scenario so the reader is frustrated…in a good way. This book ends with a well-written twist. This book has that “unputdownable” factor.
This is my first read by E.C Diskin and it will definitely not be my last.
In Depth Of Lies by. E. C. Diskin we have a book that is a bit more than a domestic thriller. It is a commentary on marriage, specifically in what happens to couples who find themselves at loose ends after the kids leave home. Some try to reconnect. Some go their seperate ways. And some cheat with women who stalk and kill. Just who did what with whom is part of the appeal of this book.
We all ask ourselves what we would do if our partner cheated. Some ask what it would take for us to cheat, or if bringing in a little polyamory would keep the spark alive. The reality of these lines of inquiry, however, can be messy. In The Depth Of Lies they are tragic. Sometimes, when you open a door, you let in something you didn’t invite. Something that can kill you.
E. C. Diskin does a good job of building tension. Of taking the relationships between the characters to the breaking point and as you discover who snaps you might feel an uncomfortable twinge of self-recognition. As a marriage counselor once told me, anyone can cheat if given the right set of circumstances. After reading this book you might want to examine your husband’s pockets for tell-tale recepts.
The book works as both a compelling thriller and a commentary on marriage, but I found the back and forth of revelation, the alternating viewpoints changing from minute to minute at the end a bit tedious. Perhaps the author thought this would increase tension, and if that works for you, great! It made me roll my eyes at the very end. Also, the neat and tidy epilogue with lots of hugs and happy reunions left me feeling a bit like I ate too much treacle. I prefer characters get consequences that mirror rear life, but that’s just me. It did not detract much from my overall enjoyment of the book.
Marriage is complicated, and the issues that confront the couples in this story lead to real life dramas we see played out in the news every day. Pick up Depth Of Lies and see how the characters deal with life when children leave and they must live with a partner they no longer recognize. The outcome may or may not surprise you.
Have you ever wondered about your neighbors….or friends…..what they’re really alike behind the closed doors? Then this book is for you!
A group of friends together through child raising, jobs, getting older and perhaps cheating?
And like in real life, friendships change over time and Mack and Kat have moved to Texas only to learn that Shea, a close friend, is dead. Shea was the life of the party, a go to woman full of advise, humor and sassiness. So why was Shea found drowned in a bathtub at an inn?
The past and present are shown as Kat tries to figure out what happened to her friend. Flashes of them and their relationships let you peek into their group. Then you see these same women again at the funeral but notice changes that could be just grief or something more.
Kat as a woman feeling guilt about Shea and sadness over her marriage hitting a rough patch, tries to solve Shea’s death.
Shea is someone I’d have liked as a friend and I admired her tenacity in marriage. Ryan, her hubby, is such a pain and I began to suspect him only to be drawn to other members of the group looking guilty.
A fast enjoyable read with great women and their men and their foibles. You feel like you are a fly on the wall watching these people in their homes. This book really moves along and you really don’t want to put it down till you know what happened to Shea.