Tuesday, November 14, 2023

Night Will Find You

This novel by Julia Heaberlin has an unusual female protagonist. Her regular job is as a research scientist in astrophysics, but occasionally, the police call on her for her abilities to see and hear things that other cannot. 

Publishers Weekly presents a solid summary of the story line as part of their glowing review: "This gripping page-turner from Heaberlin ... conceals its secrets from even the cleverest readers. Twenty-eight-year-old astrophysicist Vivian Bouchet takes leave from her research in the Chihuahuan desert to return home to Fort Worth, Tex., after her mother dies. She is approached by her childhood friend Mike Romano, now a cop, who believes Vivian has psychic abilities like the ones her fortune-telling mother claimed to possess. He asks her to look into the cold case of three-year-old Lizzie Solomon, who disappeared from her home a decade earlier. The girl’s mother, Nicolette, is serving time for her murder, even though no body was ever found. Before her death, Vivian’s mother made calls to the city claiming one of her clients—not Nicolette—was involved with the abduction... Vivian agrees to investigate, which makes her a target for the rabid fans of an influential podcast that peddles conspiracy theories,.... Vivian is an intelligent, perceptive character who’s a pleasure to spend time with, and when the plot kicks into gear, it’s nearly impossible to stop reading."

Kirkus fills us in on another detective interested in Lizzie's case, "Jesse Sharp, a skeptical, magnetic detective [who] is soon following her [Vivvy] all over town..." and it's not clear whether he seeks to expose her as a fake or  ... "to protect her from the fallout when a local conspiracy theorist gets her in his sights. Vivvy’s not sure, but she can’t deny the attraction between them even as she knows Jesse has secrets related to another case. Heaberlin’s evocation of the dusty, insular Texas town is the perfect backdrop, and both Jesse and Vivvy are appealingly prickly characters... Vivvy’s role as a scientist sets her apart from many fictional psychics and makes her a formidable heroine—there are rational layers to this supernatural thriller. Mysterious, sexy, and smart."

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