Black-Eyed Susans: A Novel of Suspense
By: Julia Heaberlin
Rating: 5 of 5
This is the second book by Julia Heaberlin I have read and enjoyed. I actually enjoyed reading “Black-Eyed Susans” even more than “Lie Still” – which surprised me as I really enjoyed the first book. I will certainly be looking for this author again in the future and will make a point of buying her first book “Playing Dead” as I will probably like it as well as the others.
The setting for the story is the Ft. Worth area of Texas. I’ve lived in Texas for more than 10 years now – most of it in the Hill Country near Austin but most recently in the Northern Dallas suburbs. I can attest that the author’s descriptions of the locale and the people who inhabit the area are absolutely spot on. Picking up her book and reading some of the conversations mimic ones that I have with my neighbors. Not, thankfully, the ones about murder, but the rhythm and cadence of the conversations strike a familiar cord. Her descriptions of the landscape are spot on. There is a terrible beauty to the vastness of the land and the heat that scorches it year in and year out. The author has even put what we call cold and ice and snow in its place. Minimal compared to the Northern states but deadly here.
The story revolves around Tessa (Tessie) Cartwright. She is the sole survivor of a serial killer whose victims were dubbed the Black-eyed Susans because they were found in a field of the same. The book chronicles two stories – that of Tessie, the young sixteen year old runner who fell victim to the sadistic murderer and how she was able to recover, not only her body but her mind from the chilling event. Tessie was so traumatized that she lost her memory of the time she during which she was taken. She remembers what she was doing before she was taken but her next memories are of after she dropped off for dead in the field of flowers. This story leads up to trial of Terrell Darcy Goodwin, who has been pegged as the killer. The second story is that of Tessa – the same young woman but years later. She is now the single mother of a teenage girl, Charlie, and is always on pins and needles worried that something horrible could happen to Charlie. It is the story of the time leading up to the execution of the convicted killer. Or is he? Tessa, who still has not recovered her memory, now has doubts and she is working with an advocacy group that is working to keep Terrell alive.
The stories alternate back and forth – with a few unusual additions at the very end. The story is suspenseful and keep me wondering. I honestly had no idea of how the book would end and was both surprised and appropriately disgusted by the whodunnit. It was the perfect solution and yet one that made me think long and hard about it. There is an additional twist at the end that makes the book even better for me.
The characters are well drawn and their conversations believable. The plot and the story line make sense – there is nothing thrown in at the last moment without rhyme or reason. My favorite character has to be the slightly zany neighbor, Effie, who can make a lot of sense at exactly the right moment. The interaction between Tessa and her daughter reminded me a lot of my own past with my two daughters when they were teenagers. Because I could connect so well with the story, it and the characters in it became very real to me. In the after notes, I was able to discover that much of the science in the book is real and that gave the story another convincing note.
I recommend the book to anyone who likes a psychological thriller murder mystery. It kept me on the edge of my seat – convinced that I knew whodunnit only to surprise me with an ending that made more sense than the one I had in mind.
I received a complimentary copy of this book via the publisher.