BEFORE I GO TO SLEEP is easily one of the best psychological thrillers that I’ve read in the past 20 years and was later made into a film starring Oscar winners Nicole Kidman and Colin Firth. Now we have SJ Watson’s follow-up, FINAL CUT, which brings him straight back into heavy psychological suspense territory.

The focus of the novel is Blackwood Bay. This small seaside town reminded me of David Lynch's Twin Peaks and is just as bizarre with its avant-garde weirdness and complete permeation of suspicion throughout the village. At certain points in the book, I felt like I was in the middle of someone else's dream and realized that is exactly what Watson intended.

"...a solid psychological thriller that will have you talking to yourself and rethinking everything you thought you knew."

In March 2011, the Blackwood Bay Evening Standard reported a mystery girl found on Deal Beach who was said to have been between the ages of 12 and 15. In the present day, we meet filmmaker Alex. Her introduction to Blackwood Bay comes when she crashes her car and is rescued by Gavin, a young man who is interested in the film industry. Alex is filming a documentary about the area’s missing girls, beginning with the disappearance of Daisy, which is the latest incident.

As Alex begins interviewing the residents of Blackwood Bay, two things are evident: they are hiding something, and they don't want her there. It all comes back to the first missing girl, Sadie, whose very name said aloud will cause a reaction. Even her own parents claim that she merely ran away and was not killed. Alex, though, is convinced that she was murdered and some bad person was behind all the other problems with these young girls. How great would it be for her to also solve some long-standing crimes?

When the novel flips back to the passages from the past, some show discussions between Alex and her psychiatrist. We find out at one of these sessions that she created the name Alex as well as that “character.” The question then becomes: Who is the real Alex? Being a curious sort, and knowing this is an SJ Watson novel, I made sure to read each page carefully, looking for the clue that would open the door to FINAL CUT. Alex is suspicious about a couple of different men and is warned by more than one person to watch out for Gavin.

The documentary, Black Winter, is coming along but has no natural resolution as of yet. At one point, though, Alex begins to question who she really is and knows she has to uncover the truth between then and now. I advise you to read carefully because things come together in a bizarre fashion and most definitely will surprise you.

Recently, Watson wrote an article, “Suspense By the Sea: Six Novels That Could Only Take Place at the Seashore.” They include classics like BRIGHTON ROCK by Graham Greene and REBECCA by Daphne du Maurier. While FINAL CUT is not in the same league as those titles, it is a solid psychological thriller that will have you talking to yourself and rethinking everything you thought you knew.