I initially approached THE LYING ROOM with some trepidation. Coming on the heels of the Frieda Klein series, it seemed that the masterful husband-and-wife team known as Nicci French would have trouble composing an encore. I should not have worried. This is an enthralling and addicting novel full of characters who readers will recognize from their own lives and situations that make it more of a cautionary tale than simple entertainment.

Neve Connolly is the erratically beating heart of THE LYING ROOM. While the story is narrated in the third person, the impression we get from Neve’s own perception is that she is a hot mess. She is the primary earner of her family. Her husband, Fletcher, is a stay-at-home artist; her daughter, Mabel, is getting ready to go away to college; and her sons, Rory and Connor, are somewhat younger. It is Mabel who appears to be the family’s land mine in the middle of the living room, having had some psychological problems in the past that are not entirely resolved. The family is also experiencing financial difficulties that are underscored by Neve’s decision to reduce her hours at a design firm by a third, which still doesn’t allow her to keep up with chores that should be distributed among them, such as feeding the family guinea pig and tending to their garden allotment.

"I was able to determine early on who the killer was not, but I was totally wrong when it came to the final reveal.... There are any number of twists and turns to THE LYING ROOM beginning a third of the way into the book and then occurring with increasing rapidity."

In the midst of all of this, Neve is having an affair with a man named Saul. We never really get to meet Saul as he makes his first on-stage appearance in the form of a murdered corpse. Neve discovers his rapidly cooling body in the apartment he maintains when she responds to a text, apparently from him, that asks her to meet him as soon as she can. Neve attempts to remove every trace of herself from the crime scene in an effort to conceal her presence and her illicit relationship with him. She feels as if she is forgetting something, even as she tries to return to her normal life.

However, an investigation brings Saul’s murder back to Neve’s door as Detective Chief Inspector Alastair Hitching pays her a visit. Neve may be overwhelmed and overwrought, but she is no one’s fool. And while she did tamper with evidence, she most assuredly did not commit the murder. She is extremely curious as to who did, and there is no shortage of suspects --- from Saul’s wife to his co-workers and even Neve’s own family. She also comes to realize that perhaps the assailant intended to eliminate her rather than Saul. Who could it be? The answer is surprising. I was able to determine early on who the killer was not, but I was totally wrong when it came to the final reveal. See if you are as well.

There are any number of twists and turns to THE LYING ROOM beginning a third of the way into the book and then occurring with increasing rapidity. There is also a plot element that may put you in the mind of a film that was popular in the early 1980s (if I tell you the name, it will be too big of a spoiler), but twisted inside out and to a dark purpose. Longtime fans of French will find their high expectations rewarded, while newcomers will be motivated to explore the author’s backlist. I envy their discovery.