October 2013 Guest Editor Linwood Barclay on The Suspect by Michael Robotham...
Thrillers need to grab you right from the start, and this book may have the best first chapter of any thriller I've ever read, and not because it's full of derring-do or explosions or terrorists trying to bring about the end of the word, This novel introduces psychologist Joe O'Loughlin, and we meet him on the top of a building, trying to persuade a young cancer patient not to jump off the edge. The writing is understated, the dialogue rings true, the suspense is palpable. What's always struck me about Robotham is that he makes your heart race, and ache, at the same time.
The very first book in the bestselling Joe O'Loughlin series, from the multi-million-copy bestselling Australian author
Liar, liar . . .
Joseph O'Loughlin appears to have the perfect life - a beautiful wife, a loving daughter and a successful career as a clinical psychologist. But nothing can be taken for granted. Even the most flawless existence is only a loose thread away from unravelling. All it takes is a murdered girl, a troubled young patient and the biggest lie of his life.
Caught in a complex web of deceit and haunted by images of the slain girl, he embarks upon a search that will take him from London to Liverpool and into the darkest recesses of the human mind. Ultimately, he will risk everything to unmask the killer and save his family.
The Suspect is the nerve-shredding psychological thriller that marked the debut of one of fiction's most compelling heroes, Joe O'Loughlin.
'Believable and authentic from the first sentence . . . Robotham doesn't put a foot wrong in his plotting, pace or inventiveness'The Australian 'A truly classy thriller, beautifully crafted . . . a gripping finale that even the most seasoned mystery addicts won't see coming'The Australian Women's Weekly 'A gripping first novel . . . taut and fast-moving' Washington Post
