After the success of her first novel, The Widow, British journalist Fiona Barton returns with a second thriller, The Child. Available in bookstores from September 13, The Child is an intense and moving novel!
When a short piece in a newspaper reveals the discovery of a baby’s body on a construction site in Woolwich, in the suburbs of London, the lives of several women will be turned upside down.
Kate, first, who discovers the article, and sensing a good journalistic opportunity, seizes the story.
Angela, who has never recovered from the disappearance of her little Alice in the maternity ward.
Emma, for whom the discovery of this tiny body may well bring to light some of her darkest secrets.
All these lives will converge in the midst of a case that will unfold with revelation after revelation.
For her second novel, Fiona Barton immerses us in this story through the perspectives of several women, particularly Angela, Kate, and Emma. They will all be connected by the discovery of the baby’s body on a construction site, each for very different reasons. And while Kate, the journalist who also appears in The Widow, the author’s first novel, may sometimes seem calculating and eager for any scoop, this story of a child and motherhood will make her more touching and compassionate.
As for Emma and Angela, it’s impossible not to become attached to them; they are pivotal figures in the unfolding family drama.
The author has chosen to construct her thriller by alternating narrators—sometimes in the third person, sometimes in the first—and perspectives, each chapter focusing on a character, allowing multiple leads and clues to emerge. The characters are indeed a key element of the novel as they all present flaws and well-crafted personalities, including Emma and Kate, but also the character of Jude.
The Child sets its pace, and while we avidly and frenziedly follow the investigation led by Kate, we read Emma’s chapters with gentleness and empathy.
With a lot of intelligence and humanity, Fiona Barton crafts her thriller that explores parent/child relationships up to a particularly moving conclusion!
