Samantha Moore was living a wonderful life with a great
fiancée and the perfect job, until she was brutally attacked
in a random act of violence. When she woke up after being
in a coma for two months, her entire life had changed. Her
left leg no longer functioned correctly, and she was haunted
by nightmares of the attack. Her family decided to shuttle
her off to a lake house in a quiet town away from the busy
Twin Cities to recover. But Samantha suspects that this is
more to spare them the embarrassment of having a daughter
who is no longer The Golden Child who suffered "an accident"
(as her mother insists on referring to it).
Her fiancée, Jackson, who is a plastic surgeon, keeps plying
her with medication, but Sam doesn't like them as they make
her groggy, forgetful, and even more paranoid. Then she
discovers that Jackson and her father Lawrence have
conspired together to hire Anne Weaver, a physical therapy
assistant, to tend to her during the day all summer. Sam
resents this, seeing this as the equivalent as being
baby-sat all season when she'd rather recover on her schedule.
Sam initially resists Anne's help, despite the fact that she
desperately wants to get back to her old life and she can't
do that in her current state - hibernating in her room,
unable to face other people without panicking, and afraid of
going outside. Then Sam begins noticing that some of the
things happening aren't only in her head. Why is she having
visions of a woman that people on the island are
uncomfortable discussing, except in hushed whispers? And
why does she know things about this woman even though she
has never met her before?
Sam and Anne's characters are well-written, both
individually and as a pair that must learn to relate to each
other and work together. The development of their
relationship is quite organic -- while they eventually
reach an understanding, it is not done in a way that seems
forced or too cute. The subplot with the rescue dog Roxy
was a great touch, as well, as it added depth to Sam's
character.
The mystery of the story was excellent. I kept changing my
mind as to who was behind the mysterious happenings and why.
At one point, I was disappointed that I had "solved" the
mystery so early, only to change my mind a few chapters
later! While there were plenty of people in the small town
who were suspicious, this mystery was crafted quite well,
with no heavy-handed red herring.
To what lengths would you go to keep a past buried?
Samantha Moore is the golden girl—with a perfect job, a
perfect man, a perfect life—until a random act of violence
changes everything. Unconscious for two months, Sam awakens
from her coma a different person—bitter, in constant pain,
and forced to endure medications that leave her nauseous,
paranoid, and struggling to keep a grip on reality.
Furious with her family for sending her away to a small,
remote town to recuperate—placed completely under a physical
therapist’s care and robbed of what little freedom she has
left—Sam lashes out at the “nice people” all around her who
claim to have only her best interests in mind. But are her
violent outbursts the by-product of her condition . . . or
something else entirely? Strange things are happening
here—and either Samantha Moore is losing her mind or her
friendly new neighbors are far more dangerous than they
appear to be. . . .
Samantha Moore is the golden girl—with a perfect job, a
perfect man, a perfect life—until a random act of violence
changes everything. Unconscious for two months, Sam awakens
from her coma a different person—bitter, in constant pain,
and forced to endure medications that leave her nauseous,
paranoid, and struggling to keep a grip on reality.
Furious with her family for sending her away to a small,
remote town to recuperate—placed completely under a physical
therapist’s care and robbed of what little freedom she has
left—Sam lashes out at the “nice people” all around her who
claim to have only her best interests in mind. But are her
violent outbursts the by-product of her condition . . . or
something else entirely? Strange things are happening
here—and either Samantha Moore is losing her mind or her
friendly new neighbors are far more dangerous than they
appear to be. . . .
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