What do you think?
Rate this book
Trust Your Eyes
Thomas Kilbride is a map-obsessed schizophrenic so affected that he rarely leaves the self-imposed bastion of his bedroom. But with a computer program called Whirl360.com, he travels the world while never stepping out the door. That is until he sees something in a street view of downtown New York City. Thomas's keen eyes have detected an image in a window...an image that looks like a woman being murdered.
Thomas's brother, Ray, takes care of him, cooking for him, dealing with the outside world on his behalf, and listening to his intricate and increasingly paranoid theories. When Thomas tells Ray what he has seen, Ray humors him with a half-hearted investigation. But Ray soon realizes he and his brother have stumbled onto a deadly conspiracy.
And now they are in the crosshairs...
Thomas's brother, Ray, takes care of him, cooking for him, dealing with the outside world on his behalf, and listening to his intricate and increasingly paranoid theories. When Thomas tells Ray what he has seen, Ray humors him with a half-hearted investigation. But Ray soon realizes he and his brother have stumbled onto a deadly conspiracy.
And now they are in the crosshairs...
496 pages, Hardcover
First published September 4, 2012
About the author
Linwood Barclay
105 books6,437 followersLinwood Barclay is the #1 internationally bestselling author of seventeen novels for adults, including No Time for Goodbye, Trust Your Eyes and, most recently, A Noise Downstairs. He has also written two novels for children and screenplays.
Three of those seventeen novels comprise the epic Promise Falls trilogy: Broken Promise, Far From True, and The Twenty-Three. His two novels for children – Chase and Escape – star a computer-enhanced dog named Chipper who’s on the run from the evil organization that turned him into a super-pup.
Barclay’s 2011 thriller, The Accident, has been turned into the six-part television series L’Accident in France, and he adapted his novel Never Saw it Coming for the movie, directed by Gail Harvey and starring Eric Roberts and Emily Hampshire. Several of his other books either have been, or still are, in development for TV and film.
After spending his formative years helping run a cottage resort and trailer park after his father died when he was 16, Barclay got his first newspaper job at the Peterborough Examiner, a small Ontario daily. In 1981, he joined the Toronto Star, Canada’s largest circulation newspaper.
He held such positions as assistant city editor, chief copy editor, news editor, and Life section editor, before becoming the paper’s humour columnist in 1993. He was one of the paper’s most popular columnists before retiring from the position in 2008 to work exclusively on books.
In 2004, he launched his mystery series about an anxiety-ridden, know-it-all, pain-in-the-butt father by the name of Zack Walker. Bad Move, the first book, was followed by three more Zack Walker thrillers: Bad Guys, Lone Wolf, and Stone Rain. (The last two were published in the UK under the titles Bad Luck and Bad News.)
His first standalone thriller, No Time for Goodbye, was published in 2007 to critical acclaim and great international success. The following year, it was a Richard and Judy Summer Read selection in the UK, and did seven straight weeks at #1 on the UK bestseller list, and finished 2008 as the top selling novel of the year there. The book has since been sold around the world and been translated into nearly thirty languages.
Barclay was born in the United States but moved to Canada just before turning four years old when his father, a commercial artist whose illustrations of cars appeared in Life, Look and Saturday Evening Post (before photography took over), accepted a position with an advertising agency north of the border. Barclay, who graduated with an English literature degree from Trent University, in Peterborough, Ontario, was fortunate to have some very fine mentors; in particular, the celebrated Canadian author Margaret Laurence, whom Linwood first met when she served as writer-in-residence at Trent, and Kenneth Millar, who, under the name Ross Macdonald, wrote the acclaimed series of mystery novels featuring detective Lew Archer. It was at Trent that he met Neetha, the woman who would become his wife. They have two grown children, Spencer and Paige.
Three of those seventeen novels comprise the epic Promise Falls trilogy: Broken Promise, Far From True, and The Twenty-Three. His two novels for children – Chase and Escape – star a computer-enhanced dog named Chipper who’s on the run from the evil organization that turned him into a super-pup.
Barclay’s 2011 thriller, The Accident, has been turned into the six-part television series L’Accident in France, and he adapted his novel Never Saw it Coming for the movie, directed by Gail Harvey and starring Eric Roberts and Emily Hampshire. Several of his other books either have been, or still are, in development for TV and film.
After spending his formative years helping run a cottage resort and trailer park after his father died when he was 16, Barclay got his first newspaper job at the Peterborough Examiner, a small Ontario daily. In 1981, he joined the Toronto Star, Canada’s largest circulation newspaper.
He held such positions as assistant city editor, chief copy editor, news editor, and Life section editor, before becoming the paper’s humour columnist in 1993. He was one of the paper’s most popular columnists before retiring from the position in 2008 to work exclusively on books.
In 2004, he launched his mystery series about an anxiety-ridden, know-it-all, pain-in-the-butt father by the name of Zack Walker. Bad Move, the first book, was followed by three more Zack Walker thrillers: Bad Guys, Lone Wolf, and Stone Rain. (The last two were published in the UK under the titles Bad Luck and Bad News.)
His first standalone thriller, No Time for Goodbye, was published in 2007 to critical acclaim and great international success. The following year, it was a Richard and Judy Summer Read selection in the UK, and did seven straight weeks at #1 on the UK bestseller list, and finished 2008 as the top selling novel of the year there. The book has since been sold around the world and been translated into nearly thirty languages.
Barclay was born in the United States but moved to Canada just before turning four years old when his father, a commercial artist whose illustrations of cars appeared in Life, Look and Saturday Evening Post (before photography took over), accepted a position with an advertising agency north of the border. Barclay, who graduated with an English literature degree from Trent University, in Peterborough, Ontario, was fortunate to have some very fine mentors; in particular, the celebrated Canadian author Margaret Laurence, whom Linwood first met when she served as writer-in-residence at Trent, and Kenneth Millar, who, under the name Ross Macdonald, wrote the acclaimed series of mystery novels featuring detective Lew Archer. It was at Trent that he met Neetha, the woman who would become his wife. They have two grown children, Spencer and Paige.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,749 reviews
November 12, 2014
Stephen King says it best. My idea of a sweet ride is three days of rain, a fridge filled with snacks, and a new Linwood Barclay.
Right on. I picked this one up at the beginning of my last weekend. I just happened to be in my sweet spot………ready to select my next read.
King also said that it’s a tale Hitchcock would have loved and once again, he is spot on.
I have come to think of Barclay’s books as domestic thrillers. These things could happen to you or me. Today or tomorrow. This one is top notch!
It is the story of two brothers; one, Thomas, is a map- obsessed schizophrenic with a computer and a program that leads him through the streets of this world. His brother, Ray, has just returned home to deal with their father’s recent, accidental death and hopefully to bond and work with Thomas so as to forge a plan for Thomas’s future care.
But while Thomas is sitting at his computer, clicking and trolling streets in New York City, he sees an image in a window. An image that looks like a woman being murdered. And so it begins…………
Riveting, Thrilling, Suspenseful, Gripping, Accessible…….. Yes, Yes, Yes and yes. Still for me the first word that comes to mind is ENTERTAINING!
HUGELY SO
I’m getting me another Linwood Barclay.
Right on. I picked this one up at the beginning of my last weekend. I just happened to be in my sweet spot………ready to select my next read.
King also said that it’s a tale Hitchcock would have loved and once again, he is spot on.
I have come to think of Barclay’s books as domestic thrillers. These things could happen to you or me. Today or tomorrow. This one is top notch!
It is the story of two brothers; one, Thomas, is a map- obsessed schizophrenic with a computer and a program that leads him through the streets of this world. His brother, Ray, has just returned home to deal with their father’s recent, accidental death and hopefully to bond and work with Thomas so as to forge a plan for Thomas’s future care.
But while Thomas is sitting at his computer, clicking and trolling streets in New York City, he sees an image in a window. An image that looks like a woman being murdered. And so it begins…………
Riveting, Thrilling, Suspenseful, Gripping, Accessible…….. Yes, Yes, Yes and yes. Still for me the first word that comes to mind is ENTERTAINING!
HUGELY SO
I’m getting me another Linwood Barclay.
August 7, 2020
A slow rather confusing start is not enough to derail this interesting thriller of twists. This was my first Barclay and not my last. 8 of 10 stars!
November 29, 2022
Three stories for the price of one
Thomas Kilbride is a functional schizophrenic convinced by the internal voices that he hears that he is working as a consultant to the CIA. His obsession with maps and the streetscapes of cities all around the world confine him to his room, his computer and the fevered imagination of his own troubled mind. The real world intrudes when Thomas sees an image of what he is convinced is a woman being murdered in a New York apartment.
TRUST YOUR EYES is really three tales wrapped up in a single package. The first is a gripping, well-conceived high speed murder mystery with plenty of mischief and mayhem, twists and turns, red herrings and blind alleys. The second is a rather more upsetting tale of domestic abuse, pedophilia and child prostitution. The third, as you might imagine from the plot summary, is a more realistic imagining of the difficulties of living with schizophrenia from both a patient and a care giver’s point of view. Barclay manages to weave the stories together seamlessly and has produced a novel that is at once a compelling page-turner, scary, tender and heartwarming, frequently humorous (albeit rather darkly) and even educational.
Oh, … and, by the way, under NO circumstances should you even glance at the final paragraph. Remember all those novels with your favorite twist endings in the final few sentences? PRIMAL FEAR, SHUTTER ISLAND, MY SISTER’S KEEPER, and the like? Trust me … TRUST YOUR EYES’ last page will knock your socks off!
Paul Weiss
Thomas Kilbride is a functional schizophrenic convinced by the internal voices that he hears that he is working as a consultant to the CIA. His obsession with maps and the streetscapes of cities all around the world confine him to his room, his computer and the fevered imagination of his own troubled mind. The real world intrudes when Thomas sees an image of what he is convinced is a woman being murdered in a New York apartment.
TRUST YOUR EYES is really three tales wrapped up in a single package. The first is a gripping, well-conceived high speed murder mystery with plenty of mischief and mayhem, twists and turns, red herrings and blind alleys. The second is a rather more upsetting tale of domestic abuse, pedophilia and child prostitution. The third, as you might imagine from the plot summary, is a more realistic imagining of the difficulties of living with schizophrenia from both a patient and a care giver’s point of view. Barclay manages to weave the stories together seamlessly and has produced a novel that is at once a compelling page-turner, scary, tender and heartwarming, frequently humorous (albeit rather darkly) and even educational.
Oh, … and, by the way, under NO circumstances should you even glance at the final paragraph. Remember all those novels with your favorite twist endings in the final few sentences? PRIMAL FEAR, SHUTTER ISLAND, MY SISTER’S KEEPER, and the like? Trust me … TRUST YOUR EYES’ last page will knock your socks off!
Paul Weiss
June 7, 2021
It’s been a really hectic week, so I wanted to lose myself in an escapist (but well-written) thriller. This book – the first I've read by author Linwood Barclay, former Toronto Star columnist – more than did the trick. I literally couldn’t put Trust Your Eyes down. It’s the kind of book where if I found myself with an extra 10 minutes during the day, I’d crack it open.
Thomas Kilbride, who’s been diagnosed with schizophrenia, has always been obsessed with maps. Now an adult, he spends nearly all his waking time in front of his computer studying the streets of the world’s biggest cities via a Google Street View-like program called Whirl360. When he sees what looks like the image of a person being strangled in a window in a building in New York City, he and his brother, Ray, an illustrator, are intrigued.
Soon the two unwittingly get enmeshed in a series of crimes that involves a politician, his and – probably the scariest character of them all – a former Olympic gymnast who’s now a hired assassin with a thing for ice picks.
Ray is a witty, sympathetic first-person narrator, and his strained relationship with Thomas gives the book emotional ballast and genuine humour. Barclay’s depiction of mental illness is sensitive and respectful. And he easily slips into the skin of other characters – including a few unsavoury types – for a few chapters, making some hard-to-believe plot points palatable.
The film rights to the book have been sold. This will make a terrific movie. Actors will be hounding their agents to play Thomas.
Don’t be surprised if, like me, you find yourself saying “One more chapter” until it’s 3 or 4 in the morning.
Thomas Kilbride, who’s been diagnosed with schizophrenia, has always been obsessed with maps. Now an adult, he spends nearly all his waking time in front of his computer studying the streets of the world’s biggest cities via a Google Street View-like program called Whirl360. When he sees what looks like the image of a person being strangled in a window in a building in New York City, he and his brother, Ray, an illustrator, are intrigued.
Soon the two unwittingly get enmeshed in a series of crimes that involves a politician, his and – probably the scariest character of them all – a former Olympic gymnast who’s now a hired assassin with a thing for ice picks.
Ray is a witty, sympathetic first-person narrator, and his strained relationship with Thomas gives the book emotional ballast and genuine humour. Barclay’s depiction of mental illness is sensitive and respectful. And he easily slips into the skin of other characters – including a few unsavoury types – for a few chapters, making some hard-to-believe plot points palatable.
The film rights to the book have been sold. This will make a terrific movie. Actors will be hounding their agents to play Thomas.
Don’t be surprised if, like me, you find yourself saying “One more chapter” until it’s 3 or 4 in the morning.
August 8, 2014
3.5
Anyone who has seen my book recommendation request list would know I am a big fan of novels that have the main character witnessing a crime/murder through a window. One of my favorite books from my early teens was "The Undertaker's Gone Bananas" by Paul Zindel, and as I got older, Cornell Woolrich's short story "It had to be Murder" (Rear Window) was added to my favorites list- Rear Window is also in my top ten movies list-Hitchcock one of my favorite directors...So when I saw reviews of TRUST YOUR EYES and spotted comparisons to Rear Window, and Hitchcock's name thrown out there, I knew this was a book I had to read.
Ray Kilbride- comes home for his father's funeral, and gets more than he bargained for. He knew it wasn't going to be a quick visit, because Ray's brother, Thomas needs someone to look after him now that their dad is gone.
Thomas Kilbride- has been diagnosed with schizophrenia, and he is a bit of an Agoraphobe. When he is not sleeping or eating breakfast lunch and dinner, he is in front of his computer memorizing everything he sees. The computer program Whirl360 lets him travel from city to city never having to leave the house. It is on this program that Thomas spots something rather strange-it looks like a person with a plastic bag over their head. When he finally shows his brother the image, Ray doesn't know what to think, but he travels to New York City anyways to check out the address, and opens a can of Whoop-Ass into both their lives.
![]()
I enjoyed TRUST YOUR EYES for the most part. I especially loved the relationship between Thomas and Ray (I was reminded of Rain Man quite a few times with their bickering back and forth). There were a couple of teeny weeny little problems I had- One being a few too many side plots going on, and the other was in the very last paragraph. The ending took this from being a solid four star rating-to a 3.5 for me, but I am sure it won't be an issue for most readers.
Anyone who has seen my book recommendation request list would know I am a big fan of novels that have the main character witnessing a crime/murder through a window. One of my favorite books from my early teens was "The Undertaker's Gone Bananas" by Paul Zindel, and as I got older, Cornell Woolrich's short story "It had to be Murder" (Rear Window) was added to my favorites list- Rear Window is also in my top ten movies list-Hitchcock one of my favorite directors...So when I saw reviews of TRUST YOUR EYES and spotted comparisons to Rear Window, and Hitchcock's name thrown out there, I knew this was a book I had to read.
Ray Kilbride- comes home for his father's funeral, and gets more than he bargained for. He knew it wasn't going to be a quick visit, because Ray's brother, Thomas needs someone to look after him now that their dad is gone.
Thomas Kilbride- has been diagnosed with schizophrenia, and he is a bit of an Agoraphobe. When he is not sleeping or eating breakfast lunch and dinner, he is in front of his computer memorizing everything he sees. The computer program Whirl360 lets him travel from city to city never having to leave the house. It is on this program that Thomas spots something rather strange-it looks like a person with a plastic bag over their head. When he finally shows his brother the image, Ray doesn't know what to think, but he travels to New York City anyways to check out the address, and opens a can of Whoop-Ass into both their lives.
I enjoyed TRUST YOUR EYES for the most part. I especially loved the relationship between Thomas and Ray (I was reminded of Rain Man quite a few times with their bickering back and forth). There were a couple of teeny weeny little problems I had- One being a few too many side plots going on, and the other was in the very last paragraph. The ending took this from being a solid four star rating-to a 3.5 for me, but I am sure it won't be an issue for most readers.
August 5, 2020
This was a re-read; being one of the best murder thrillers I have ever read.
I agree with Stephen King - "the best Barclay so far". But clearly I go further than that.
I agree with Stephen King - "the best Barclay so far". But clearly I go further than that.
September 25, 2012
I'm so glad to tell you that I finished reading TRUST YOUR EYES by Linwood Barclay. That is not a compliment. Here's why.
1. Have you ever read a book in which nothing happened until well after the 200th page? That's the first and biggest problem with this book. I could excuse other faults if Barclay had interested me right away.
2. Too many sentence fragments are throughout the book. Barclay likes the predicate. So he often eliminates the subject. This appears to be a deliberate technique, but I don't know why.
3. Although many authors successfully go back and forth in time, Barclay does it suddenly. So you don't know until you are a few sentences/paragraphs in that you are a few weeks back from where you just were.
4. Barclay uses too many tired phrases, you know, phrases like "He took two stairs at a time."
5. There are too many coincidences. Someone looking up at the right window at the right time is enough. But the god in the machine appears too often after that.
6. Two stories are going on, which is not a problem.
One story is about Ray and his schizophrenic brother Thomas. Their father just died. They're both grown men, but Thomas doesn't know how to care for himself or his home. While Ray figures out what to do, Thomas "works" on his mapping on the computer. When he sees on the Internet what appears to be a murder, it looks like something will happen, and it does, but it's slow. And Ray never adequately explains to the authorities that Thomas is schizophrenic, which is maddening.
The other story going on is about a woman named Allison. She gets in all sorts of trouble when she tries to blackmail a politician's wife.
The problem is that it takes too long for these two stories to come together.
7. Barclay seems to try too hard to have snappy dialog. It comes across as unrealistic. Too often the characters say things the way normal people wouldn't say them.
There are more problems in addition to these seven I cited above. In short, though, I am unhappy with this book. Even more, I am disappointed that I can no longer rely on reviews written by the person who gave this book a good review.
I won TRUST YOUR EYES through LibraryThing Early Reviewers on librarything.com.
1. Have you ever read a book in which nothing happened until well after the 200th page? That's the first and biggest problem with this book. I could excuse other faults if Barclay had interested me right away.
2. Too many sentence fragments are throughout the book. Barclay likes the predicate. So he often eliminates the subject. This appears to be a deliberate technique, but I don't know why.
3. Although many authors successfully go back and forth in time, Barclay does it suddenly. So you don't know until you are a few sentences/paragraphs in that you are a few weeks back from where you just were.
4. Barclay uses too many tired phrases, you know, phrases like "He took two stairs at a time."
5. There are too many coincidences. Someone looking up at the right window at the right time is enough. But the god in the machine appears too often after that.
6. Two stories are going on, which is not a problem.
One story is about Ray and his schizophrenic brother Thomas. Their father just died. They're both grown men, but Thomas doesn't know how to care for himself or his home. While Ray figures out what to do, Thomas "works" on his mapping on the computer. When he sees on the Internet what appears to be a murder, it looks like something will happen, and it does, but it's slow. And Ray never adequately explains to the authorities that Thomas is schizophrenic, which is maddening.
The other story going on is about a woman named Allison. She gets in all sorts of trouble when she tries to blackmail a politician's wife.
The problem is that it takes too long for these two stories to come together.
7. Barclay seems to try too hard to have snappy dialog. It comes across as unrealistic. Too often the characters say things the way normal people wouldn't say them.
There are more problems in addition to these seven I cited above. In short, though, I am unhappy with this book. Even more, I am disappointed that I can no longer rely on reviews written by the person who gave this book a good review.
I won TRUST YOUR EYES through LibraryThing Early Reviewers on librarything.com.
October 8, 2012
The premise for this book fascinated me, and the opening pages sucked me right in. Barclay is, no doubt, a talented author and knows how to weave a good story. Unfortunately, this book didn't quite measure up to its promise.
The problems I had:
The pace is slow. The entire middle of the book drags, with information repeated and dwelled on so often that I had almost all of the plot figured out long before we got there.
Thomas, while an interesting character, struck me more as someone with high-functioning autism than schizophrenia. In fact, he reminded me of Gary on the show Alphas. The schizophrenia diagnosis felt like a convenient label to explain the need for this character occasionally hearing voices and didn't quite fit his personality.
The biggest problems I had were the timeline of the story and the POV choices. The journey took us through many transitions back and forth in time. They were unclear and left me trying to figure out where we were in the story. Also, during the first half of the book, certain characters' POV sections were written in third person present tense, while others were written in third person past. Then there was Ray's POV, which was always first person past. The transition didn't flow well and didn't seem to have anything at all to do with the time frame for events. Then, suddenly, all the third person present tense went to past tense. I couldn't understand the need for the present tense POV and found it jolting each time.
The big twist at the end didn't have the impact it could have. All the hints and rehashing of facts throughout the book had already led me to the same conclusion.
In the end, this book had enough substance to keep me reading, but didn't live up to its potential.
The problems I had:
The pace is slow. The entire middle of the book drags, with information repeated and dwelled on so often that I had almost all of the plot figured out long before we got there.
Thomas, while an interesting character, struck me more as someone with high-functioning autism than schizophrenia. In fact, he reminded me of Gary on the show Alphas. The schizophrenia diagnosis felt like a convenient label to explain the need for this character occasionally hearing voices and didn't quite fit his personality.
The biggest problems I had were the timeline of the story and the POV choices. The journey took us through many transitions back and forth in time. They were unclear and left me trying to figure out where we were in the story. Also, during the first half of the book, certain characters' POV sections were written in third person present tense, while others were written in third person past. Then there was Ray's POV, which was always first person past. The transition didn't flow well and didn't seem to have anything at all to do with the time frame for events. Then, suddenly, all the third person present tense went to past tense. I couldn't understand the need for the present tense POV and found it jolting each time.
The big twist at the end didn't have the impact it could have. All the hints and rehashing of facts throughout the book had already led me to the same conclusion.
In the end, this book had enough substance to keep me reading, but didn't live up to its potential.
August 27, 2012
Ray Kilbride finds his life turned upside down when the accidental death of his father means having to move back home to look after his adult brother Thomas, who has schizophrenia. Thomas believes he is doing important work relating the safety of the USA, but while studying a mapping website he thinks he sees a murder in New York. Ray is despatched to investigate – is there anything to be found, or is it all in his brother’s head?
This is a really difficult book to review it would be really easy to give something away and spoil the experience for other readers, hence the sketchiness of some of what follows.
I’ve read a couple of Linwood Barclay’s books before – his breakthrough No Time For Goodbye and the later Fear The Worst – so I thought I knew what to expect when I started Trust Your Eyes. Many of my expectations were met, among them a twisty plot containing unexpected surprises, realistic characters and enough crumbs dropped along the way for the reader to work out the denouement before it actually happens – though in such a clever way you don’t immediately realise you’ve seen the key to the whole thing. But I would have to say that this book surpassed my expectations as I enjoyed it more and found it more satisfying than either of his previous books that I’ve read.
To call something a page-turner is a huge cliché, but I can’t think of a better way to describe Trust Your Eyes. Once I’d started the book I just wanted to keep going in order to find out the truth about many things, not just the main plotline, but other aspects of Ray and Thomas’s lives. I got a real sense of Barclay enjoying his writing and taking time to shape the book very precisely so that everything unwinds at the right speed and at the right time. I found it a satisfying read which didn’t leave untied up ends or leave me wondering about what had happened – everything knitted together wonderfully into a pleasing whole.
I also got that wonderful sense of realisation when I picked up on the author’s clues and cottoned on to how one particular plot strand was going to work out – a real light bulb moment, which in itself is very satisfying.
I found both Ray and Thomas likeable characters and thought the portrayal of Thomas was quite well done. Barclay shows him as a real person, who happens to have a mental illness, but who has more to him than that. Ray is what the world would call “normal”, but we gradually learn that he too has his own issues and isn’t perfect – in short, he’s a real person. Most of the other characters also come across as real people you might have met, but there are a couple which are more cardboard-cut-out-like, however I didn’t feel this was too big an issue and it certainly didn’t spoil my enjoyment of the novel.
If you’re looking for a well-plotted, clever and absorbing thriller then this is the book for you. I’d recommend it to anyone who has read any of Linwood Barclay’s work before and to anyone who has not. Trust Your Eyes will grip you throughout, and when you close the book you’ll feel you’ve had a great experience.
This is a really difficult book to review it would be really easy to give something away and spoil the experience for other readers, hence the sketchiness of some of what follows.
I’ve read a couple of Linwood Barclay’s books before – his breakthrough No Time For Goodbye and the later Fear The Worst – so I thought I knew what to expect when I started Trust Your Eyes. Many of my expectations were met, among them a twisty plot containing unexpected surprises, realistic characters and enough crumbs dropped along the way for the reader to work out the denouement before it actually happens – though in such a clever way you don’t immediately realise you’ve seen the key to the whole thing. But I would have to say that this book surpassed my expectations as I enjoyed it more and found it more satisfying than either of his previous books that I’ve read.
To call something a page-turner is a huge cliché, but I can’t think of a better way to describe Trust Your Eyes. Once I’d started the book I just wanted to keep going in order to find out the truth about many things, not just the main plotline, but other aspects of Ray and Thomas’s lives. I got a real sense of Barclay enjoying his writing and taking time to shape the book very precisely so that everything unwinds at the right speed and at the right time. I found it a satisfying read which didn’t leave untied up ends or leave me wondering about what had happened – everything knitted together wonderfully into a pleasing whole.
I also got that wonderful sense of realisation when I picked up on the author’s clues and cottoned on to how one particular plot strand was going to work out – a real light bulb moment, which in itself is very satisfying.
I found both Ray and Thomas likeable characters and thought the portrayal of Thomas was quite well done. Barclay shows him as a real person, who happens to have a mental illness, but who has more to him than that. Ray is what the world would call “normal”, but we gradually learn that he too has his own issues and isn’t perfect – in short, he’s a real person. Most of the other characters also come across as real people you might have met, but there are a couple which are more cardboard-cut-out-like, however I didn’t feel this was too big an issue and it certainly didn’t spoil my enjoyment of the novel.
If you’re looking for a well-plotted, clever and absorbing thriller then this is the book for you. I’d recommend it to anyone who has read any of Linwood Barclay’s work before and to anyone who has not. Trust Your Eyes will grip you throughout, and when you close the book you’ll feel you’ve had a great experience.
November 16, 2012
Thomas Kilbride is a map-obsessed schizophrenic so affected that he rarely leaves the self-imposed bastion of his bedroom. But with a computer program called Whirl360.com, he travels the world while never stepping out the door. That is until he sees something in a street view of downtown New York City. Thomas's keen eyes have detected an image in a window...an image that looks like a woman being murdered.
Thomas's brother, Ray, takes care of him, cooking for him, dealing with the outside world on his behalf, and listening to his intricate and increasingly paranoid theories. When Thomas tells Ray what he has seen, Ray humors him with a half-hearted investigation. But Ray soon realizes he and his brother have stumbled onto a deadly conspiracy.
And now they are in the crosshairs...
Linwood Barclay has fast become one of my favorite authors. An interesting and fun thriller.
Thomas's brother, Ray, takes care of him, cooking for him, dealing with the outside world on his behalf, and listening to his intricate and increasingly paranoid theories. When Thomas tells Ray what he has seen, Ray humors him with a half-hearted investigation. But Ray soon realizes he and his brother have stumbled onto a deadly conspiracy.
And now they are in the crosshairs...
Linwood Barclay has fast become one of my favorite authors. An interesting and fun thriller.
December 3, 2012
There are parts of this story that I liked better than others. Loved the two brothers and the modern day take on Rear Window, this was a very clever device on the part of Barclay. Using a schizophrenic really added to this story and I enjoyed the map meanderings by this brother. I think in part the author added to many elements to this story, too many different plots, which made some of them not very believable to me. Do love this author and his writing style and look forward to his next book.
August 17, 2020
This Barclay murder mystery weaves multiple plot-lines that takes a believability leap or two. But the story of a schizophrenic savant who discovers a picture of a woman being murdered through a computer program called Whirl 360.com and his brother who tries to verify the event holds the readers’ attention despite a slow start. Thomas and Ray slowly learn to respect one another, despite Thomas’ psychiatric issues. Enjoy!
June 16, 2017
Another Promise Falls novel so riveting, you just can't put it down. The blurb says it all. Tons of twists and turns, red herrings, strong characters as well as villains with an explosive end that leaves you so stunned you can't think straight. I LOVE this author, I can't say it loud enough. Another favorite this year.
May 5, 2020
Really enjoyed this one!
Thomas is a brilliantly written character and very well developed
There are plenty of plot twists in this one....well worth the read!
Thomas is a brilliantly written character and very well developed
There are plenty of plot twists in this one....well worth the read!
August 2, 2018
The best Linwood Barclay novel I've read so far.
I had read three of his before, No Time for Goodbye (4 stars), Never Look Away (3 stars) and Too Close to Home (3 stars).
No Time for Goodbye was very good and I was excited to have a strong start with an author who was new to me. But the next two were a bit short off the mark: Too Close to Home got a little too long in the tooth and convoluted towards the end, and Never Look Away? I had some major issues with the last 50 pages that bugged me so much I was hesitant to read him again. That was four years ago.
One thing about all of those novels though: Noone can lay out a plotline like this guy. The best parts of his books are for the first half or so, wondering where the heck things are going to go and what is going to be revealed.
Lately I noticed his Promise Falls trilogy was getting a lot of love and he's back in the spotlight again with his latest novel.
I had been planning on reading Trust Your Eyes for a while and I was at the point where I was having a difficult time choosing from my to-read pile. So I picked it.
And devoured every. last. word.
Like his other novels, again the plotline is trawled out brilliantly and again, you're wondering where the heck he's going to take you.
There is a lot of dialogue in this story, which really moves things along at a brisk pace, and some
of his character development is fantastic, particularly Thomas.
Any misgivings that I had had with the previous two novels were completely dashed by this one. It's a terrific plot that stayed strong right up until the last page, with some characters behaving badly but believably. I hated putting this one down for any length of time and couldn't wait to pick it up again. It's a perfect vacation read (I wish I had started it earlier than the last day of mine!) so highly recommended.
This was stellar entertainment. What more do you want?
Five stars, easy.
I had read three of his before, No Time for Goodbye (4 stars), Never Look Away (3 stars) and Too Close to Home (3 stars).
No Time for Goodbye was very good and I was excited to have a strong start with an author who was new to me. But the next two were a bit short off the mark: Too Close to Home got a little too long in the tooth and convoluted towards the end, and Never Look Away? I had some major issues with the last 50 pages that bugged me so much I was hesitant to read him again. That was four years ago.
One thing about all of those novels though: Noone can lay out a plotline like this guy. The best parts of his books are for the first half or so, wondering where the heck things are going to go and what is going to be revealed.
Lately I noticed his Promise Falls trilogy was getting a lot of love and he's back in the spotlight again with his latest novel.
I had been planning on reading Trust Your Eyes for a while and I was at the point where I was having a difficult time choosing from my to-read pile. So I picked it.
And devoured every. last. word.
Like his other novels, again the plotline is trawled out brilliantly and again, you're wondering where the heck he's going to take you.
There is a lot of dialogue in this story, which really moves things along at a brisk pace, and some
of his character development is fantastic, particularly Thomas.
Any misgivings that I had had with the previous two novels were completely dashed by this one. It's a terrific plot that stayed strong right up until the last page, with some characters behaving badly but believably. I hated putting this one down for any length of time and couldn't wait to pick it up again. It's a perfect vacation read (I wish I had started it earlier than the last day of mine!) so highly recommended.
This was stellar entertainment. What more do you want?
Five stars, easy.
March 29, 2020
5 Stars. Linwood Barclay is such a wonderful writer, so easy to read, yet he holds you in suspense to the end. Get ready for some real surprises. The story is mainly told through the eyes of Ray Kilbride, an editorial cartoonist, whose father has just died. He returns to his hometown of Promise Falls in upstate New York to deal with the funeral and finds his younger brother, Thomas, who is schizophrenic, excited about something. Thomas patrols the cities of the world on a computer app, "Whirl360," memorizing the streets and its maps for, ostensibly, the CIA and a former US President! Has he stumbled on a murder in progress in New York City? Ray is skeptical but he agrees to visit the Big Apple to put his brother's notion to rest. And it starts. Always the thought Thomas is making this up. A sense of rising dread too. (December 2017)
June 18, 2012
While Linwood Barclay is popular in our library, he still deserves to be as best-selling as Harlan Coben (which is why I said Barclay is the Rodney Dangerfield of thriller writers). He sides more on the domestic side of weird goings on such as disappearances, conspiracies, and murders, and his characters are always likeable every day kind of guys. This will make you look at Google Earth in a different and chilling way.
This is due in September.
This is due in September.
October 10, 2017
An interesting story of a man who is borderline schizophrenic/autistic who spends his days studying maps of the world similar to google earth where you get a birds eye view. One day he thinks he has witnessed a murder. When his brother try's to prove that it was not true the two of them are plunged into a high society conspiracy that may just get them killed. Lots of twists and turns and a good fast pace. I do recommend this to those that like light mysteries.
February 2, 2023
This novel was very well written.
There were 2 big twists, and a last minute zinger that I appreciated. The way the twists were set up were expertly done.
I personally didn't connect with this style of thriller (conspiracy/political intrigue/action), or the authorial voice. Whether intended or not, this felt like it was written for men.
Not to say women can't enjoy it, but I was just turned off by the way the author described things. For example, there is a line describing the size of a woman's purse that mentions (and I'm paraphrasing) it could fit no more than a jackhammer and a dozen cinderblocks. Nothing wrong with this per se, but I don't think I'm necessarily the intended audience.
That said, I was worried that the main character Thomas, and his struggle with Schizophrenia could be dealt with poorly, but I found it to be well done. I don't think his mental health was used in a harmful way at all, and Thomas' character was especially endearing. As far as the representation is concerned, I don't personally know.
There were 2 big twists, and a last minute zinger that I appreciated. The way the twists were set up were expertly done.
I personally didn't connect with this style of thriller (conspiracy/political intrigue/action), or the authorial voice. Whether intended or not, this felt like it was written for men.
Not to say women can't enjoy it, but I was just turned off by the way the author described things. For example, there is a line describing the size of a woman's purse that mentions (and I'm paraphrasing) it could fit no more than a jackhammer and a dozen cinderblocks. Nothing wrong with this per se, but I don't think I'm necessarily the intended audience.
That said, I was worried that the main character Thomas, and his struggle with Schizophrenia could be dealt with poorly, but I found it to be well done. I don't think his mental health was used in a harmful way at all, and Thomas' character was especially endearing. As far as the representation is concerned, I don't personally know.
May 6, 2017
Wow! Quite a page-turner!
This is basically an updated Rear Window, but without Grace Kelly. The book also reminded me of Daniel Palmer's thriller Delirious, except it was much better.
Like Delirious, you have two brothers, one mentally ill, and the other trying to deal with that.
The plot of witnessing a murder via a website similar to Google Earth was interesting. I've looked and seen pictures on Google Earth where you can see people and dogs in yards, so I can see how this would work.
The mentally ill brother seems to have some high functioning syndrome/conditions that allows him to do amazing things with his brain, but he has a hard time managing his place in society.
The ending was especially satisfying. So many authors are excellent on the build-up but just can't stick the landing. (LOL! Considering one of the characters that was quite an appropriate analogy.)
I highly recommend this book. I read it in 2 sittings. It would be a great book for a rainy afternoon.
This is basically an updated Rear Window, but without Grace Kelly. The book also reminded me of Daniel Palmer's thriller Delirious, except it was much better.
Like Delirious, you have two brothers, one mentally ill, and the other trying to deal with that.
The plot of witnessing a murder via a website similar to Google Earth was interesting. I've looked and seen pictures on Google Earth where you can see people and dogs in yards, so I can see how this would work.
The mentally ill brother seems to have some high functioning syndrome/conditions that allows him to do amazing things with his brain, but he has a hard time managing his place in society.
The ending was especially satisfying. So many authors are excellent on the build-up but just can't stick the landing. (LOL! Considering one of the characters that was quite an appropriate analogy.)
I highly recommend this book. I read it in 2 sittings. It would be a great book for a rainy afternoon.
January 30, 2023
Leave it to Barclay to concoct a whole thriller based on the capabilities of Google Earth! The book consist of five subplots running at the same time all equally thrilling, exciting and very well written.
Barclay keeps you in suspense until the very last sentence. What an ending! The main character was a little flat but Thomas was as a character, fresh and surprisingly good. With this writer it is not the main character who stands out, it is usually the sidekick of the story who shines brighter. It happened here and in Find you First.
I think Thomas was misdiagnosed by the author, to me he was more autistic than schizophrenic but in order for the character to work in the story he needed to hear voices.
Barclay keeps you in suspense until the very last sentence. What an ending! The main character was a little flat but Thomas was as a character, fresh and surprisingly good. With this writer it is not the main character who stands out, it is usually the sidekick of the story who shines brighter. It happened here and in Find you First.
I think Thomas was misdiagnosed by the author, to me he was more autistic than schizophrenic but in order for the character to work in the story he needed to hear voices.
March 25, 2024
3.5
ส่อง-แส่-ซวย น่าจะเป็นคำจำกัดความที่ตรงคอนเซ็ปต์ของเรื่องนี้ที่สุดละ
เพลิน ๆ ดี เนื้อหาเหมือนจะมาก แต่พออ่านจริงๆ ก็อ่านได้เร็วกว่าที่คิดไว้ แรกๆ ถึงช่วงกลางมีเรื่อยๆ เอื่อยๆ บ้าง แต่โดยรวมก็เพลิน ๆ ไม่แย่อะไร
ส่อง-แส่-ซวย น่าจะเป็นคำจำกัดความที่ตรงคอนเซ็ปต์ของเรื่องนี้ที่สุดละ
เพลิน ๆ ดี เนื้อหาเหมือนจะมาก แต่พออ่านจริงๆ ก็อ่านได้เร็วกว่าที่คิดไว้ แรกๆ ถึงช่วงกลางมีเรื่อยๆ เอื่อยๆ บ้าง แต่โดยรวมก็เพลิน ๆ ไม่แย่อะไร
September 15, 2012
TRUST YOUR EYES (LINWOOD BARCLAY)
Story Description:
Doubleday Canada|September 4, 2012|Trade Paperback|ISBN: 978-0-385-66957-3
Thomas Kilbride is a map-obsessed schizophrenic so affected that he rarely leaves the self-imposed bastion of his bedroom. But with a computer program called Whirl360.com, he travels the world while never so much as stepping out the door. He pores over and memorizes the streets of the world. He examines every address, as well as the people who are frozen in time on his computer screen. Then he sees something that anyone else might have stumbled upon – but has not – in a street view of downtown New York City: an image in a window. An image that looks like a woman being murdered.
Thomas’s brother, Ray, takes care of him, cooking for him, dealing with the outside world on his behalf, and listening to his intricate and increasingly paranoid theories. When Thomas tells Ray what he has seen, Ray humours him with a half-hearted investigation. But Ray soon realizes he and his brother have stumbled onto a deadly conspiracy. And now they are in the crosshairs.
My Review:
Thomas Kilbride, a man with schizophrenia witnesses an attempted murder on a website called Whirl360.com. Thomas memorizes street names from cities around the world which is how he stumbled upon this scene. He is so upset that he convinces his brother, Ray, who looks after him to investigate. Thinking he is placating and humouring, Thomas, they both soon learn that getting involved was huge mistake and now their lives are at stake.
Trust Your Eyes is a thrilling rollercoaster ride that you won’t want to get off. The thrills, suspense, and intrigue just keep coming and coming. As usual, Linwood Barclay, has penned a stupendous novel! This is a keeper that I’d like to read again just to experience the thrills a second time around.
Story Description:
Doubleday Canada|September 4, 2012|Trade Paperback|ISBN: 978-0-385-66957-3
Thomas Kilbride is a map-obsessed schizophrenic so affected that he rarely leaves the self-imposed bastion of his bedroom. But with a computer program called Whirl360.com, he travels the world while never so much as stepping out the door. He pores over and memorizes the streets of the world. He examines every address, as well as the people who are frozen in time on his computer screen. Then he sees something that anyone else might have stumbled upon – but has not – in a street view of downtown New York City: an image in a window. An image that looks like a woman being murdered.
Thomas’s brother, Ray, takes care of him, cooking for him, dealing with the outside world on his behalf, and listening to his intricate and increasingly paranoid theories. When Thomas tells Ray what he has seen, Ray humours him with a half-hearted investigation. But Ray soon realizes he and his brother have stumbled onto a deadly conspiracy. And now they are in the crosshairs.
My Review:
Thomas Kilbride, a man with schizophrenia witnesses an attempted murder on a website called Whirl360.com. Thomas memorizes street names from cities around the world which is how he stumbled upon this scene. He is so upset that he convinces his brother, Ray, who looks after him to investigate. Thinking he is placating and humouring, Thomas, they both soon learn that getting involved was huge mistake and now their lives are at stake.
Trust Your Eyes is a thrilling rollercoaster ride that you won’t want to get off. The thrills, suspense, and intrigue just keep coming and coming. As usual, Linwood Barclay, has penned a stupendous novel! This is a keeper that I’d like to read again just to experience the thrills a second time around.
December 6, 2021
This is first and foremost a "thriller" kind of book moved by plot, but I was surprised to find that it had characters I could identify with. I cared about the personal relationships as much as I cared about finding the killer. For my taste, this is a good blend. Too many "over the top" concept books rely only on the concept and then fall apart in the telling because there's no character in the story I care about, no personal narrative I care about. Not so here.
This is a roller coaster ride with an incredible speed booster. Recommend any of Barclay's books
This is a roller coaster ride with an incredible speed booster. Recommend any of Barclay's books
March 21, 2018
A decent thriller, but I struggled with it, especially the back-story about brothers Thomas and Ray and the death of their father. The usual twists and turns to be expected in a Linwood Barclay story were all there and there's an almighty sting in the tail. Not my favourite Linwood Barclay book and it should have been trimmed from the 500 plus page read, but after a sluggish start, the action really rattles along.
October 30, 2018
I loved this thriller about a schizophrenic savant, which is tied in to a Google Earth-type plot. I especially loved the difficult (but touching) relationship between Thomas and Ray, whose fraternal bond is repaired while solving the murder investigation, leading to a knock-your-socks-off ending!! I wouldn't call this book totally believable, but I really enjoyed reading it.
November 4, 2019
Yazar hikayenin içine o kadar çok gizem ve şaşırtıcı an serpiştirmiş ki okumaktan kendinizi alamıyorsunuz. Dört başı mamur bir Hollywood filmi izlemiş gibiyim.
İnsanı içinde bulunduğu hayattan çekip alan, kendi dünyasına hızla sokan bu tür romanlara bayılıyorum.
Ecnebilerin "sayfa-çevirten" dediği türden bir roman bu, denk gelirse mutlaka bir göz atınız.
Çeviri de çok iyiydi. Seçil Ersek Ümitvar'ın zihni dert bulmasın.
İnsanı içinde bulunduğu hayattan çekip alan, kendi dünyasına hızla sokan bu tür romanlara bayılıyorum.
Ecnebilerin "sayfa-çevirten" dediği türden bir roman bu, denk gelirse mutlaka bir göz atınız.
Çeviri de çok iyiydi. Seçil Ersek Ümitvar'ın zihni dert bulmasın.
April 8, 2021
Szuper könyv volt, még jobban tetszett, mint a liftes. Igaz, kicsit csalódott vagyok, hogy alig jártunk New Yorkban, de a sztori kárpótolt. Imádtam a főszereplő testvérpárt, a sok szemszögből összeérő történetet. Folyton meg tudott valamivel lepni a szerző, még a végén is. Jó a stílusa, a humora, a fantáziája. Szerencsére még bőven tudok mit olvasni tőle.
August 25, 2012
Linwood Barclay is a hugely successful author. His back catalogue include his memoir Last Resort, a series of comic thrillers featuring the character Zach Walker and seven very popular stand-alone novels. The first of these stand-alones is No Time For Goodbye which was the single bestselling novel in the UK in 2008, and has been optioned for a movie.
Linwood Barclay's latest release Trust Your Eyes will be published in the UK by Orion on 27 September 2012.
Trust Your Eyes hooked me in from the first sentence, with a prologue that is intriguing and taunts the reader with snippets of what is yet to come.
Ray and Thomas Kilbride are two brothers and very different characters. Thomas spends his days in his room, memorising city maps from all over the world. He is addicted to the website Whirl360 - a site that allows the user to visit anywhere in the world from the comfort of their own home. Thomas does nothing but this, except eat, take his medication and make very infrequent trips to his psychiatrist. Thomas is working secretly for the CIA, and speaks regularly to ex President Bill Clinton .... or does he?
Ray is an illustrator, he moved away some time age, but is now home trying to sort out the family home and what to do about Thomas after the accidental death of their father .... or what it an accident?
When Whirl360 throws up something suspicious looking in a random window, on a random street in New York, Thomas is convinced that there has been a murder. The Kilbride brothers find themselves smack bang in the middle of a deadly conspiracy game, being played out by some powerful, and very dangerous people
Trust Your Eyes is a multi-layered, complicated thriller, told in an accessible and totally uncomplicated way. The suspense is taut right from the beginning, the pace is furious, the tension is often unrelenting. There are enough red herrings thrown at the reader to start a stall on a fish market, and just when you think you've worked something out Linwood Barclay throws another spanner into the works. I certainly had every one of my theories blown way way out of the window as I was reading, which only keeps up the level of suspense right up until the very last sentence.
The different threads of the story are effortlessly tied together, the characters are scarily life like. The issues of mental illness is dealt with sensitively, yet conveys the frustration that can be caused to family members, and also the devastation at times
Linwood Barclay's latest release Trust Your Eyes will be published in the UK by Orion on 27 September 2012.
Trust Your Eyes hooked me in from the first sentence, with a prologue that is intriguing and taunts the reader with snippets of what is yet to come.
Ray and Thomas Kilbride are two brothers and very different characters. Thomas spends his days in his room, memorising city maps from all over the world. He is addicted to the website Whirl360 - a site that allows the user to visit anywhere in the world from the comfort of their own home. Thomas does nothing but this, except eat, take his medication and make very infrequent trips to his psychiatrist. Thomas is working secretly for the CIA, and speaks regularly to ex President Bill Clinton .... or does he?
Ray is an illustrator, he moved away some time age, but is now home trying to sort out the family home and what to do about Thomas after the accidental death of their father .... or what it an accident?
When Whirl360 throws up something suspicious looking in a random window, on a random street in New York, Thomas is convinced that there has been a murder. The Kilbride brothers find themselves smack bang in the middle of a deadly conspiracy game, being played out by some powerful, and very dangerous people
Trust Your Eyes is a multi-layered, complicated thriller, told in an accessible and totally uncomplicated way. The suspense is taut right from the beginning, the pace is furious, the tension is often unrelenting. There are enough red herrings thrown at the reader to start a stall on a fish market, and just when you think you've worked something out Linwood Barclay throws another spanner into the works. I certainly had every one of my theories blown way way out of the window as I was reading, which only keeps up the level of suspense right up until the very last sentence.
The different threads of the story are effortlessly tied together, the characters are scarily life like. The issues of mental illness is dealt with sensitively, yet conveys the frustration that can be caused to family members, and also the devastation at times
August 6, 2012
This is the first Linwood Barclay novel I’ve read and I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised. It’s not the usual sort of thing I read so I was somewhat reluctant to start it but it was much better than I expected. It’s not a literary novel and it doesn’t claim to be. It’s a good, no-nonsense thriller sort of novel.
Thomas Kilbride is in his thirties but he spends most of his time in his room using a street view website called Whirl360 to study and memorize cities around the world. He believes he has been recruited by the CIA as a sort of back-up in case a computer virus wipes out all the maps. His father Adam Kilbride has recently died and Thomas’ brother Ray has arrived home to sort things out and look after his schizophrenic younger brother.
Whilst surfing Whirl360 Thomas spots something strange in a window. It looks like a person with a bag on their head being suffocated and he becomes convinced that he has witnessed a murder but how can he persuade anyone least of all Ray and what can they do about it?
When someone discovers what they have witnessed Thomas and Ray become embroiled in a local government conspiracy and they find that their lives are increasingly in danger and long buried secrets come to the surface. This is the bare bones of the story because Barclay has also woven through the novel Thomas and Ray’s past life and their life with their father which makes the novel much more interesting than a straight-forward mystery thriller.
Barclay’s characters are, for the most part, well drawn. I particularly liked Thomas and found Barclay’s portrayal of him quite sympathetic. The reader occasionally has to suspend their disbelief because some of the plot is a little far-fetched but overall Linwood Barclay’s new novel is a gripping and unexpectedly good read.
Thomas Kilbride is in his thirties but he spends most of his time in his room using a street view website called Whirl360 to study and memorize cities around the world. He believes he has been recruited by the CIA as a sort of back-up in case a computer virus wipes out all the maps. His father Adam Kilbride has recently died and Thomas’ brother Ray has arrived home to sort things out and look after his schizophrenic younger brother.
Whilst surfing Whirl360 Thomas spots something strange in a window. It looks like a person with a bag on their head being suffocated and he becomes convinced that he has witnessed a murder but how can he persuade anyone least of all Ray and what can they do about it?
When someone discovers what they have witnessed Thomas and Ray become embroiled in a local government conspiracy and they find that their lives are increasingly in danger and long buried secrets come to the surface. This is the bare bones of the story because Barclay has also woven through the novel Thomas and Ray’s past life and their life with their father which makes the novel much more interesting than a straight-forward mystery thriller.
Barclay’s characters are, for the most part, well drawn. I particularly liked Thomas and found Barclay’s portrayal of him quite sympathetic. The reader occasionally has to suspend their disbelief because some of the plot is a little far-fetched but overall Linwood Barclay’s new novel is a gripping and unexpectedly good read.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,749 reviews