Several years ago, Mari and Luke were backpacking in Thailand when she went missing. Despite the search, Mari's body was never found, and Luke returned home, still insisting that he was innocent.

Needless to say, not everyone believed him. Twenty years later, he has now finally and unexpectedly agreed to tell his side of the story, and filmmaker Cassidy Chambers is excited at the prospect of being the one to bring the story to a wider audience that is as eager for answers as she is.

But has Cassidy bitten off more than she can chew? Because the past may quite literally be a different country, but jungles of Thailand have their own ways of protecting their secrets...

This is an excellent, well-written and original take on a familiar trope. The story almost feels as though it has been ripped from the headlines, and the writer does a great job of maintaining the pace throughout, and delivering in terms of suspense and unpredictability. All in all, a compelling read

I finished this book and my immediate thought was: If one of the streaming services don’t snap this up for a movie, it’s a travesty.

The story was so captivating from the get go. I picked the book up before bed and intended to read a few chapters… before I knew it, I’d read 100 pages and didn’t want to go to sleep. The writing is excellent, original, full of suspense, easy to follow, and honestly, addictive.

As opposed to a traditional whodunnit, this is one of those novels where you’re left questioning everything and anxiously awaiting what’s going to happen next. When you think you know what’s going on, you’re wrong. The final chapter was just chefs kiss, it really couldn’t have ended any better for me.

My only gripe: As the story began picking up, I felt like I didn’t really get to know Cassidy as much as I would’ve liked. Her character was equally as interesting as it was frustrating, but I felt like Emily had portrayed her brilliantly as a human being who makes mistakes and follows her heart. That being said, I won’t deny there were definitely times I wanted to reach into the book and shake her.

If anyone knows how picky I am with books, they’ll understand what a gem this one truly is. I’m giving it 5 stars, and swiftly adding it to my favourites list.

The book will be published on April 11th 2024, and I’d highly recommend ordering it asap!

Thank you to NetGalley & Quercus Books for the ARC ⭐️