St. Martin’s Press, June 6, 2017.
Four Stars
In 1999, Laura and Kit had a seemingly perfect
relationship. The two met in their early twenties, fell in love, and began to
travel the world. Kit is an “eclipse chaser,” and Laura became enamoured with
the hobby as well, as they experienced the magnificent events at festivals
worldwide. Although Kit has family issues, their lives seem to be on track for
the most part – happy, health and in love.
Now, in 2015, Kit and Laura are still together, but
their circumstances are very different. Married and expecting a baby, the
couple have changed their names and hidden their identities, living in fear
after witnessing a shocking crime at an eclipse festival. Years before in rural
England, the two of them stumbled across the aftermath of a violent sexual
assault. They did everything right, including calling the cops and getting
medical help for the victim – but then the suspect turned himself in and told
the police it was a consensual encounter. Not sure who to believe, Kit truthfully
tells his side of the story in court. Laura, however, knows the jury is
inclined to believe the wealthy, successful accused rapist – so she embellishes
her story to protect the victim, Beth.
After the rapist is convicted, Beth tracks down Laura
to thank her for what she did – but Laura is afraid of Kit finding out that she
lied on the witness stand. She is nervous around Beth, but at the same time the
two women forge a strong connection based on their shared experience. Beth
begins spending most of her time with Kit and Laura, even staying at their
apartment, but Kit remains suspicious of this emotional, unstable woman. It is
not until strange things begin happening around the apartment, including a
near-fatal fire, that Laura is convinced that Beth is not what she seems.
Meanwhile, Laura is also receiving threatening
letters from the convicted rapist, who is still appealing the charges years
later. She hides this from Kit too – to protect him, but also to hide the lies
that she told. Laura is unlikeable and unreliable, but as Kit slowly reveals
his side of the story, we learn that he is very different than the naïve,
gentle man that he seems to be.
The novel jumps around from 1999/2000 and the events
of Beth’s assault, to the present in 2015. When we learn how Laura and Kit
saved Beth from her attacker, it seems impossible that they now live in fear of
her finding them, leaving us to wonder how things could get so bad. The
alternating narrative of Laura and Kit fills in the blanks, as the shocking
reveals just keep coming. In 2015, Kit is journeying to the Faroe Islands to
see an eclipse, leaving his very pregnant wife at home – their separation is
the catalyst for Beth’s reappearance in their lives, and the culmination of
Laura’s obsession and paranoia.
The symbolism of the eclipse hovers over every scene
in the book, emphasizing the contrast between the light and the shadows – as
the truth comes out, the reader realizes that we are still in the dark about so
many things. As the characters reveal themselves, our sympathies shift between
them, leaving us to wonder who are the “he” and “she” of the title, and whether
any of the characters can be believed. This is a character-driven novel,
peopled with complex, realistic narrators – but it also has an impressively
strong plot, that keeps the surprises coming right up until the last scene, and
the ending does not disappoint. This novel definitely lives up to the hype –
it’s everything a taut, tense psychological thriller should be.
I received this novel from Netgalley and St. Martin’s
Press in exchange for an honest review.
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