The Liar's Girl
Author: Catherine Ryan Howard
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
Date of Publication: February 27, 2018
Pages: 332
The Liar's Girl is one of six novels nominated for the 2019 Best Novel Edgar Award by the Mystery Writers of America. It is the first of the six which I have read. The author was born in Cork, Ireland in 1982 and graduated from Trinity College in Dublin. This novel is set both in Cork and Dublin and the descriptions and settings ring with a clear authenticity.
Howard is able to weave a very intricate and fast moving plot, telling the story in the present day as well as 10 years previous. This is a serial killer story, but one that keeps you guessing until the very end. The perpetrator was dubbed "The Canal Killer" because all of the young women were found drowned in the Grand Canal near elite St. John's College in Dublin. Will Hurley was a St. John's student who is now serving life imprisonment in a psychiatric hospital after admitting to the murders. His girlfriend at the time, a freshman from Cork named Allison Smith, has tried to build a new life in Amsterdam in the 10 years since the murders.
The book opens with two new murders which closely resemble the original those of the original Canal Killer. It is truly creepy and scary the way the new (?) Canal Killer uses social media to select and stalk his victims.The police try to enlist Will to help in the investigation, but he will only talk to Allison, who at first is reluctant to get involved. Is this a copy cat at work, or is the wrong man in jail? The author goes back and forth between the present day investigation and the time of the original killings. The plot moves forward at a brisk pace and the author throws enough curve balls to keep the reader guessing. The characters are very likable and the reader can't help but hope that Will is innocent. Allison plays a pivotal role in the investigation of the contemporary crimes. There is a very nice twist of plot at the end (although I did see it coming).
I really enjoyed the author's descriptions of Dublin and Cork, two places I have never been but would love to visit. They added a lot to what is a very enjoyable and entertaining mystery. This is a worthy nominee for the 2019 Best Novel Edgar.
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