Kids. They only come home when they need money or to do laundry. That’s what my mom has always said. Olivia Dumont shows up at her estranged father’s house nominally for the money, but she ends up staying for answers about the family that was gone before she was even born and whose tragedy overshadowed her entire life. 

I’m a huge fan of books about writers or other books, and The Ghostwriter is no exception. Ghostwriting is a fascinating profession, one that takes a certain type of writing talent that can often be maligned. When this book begins we meet Olivia in the aftermath of the most dreaded thing a woman can do when in the company of a huge panel of other authors: tell off a white male writer. Cue lack of work. Cue basically being blackballed. It’s this financial despondency that leads her to accept a job ghostwriting what will likely be her dad’s last novel, no matter how much she doesn’t want to lower herself to work with him. 

Clark makes no pretense of comparing Olivia to her deceased aunt, Poppy, and even though it’s a rather trite thing I also loved the parallel because of how it showed how little women’s rights have progressed since 1975 (when about half of the book takes place). The Equal Rights Amendment had been proposed in 1972 and by 1975 had several states signed onto it, but momentum was beginning to slow. Maybe it’s just me, but I see a certain corresponding sadness that connects Poppy’s tragic death with the coming downfall of the ERA and it makes later revelations in the novel even more poignant. 

There’s also a sad connection between Olivia’s dad in the present and his older brother, Danny, who was the other murder victim in the past. Painful memories and things that have happened to them that were out of their control result in explosive tempers and unreliable behavior. 

It was a great thriller all around and a terrific summer read. 4⭐️

I was provided a copy of this title by the author and publisher via Netgalley. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you. 

File Under: Disability Rep/Murder Thriller/Suspense Thriller/Thriller