To The Last Page

Such is her convincing exploration of the criminal psychology and mindset that it's almost impossible to imagine a thriller written from the point of view of the con artist and the fraudster that doesn't bear the influence of Patricia Highsmith. Some works show that influence more openly but few do it as fearlessly, and few measure up to the standard set by the true Queen of Crime. The Talented Mr Ripley is perhaps one of the most admired and imitated books in this field, and its influence is evident to such an extent in the setting and situation for the opening of Sabine Durrant's Sun Damage that it almost comes across as an open homage. The question is whether Durrant can be just as fearless as Highsmith and take it in her own direction. You suspect not, but really is there anyone who can compete or compare with Highsmith on those terms? Despite the similarities, the opening of Sun Damage is nonetheless promising and engages you quickly in the schemes and operations of...

It's not at all obvious where the mystery, crime or serious wrong-doing is for quite a long while into Sabine Durrant's new novel, Lie With Me , but there are a lot of warning signs being flagged up in relation to its narrator Paul Morris. It's suggested early on that he's writing from a prison or a place of confinement, and to be honest, even though the reason isn't clear, you wouldn't be a bit surprised that he's going to end up there one way or another. There are plenty of reasons not to like Paul Morris, and he's not at all shy of telling you about his failings, his deficiencies as a person and his unending capacity for lying. But can we believe Paul and is he the only one lying? There are a lot of other strange occurrences and erratic behaviour in the people around him, but then it's hardly surprising that they might be suspicious of a guy who constructs such a tissue of lies around himself and his lifestyle. The author of a moderately successfu...