The Next Time You See Me by Holly Goddard Jones
I recieved this book free from the publisher through Goodreads
Giveaway program and I have to say this book really exceeded
my expectations for it. As a debut novel I thought it would be
good but rough, lacking the polish more experienced mystery
writers have. But I was wrong. Jones writes her murder like a
pro, weaving characters’ stories throughout each chapter in a way that keeps you guessing as well as interested.
The novel has four main threads. The first is the story of Emily
Houchens, the class “weird girl” who everyone makes fun of, but
then it goes beyond that as the popular clique moves to outright
hostility. But Emily bares it bravely, as she continues to go to
school even though she knows she will be ostracized, mostly
because she has a crush on the most popular boy in her class.
Then Emily finds a body in the woods behind her house, and
things start to change. The body becomes Emily’s obsession.
And her secret.
kentucky woods
The second thread follows that of Susanna Mitchell, a Roma
native who did everything the right way. She played by the
rules, went to college only to come back and teach at the Roma
middle school, and married young. Susanna is a dutiful wife and
passionate teacher. The only problem with her pefect life is that
she isn’t happy, she’s fallen out of love with her husband, and
she’s sick of the people in her small town. When Susanna’s sister
Ronnie goes missing she’s the only one who cares.
The third thread follows that of factory worker Wyatt who has
contented himself with a life alone, going to work, coming home, and spending quality time with his dog. Wyatt’s life is
uncomplicated, simple, the way he wants it to be. Wyatt prefers
to take pleasure in thinking about the things that make other
people happy than going out and getting happy himself. Then
Wyatt has a heart-attack and everything starts to change.
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The final thread is that of Ronnie, the bar hopping, former
drug-addict sister of Susanna who is missing from page one. She
is the driving force of the novel and the only thing that ties these three characters together.
Jones handles these mutliple story lines with ease, no one thread begins to outweigh the others, all of them are given equal
importance, a balance that is difficult to find in many novels that try this technique. Jones also manages to weave more than
mystery into her story. She manages a realistic coming-of-age
story through Emily’s voice and experiences without the nicely
wrapped up ending that is becoming the norm for many YA
stories. In fact, Emily’s story is almost painfully realistic, as Jones makes the reader wonder if they would embrace Emily with open arms or turn their head so as to not get involved.
holly goddard jones, author
Susanna and Wyatt’s thread give us a more adult coming-of-age novel as attention is called to the fact that even adults don’t have everything figured out.
All set to the background of a small town where everyone knows
everyone (past, present, and presumed future) Jones has created a heartfelt mystery that gives you more than just a murder.
