I WILL MAKE YOU PAY
Teresa Driscoll
Thomas & Mercer
September 10, 2019
I read the first line of I Will Make You Pay and closed the book. Not because it's a bad opening line, because it is actually a perfect one. It pushed all my buttons at the time, and I was not sure I was able to go further. Alice Henderson is a journalist on a small Devon newspaper who received the threat that gave me such chills. When she calms down a bit, she realizes that it is not the first time she has been threatened, only not so graphically. The other calls have also come on Wednesdays. What could Alice have done to prompt someone to hate her so much? As the stalking increases in intensity on succeeding Wednesdays, and she is forced to retreat from her everyday life, we learn that Alice has many secrets. Amid this horror, Alice's much-loved mother is dying in a nursing home.
I Will Make You Pay tells the story from the point of view of Alice, a PI hired by her boyfriend, Tom, and the stalker himself. He relates the story of his childhood and what made him a monster (at least his reasons for it) and why he feels justified. We get to know the detective, Matthew, very well. The characterization of all the players is excellent. I was touched by Alice's love for and care of her dying mother. Alice herself is a little more challenging because of her bad decisions throughout. She admits to being stubborn, but that is an understatement. The revelation of the stalker's identity was very much a surprise to me, even though there were clues.
Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an advance digital copy. I recommend I Will Make You Pay for fans of psychological suspense.
RATING- 3.5 Stars Rounded up to 4
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