Book Review: A Double Life by Flynn Berry

RACHEL SOO THOW - 17 MAR 2021

Let’s discuss the premise of this novel. Claire, who is our main character leading the narrative in this psychological thriller, takes us through the events leading up to the attack of Claire’s mother and nanny 26 years ago. Lord Spenser, her father, notorious as one of the highest-ranking members of British society, is accused of murder and his whereabouts are unknown. Like every disappearance, there follows the need to find an end result — where is he? What exactly happened? And why is Claire ‘stalking’ her father’s best friend?

We are led through pages of the who, what and whys, and ultimately every page gets us closer and closer in Claire’s investigation into what really happened that fateful night. With this being a thriller, I expected something more climactic, but Berry has exhibited her signature technique of slow pacing and letting the natural tension of character personas gradually build to a point of darkness. Descriptions are less detailed but Berry has a talent for keeping chapters short, sharp and to the point: sometimes we are thrown into thrillers with an excess of detail and we become lost to the cause, but this novel takes us in the opposite direction - we are exposed to the insolence of the arrogant aristocracy and what we think we know about the commentary upon the British society.

This is where the disappointment unfortunately lies. Berry’s ability to delve into the aristocracy is where the line ends and where lies the drawback to this novel - it is an amazing page turner, yet the lead up to the ‘twist’ revealed no twist. That’s right! The most fascinating side of the novel is the development of characters (to be frank, even this element could have been explored further) and the lead-up to this point - everything beyond this however seems to bring the overall novel back down from grace. The patches of darkness scattered throughout the novel create moments of interest and intrigue in the developing mystery, yet I was waiting on the edge of my seat for something more, something more dramatic.

Berry writes “thrillingly about women defiantly standing up in a world that continues to protect and shield cruel and careless men” - a genre that has always played a huge part in everyday life. Her ability to exhibit this genre through a fictional thriller should be commended and on that hand this novel has become a moving reflection on women and violence, trauma, love, class and privilege.  

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