Ben McPherson

In A Line of Blood by Ben McPherson, the Mercer family's secrets are unearthed during the investigation of their neighbor's suspicious death.

Alex and his eleven year old son Max are searching for their cat when they discover their neighbor Bryce's body in his bathtub. Convinced the death is a suicide, Alex is taken off guard by the ensuing police investigation. He falls under suspicion when the police uncover evidence that his wife Millicent has more than a passing acquaintance with Bryce. The deeper he delves into both Bryce's life and Millicent's relationship with him, Alex becomes convinced that she is involved in his death, but is the truth much darker than anyone suspects?

While it first appears the Mercer's are a close-knit, loving family, it soon becomes apparent this is not the case. They never really recovered from an tragic loss that occurred years earlier and despite Alex and Millicent's devotion to Max, their marriage is clearly troubled. Alex is gone for long stretches of time due to his job and he has no idea the toll his absences have taken on Millicent. He is stunned to learn that she turned to their neighbor for solace and Alex is incredibly hurt and angered by her betrayal.

While Alex is completely clueless about what is occurring in his marriage, Max is surprisingly astute and observant about Millicent's extracurricular activities. In some ways, he is remarkably mature but in the matters that truly count, he lacks the experience to make well-informed decisions. Max can be rather manipulative but neither Alex nor Millicent pick up on this aspect of his personality until they are forced to scrutinize his role in recent events.

Narrated in first person from Alex's point of view, A Line of Blood by is an intriguing mystery. This cleverly written whodunit is a little dark and disturbing with plenty of unexpected plot twists, startling revelations and a very shocking conclusion. An absolutely riveting debut novel by Ben McPherson that fans of the genre do not want to miss.… (plus d'informations)