Cooke’s Gone Girl-like debut thriller starts off with women going missing from a small suburb outside of London.
Lochlan, an ordinary guy going about his day, receives a call while at work informing him that his wife is missing and their two small children, Max and Cressida, have been left home alone. That shocking revelation opens the door for prodding and questioning, which reveals the ugly truth that Lochlan and his wife, Eloise, had a less than perfect marriage. Worse, it was Lochlan who worked so hard to hide their problems–which included him putting work above his family for far too long–making him appear suspicious.
While the search for Eloise continues, a woman with no memory washed up on a small, remote Greek island. Barely making it to shore after being shipwrecked, the woman is greeted by four men, all writers, who are on a yearly retreat. While they are initially helpful, the woman quickly senses a number of things that seem off about the group. Not only is there tension among them, but she feels increasingly uneasy about her prospects of getting off the island.
Cooke’s plot deals with more than just survival, as I Know My Name also touches on family issues and whether or not spouses can ever really know each other. While very well-written and full of beautiful descriptions, especially the island scenes, the one negative is that the twists and turns never land hard enough to knock readers off their feet. Seasoned readers will see most of the “shocks” before Cooke reveals them, but even so, if you’re a fan of psychological thrillers, there’s more than enough here to enjoy this debut.
Book Details
Author: C.J. Cooke
Pages: 384 (Hardcover)
ISBN: 1538744449
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Release Date: January 16, 2018
Book Spy Rating: 6.0/10
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Praised as “one of today’s finest book reviewers” by New York Times bestselling author Gayle Lynds, Ryan Steck has “quickly established himself as the authority on mysteries and thrillers” (Author A.J. Tata). He currently lives in Southwest Michigan with his wife and their six children.