Cassie Kramer is on a mission. After her sister's double, Lucinda, is accidentally shot in the final scene of her movie, Dead Heat and Allie Kramer goes missing, Cassie had a breakdown and admitted herself into a mental hospital. An unexpected ghostly visitor witnessed only by another patient has Cassie checking herself out and go investigating herself.
It doesn't matter that she really might be hallucinating and probably going insane or, worse, is a person of interest. She needs to find out the truth about what happened to Allie: is she alive or dead? Does she need her help or not?
Along the way is a nosy reporter who just doesn't know when to back off, Cassie's estranged husband and a serial killer on the loose: slowly killing members of Dead Heat's crew, leaving them with grotesque masks of Cassie's family members. As the murders mount, the police shift all focus on her and Cassie fears her sanity and safety. And all the answers are connected to just what exactly happened to Allie?
AFTER SHE'S GONE is a freaky, freaky book. Ms. Jackson has written one hell of a roller coaster ride in which I kept guessing till the last moment whodunnit and enjoyed it at every turn. My final guess turned out to be correct but the journey? Whoa. My head spun with the guessing game. AFTER SHE'S GONE is, for the lack of better word, a mind boggling read with both psychological and thrilling twists which will keep you on the edge of your seat and that I feel is the highlight of this novel.
No one is perfect and every single character has issues making them human. The only problem I had was if some of them could have been resolved instead of just ending on hatred, resentment and I would have loved to know more about Steven Rinkin. That character am most curious about. There is a dash of romance too for those who prefer it. The writing style took me some time to get into. I restarted this book almost thrice before finally getting hooked. Keeping it separate, overall, AFTER SHE'S GONE is one of the best psychological thrillers I have read in a long time.
In this explosive new thriller, #1 New York Times
bestselling author Lisa Jackson delves into the deep bond
between two sisters and their shared dream that becomes a
harrowing nightmare of madness, hatred and jealousyβ¦
Cassie Kramer and her younger sister, Allie, learned the
hazards of fame long ago. Together, theyβd survived the
horror of a crazed fan who nearly killed their mother,
former Hollywood actress Jenna Hughes. Still, Cassie moved
to L.A., urging Allie to follow. As a team, theyβd take the
town by storm. But Allie, finally free of small-town
Oregon, and just that little bit more beautiful, also proved
to be more talentedβand driven. Where Cassie got bit parts,
Allie rose to stardom. But now her body double has been shot
on the set of her latest movieβand Allie is missing.
Police discover that the last call to Allieβs phone came
from Cassie, though she has no recollection of making it.
Instead of looking like a concerned relative, Cassie is
starting to look like a suspectβthe jealous sister who
finally grew sick of playing a supporting role. As the
tabloids go into a frenzy, Cassie ends up on a Portland
psych ward. Is she just imagining the sinister figure who
comes to her bedside, whispering about Allieβa visitor of
whom there is no record? Is someone trying to helpβor drive
her mad?
Convinced sheβs the only one who can find Allie, Cassie
checks herself out of the hospital. But a sudden slew of
macabre murdersβ each victim masked with a likeness of a
member of Cassieβs familyβmakes Cassie fear for her safety
and her sanity. The only way to end the nightmare is to find
out what really happened to Allie. And with each discovery,
Cassie realizes that no one can be trusted to keep her
safeβleast of all herselfβ¦
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