This is a slow-burn thriller. Things are so nice on the surface, but underneath things are not right. Emily wants to be an actress, but life is against her. She looses her latest job, her agent and her apartment in one day. She also manages to estrange her mother again. So when Scott Denny offers her a job and a place to live in the south of France, she jumps for it. It's not until much later she finds the problem she can't solve and maybe won't survive.
Scott has a villa where his wife and daughter live. That's where Emily is going. There are two houses. One is the owner's house, from which Emily is forbidden to enter. The other is a guest house that needs cleaning and repair. This is Emily's home. But Nina, Scott wife, does most of her living outside, by the pool. Only the daughter stays in the house long hours. She's being home schooled. She supposedly burns easily in the sun, so she needs to be kept quiet in the house.
Only Nina freaks out when strangers come by the house. Scott rarely visits. When Nina gets upset, she is apt to toss out all the furnishings and buy new. When Emily goes to the market for food, she often sees the handyman watching her. Emily's passport disappears. Is she a prisoner of the villa?
One day Emily has a small breakdown. She drives around, and sees a poster of a young girl who looks a lot like Nina's daughter. When she gets back to the villa and calls the girl by the name on the poster, she gets a surprising response. Then the car keys vanish. She is a prisoner. What can she do about it.
Like I said, this is a slow burn thriller. Up until the end, everything could be different from what Emily thinks it is. Then, suddenly, it is what she thought. The ending makes up for the slow start. I liked the book.
Scott has a villa where his wife and daughter live. That's where Emily is going. There are two houses. One is the owner's house, from which Emily is forbidden to enter. The other is a guest house that needs cleaning and repair. This is Emily's home. But Nina, Scott wife, does most of her living outside, by the pool. Only the daughter stays in the house long hours. She's being home schooled. She supposedly burns easily in the sun, so she needs to be kept quiet in the house.
Only Nina freaks out when strangers come by the house. Scott rarely visits. When Nina gets upset, she is apt to toss out all the furnishings and buy new. When Emily goes to the market for food, she often sees the handyman watching her. Emily's passport disappears. Is she a prisoner of the villa?
One day Emily has a small breakdown. She drives around, and sees a poster of a young girl who looks a lot like Nina's daughter. When she gets back to the villa and calls the girl by the name on the poster, she gets a surprising response. Then the car keys vanish. She is a prisoner. What can she do about it.
Like I said, this is a slow burn thriller. Up until the end, everything could be different from what Emily thinks it is. Then, suddenly, it is what she thought. The ending makes up for the slow start. I liked the book.