Review of Duplicity
Posted: 21 Aug 2021, 16:30
[Following is a volunteer review of "Duplicity" by Fin C Gray.]
Duplicity by Fin C. Gray is a thriller that focuses more on the events leading to the crime, and the effects it has on family than it does on solving the crime itself. It opens on a Friday, with what seems to be a suicide bomber on a train with a detonator in his hand. The author immediately takes us back to the past into the life of Tom McIntyre’s family. Daniel, Tom’s son, goes to the lorry park his father forbade him from visiting. He finds it empty, save for the truck that arrives shortly after him. The truck driver forces him to get into the truck and when he goes back home, Daniel is not himself. He can’t get the truck driver out of his head. Has he been sexually abused?
Alison, Daniel’s mother, is diagnosed with cancer and it progresses rapidly. They watch her suffer until she eventually dies. Tom turns to alcohol for comfort and the family drifts apart. Daniel starts using drugs and finds out something about his father that leads to his resentment towards him. He moves out of his father’s new home and does not keep in touch with his family. He finds an Islamic roommate, Waqar who teaches him about Islam and the horrors in Pakistan supposedly brought about by the western countries. Daniel falls for Waqar and he blames his father and hates him for his sexual preferences. Does Waqar love Daniel or is he using him for his benefit? After years of not being home, Daniel shows up at his father’s apartment unannounced and with a completely different look. While Tom is comatose because of his sleeping pills, Daniel stands over him with a dagger in his hand. Will he kill his father?
It would be an understatement to say I loved everything about this book. Unlike most thrillers, this storyline focuses more on the events that led to the crime than it does on the investigative part. This makes it unique. Fin C. Gray’s character development was just perfect. I couldn’t help but get lost in the book and feel like I’m in it. The book opens with a prologue that gives us an idea about the crime to be committed but does not give any names until the very first chapter. This kept me guessing and trying to connect the dots to figure out who the man on the train was. The chapters were constantly alternating between Friday, the present day, and then, the past. The author brings to light issues that affect people in real life and that was a winner for me. He talks about how family members have to go from watching their loved ones fight the chronic disease cancer, and eventually giving up and accepting their fate. It shows how selfish someone can become because of grief, completely turning a blind eye to everyone else. Tom drowned himself in alcohol after his wife’s death, forgetting he still had a family to take care of. The author shows us how secrets can kill a family when Daniel finds out his father kept Alison’s illness from them. It also shows when Daniel finds out a side of his father he never knew, which caused the final blow in their relationship. I loved how Waqar easily fit into Daniel’s life, mostly because he has pushed everyone else away. This makes Daniel very vulnerable and easy to manipulate, with the vulnerability being an element most people would take advantage of.
The book was very professionally edited. The vocabulary was not too heavy which makes it easy to drown into the book. Although the chapters were constantly shifting between the past and present, they were written to the most articulate detail which prevents the reader from getting lost in between. Duplicity deserves nothing less than 4 out of 4 stars .
There is a lot of profanity, both borderline and non-borderline, but in my opinion, this just makes the characters even more humane. There are a few sexual scenes which make the book suitable for young adults and older people. I would recommend it to anyone who likes thrilling mysteries. It is also suitable for anyone who understands the value of family, especially how the family has to stick together during the worst of times. There are also some sensitive issues like abuse and animal cruelty at one instant which may be upsetting to sensitive readers.
******
Duplicity
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Duplicity by Fin C. Gray is a thriller that focuses more on the events leading to the crime, and the effects it has on family than it does on solving the crime itself. It opens on a Friday, with what seems to be a suicide bomber on a train with a detonator in his hand. The author immediately takes us back to the past into the life of Tom McIntyre’s family. Daniel, Tom’s son, goes to the lorry park his father forbade him from visiting. He finds it empty, save for the truck that arrives shortly after him. The truck driver forces him to get into the truck and when he goes back home, Daniel is not himself. He can’t get the truck driver out of his head. Has he been sexually abused?
Alison, Daniel’s mother, is diagnosed with cancer and it progresses rapidly. They watch her suffer until she eventually dies. Tom turns to alcohol for comfort and the family drifts apart. Daniel starts using drugs and finds out something about his father that leads to his resentment towards him. He moves out of his father’s new home and does not keep in touch with his family. He finds an Islamic roommate, Waqar who teaches him about Islam and the horrors in Pakistan supposedly brought about by the western countries. Daniel falls for Waqar and he blames his father and hates him for his sexual preferences. Does Waqar love Daniel or is he using him for his benefit? After years of not being home, Daniel shows up at his father’s apartment unannounced and with a completely different look. While Tom is comatose because of his sleeping pills, Daniel stands over him with a dagger in his hand. Will he kill his father?
It would be an understatement to say I loved everything about this book. Unlike most thrillers, this storyline focuses more on the events that led to the crime than it does on the investigative part. This makes it unique. Fin C. Gray’s character development was just perfect. I couldn’t help but get lost in the book and feel like I’m in it. The book opens with a prologue that gives us an idea about the crime to be committed but does not give any names until the very first chapter. This kept me guessing and trying to connect the dots to figure out who the man on the train was. The chapters were constantly alternating between Friday, the present day, and then, the past. The author brings to light issues that affect people in real life and that was a winner for me. He talks about how family members have to go from watching their loved ones fight the chronic disease cancer, and eventually giving up and accepting their fate. It shows how selfish someone can become because of grief, completely turning a blind eye to everyone else. Tom drowned himself in alcohol after his wife’s death, forgetting he still had a family to take care of. The author shows us how secrets can kill a family when Daniel finds out his father kept Alison’s illness from them. It also shows when Daniel finds out a side of his father he never knew, which caused the final blow in their relationship. I loved how Waqar easily fit into Daniel’s life, mostly because he has pushed everyone else away. This makes Daniel very vulnerable and easy to manipulate, with the vulnerability being an element most people would take advantage of.
The book was very professionally edited. The vocabulary was not too heavy which makes it easy to drown into the book. Although the chapters were constantly shifting between the past and present, they were written to the most articulate detail which prevents the reader from getting lost in between. Duplicity deserves nothing less than 4 out of 4 stars .
There is a lot of profanity, both borderline and non-borderline, but in my opinion, this just makes the characters even more humane. There are a few sexual scenes which make the book suitable for young adults and older people. I would recommend it to anyone who likes thrilling mysteries. It is also suitable for anyone who understands the value of family, especially how the family has to stick together during the worst of times. There are also some sensitive issues like abuse and animal cruelty at one instant which may be upsetting to sensitive readers.
******
Duplicity
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon