Fear The Worst

by Linwood Barclay

[kimbacaffeinate]

I picked up Fear the Worst for my e-reader over the summer and was delighted when it was chosen as book of the month for Coffee Talk on Goodreads. Barclay delivers a suspenseful thriller filled with twists and unexpected surprises; as protagonist Tim Blake searches for his missing seventeen year old daughter Sydney.

The first half of the book moved slowly for me, although it held my interest. At times I felt Barclay was too wordy, and a lot of the story could have been trimmed. The second half had me quickly turning the pages as more information came to light and Blake found himself the primary suspect by the police. While Blake is a pretty mundane chap, I found myself impressed by his ability to deal with his ex-wife, his crappy job and back-stabbing associates. Blake becomes an amateur detective unearthing every lead, and slowly putting the pieces together in his daughter’s disappearance. He also finds himself in serious trouble when he discoveries he is not the only one looking for his daughter. I found myself laughing at the exchanges between Blake and his ex-wife’s new boyfriend Bob.

I applaud the way Barclay fed us the pieces of this mystery and slowly tied them together as we discover what events led to Sydney’s disappearance. I loved the twists and shocking revelations. The events that occurred with Sydney were downright scary and I breathe a little easier living in the burbs. The novel had a few action scenes and a climactic conclusion that are sure to please.

I recommend this to fans of mystery, suspense and crime novels. Fear the Worst is available in both paper and digital formats. Barclay has over nineteen published works and I will be picking up a few. His most recent release is entitled The Accident.