★★★★☆
Sometimes bad things happen in the most beautiful places. In this case, the beautiful place is a picturesque cliff overlooking the ocean outside Pippa and Gabe’s beachside cottage.
The cliff has become a popular place for people planning to jump to their deaths. Since moving in, Gabe has always been able to calmly talk potential jumpers out of leaping until one day Pippa watches as a young woman meets her death during an intense encounter with Gabe.
“That’s another funny thing about marriage. Sometimes, when you look back on it, the worst moments are in fact the best.”
Sally Hepworth, The Soulmate
My first read by Hepworth, The Soulmate is well-written and features a unique structure. Not only does the story switch back and forth between Pippa and Amanda’s points of view, but the alternating POVs are also overlaid with “now/then” and “before/after” components. This complex structure had the potential to be confusing but it was surprisingly easy to follow.
Stories about marriage and betrayal are not new, but there was something about this one that was immediately engrossing. I wanted to know whether Amanda committed suicide or if she was pushed. I was also intrigued by Gabe and whether this seemingly perfect man was hiding anything.
I didn’t see all of the curves coming in this twisty tale. And, while all of the characters had their flaws, they weren’t so unlikeable that you stopped caring what happened to them and why they made the choices that drove the plot.
The book was so absorbing that I was able to finish it quickly. This suspenseful mystery is the perfect rainy weekend read. However, if you are uncomfortable with the topic of death by suicide, you may want to avoid this one.
I will certainly be checking out more books by Hepworth. Being introduced to authors like Hepworth and books like The Soulmate through Book of the Month totally make my subscription worth it.
