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Cross Deep
S A Passmore, author
Two women. Two plans. Two husbands in their way. And one river that could solve all their problems.
Alice has a plan to escape her husband and start a new life. She chooses Marcy as her accomplice. But Marcy has plans of her own, and Alice finds herself the chief suspect in a murder investigation. Out of her depth, Alice steers her small boat down the river towards the sea in a desperate bid for freedom.
Set on and around the river at the edge of London, Cross Deep takes the reader on a journey from manicured suburban lawns to the treacherous sandbanks of the Thames estuary.
Reviews
Londoner Alice Ancaster, the 30-something protagonist of this strong psychological thriller from Passmore (Crumple Zone), feels trapped in her marriage to Patrick, whom she no longer loves. An unsuccessful antique dealer, Patrick has run afoul of the British customs authorities for his shady dealings. At the gym, Alice, a former criminal law solicitor, meets Marcy Craig, a teacher who’s in similar straits. After Marcy shares details of her husband Ian’s violent bullying, Alice remarks that they both would be better off without their spouses. She later intimates to her new acquaintance that she has a permanent solution in mind. Alice develops a detailed plan to get rid of both Patrick and Ian, but her scheme’s complicated when the two become romantically involved. An unplanned act of violence results after Patrick arrives home unexpectedly and catches the two women in bed. What follows is a logical but surprising series of events that will have readers turning pages to see how everything plays out. Passmore’s skill at making all her characters believable augurs well for future books. Patricia Highsmith fans will be enthralled. (Self-published)
