Significance by Jo Mazelis

Significance

Jo Mazelis

It is clear from the outset that a young woman will be brutally killed, but this novel turns the archetypal murder mystery on its head. As the inhabitants of a French town are held under a microscope, I was drawn into the lives of a diverse mix of people. A powerful page-turner which asks us to consider our sense of self and how we perceive others, as well as our expectations as readers.

Extract
Now that Hilda thought about it, she remembered it more clearly. The tall American had left the young woman sitting alone and she had lit a cigarette and smoked it, sometimes tilting her head back and blowing the smoke directly upwards. Then she had stood and picked up the cardigan and draped it over the silly little bag. Hilda had seen this seemingly out of the corner of her eye. Peripheral vision. The edge of their lives; hers and Michael's.
Parallels
  • One Moment, One Morning by Sarah Rayner
  • I Let You Go by Clare Mackintosh