The Last Day of Emily Lindsey

he can’t explain and can’t shake.  As he grows older, his dreams start to invade his waking hours, becoming visions he can’t control.
Growing up in the foster system, afraid his new parents would “send him back” if he told them how bad it was, he has managed to (mostly) successfully hide what was happening to him from those he loves and those he works with.  Work is especially important as he is a homicide detective – no one wants a crazy policeman do they?
After years of keeping things controlled, it all starts to fall apart when he is called and asked if he knows a young woman called Emily Lindsey.  He doesn’t, but it seems she knows him – she has his name, and that of another man, on a post-it note in her pocket.  The question is why?  It’s not a question Emily can answer because she is in hospital in a state of shock.  No one is sure what has happened to her but they do know it probably isn’t good – she was found covered in blood.
Now, it’s up to Steven and his partner to try and discover just what has happened to Emily, how she came to be where she was in the state she was, and just what she wanted with Steven.  It’s an investigation that will unravel Steven’s life and put him, his family, and his sanity at risk.  Which is all a good thing for the reader because it means lots of tension, lots of twists, lots of turns and lots of good reading.
If you can’t tell from the last sentence I really enjoyed this book.  I thought it was clever – not a story I had read before, which is rare nowadays given I rarely step outside my genre comfort zone – and I thought it was really well written.  I came to know and like Steven very quickly and care for him, as I did for other characters (maybe with the exception of Emily’s husband).
The story is told in the “then” and the “now” and both were compelling.  Neither felt like it was there as an “add on”, a way to get to the final reveal.  You knew they were connected but it is not clear how until very close to the end so there is lots of guessing to do.  And, with Steven’s visions, it’s also hard to know just where the truth lies and where his imagination begins – perfect for a piece of crime writing or thriller.
It has left me feeling rather happy – despite the dark storyline – and saying that I loved this book.  A recommended read.