cover image The Waters & the Wild

The Waters & the Wild

DeSales Harrison. Random House, $27 (320p) ISBN 978-0-8129-8954-0

When artist Jessica Burke dies of an apparent overdose in her New York City apartment, her psychoanalyst, Daniel Abend, the protagonist of Oberlin professor Harrison’s poignant but ponderous debut, is shocked; he thought she’d turned her life around. Daniel manages to push the matter from his mind—until three years later, when he receives an anonymous package containing proof that Jessica was murdered. He destroys the evidence to avoid becoming involved, but then his 18-year-old daughter, Clementine, goes missing. His mailbox fills with menacing messages suggesting that the sender not only knows Clementine’s whereabouts but also possesses information about Daniel’s past indiscretions and the death of Clementine’s mother. Daniel knows that he must atone for his sins, but how far will he go in order to save his child? After a strong start, the story loses steam. Although the central mystery intrigues, its convoluted denouement frustrates, and Harrison’s fondness for florid prose and philosophical asides slows the pace while obscuring the plot. Agent: Bill Clegg, Clegg Agency. (Apr.)