Deceptions

Frayn (One Life) plumbs the effect of a boy's disappearance on his family in her second novel, a thoughtful thriller inspired by a real-life tragedy. When Annie Wray, a British widow with two children, decides to marry Julian Poulter, a painting authenticator, her 12-year-old son, Dan, doesn't welcome the news. Dan has clashed with Poulter repeatedly since his introduction into their lives as a possible replacement for his beloved late father. One spring afternoon, Dan fails to come home from school, and despite intensive police efforts, no evidence as to his whereabouts surfaces. The loss naturally affects the dynamic between Wray and Poulter, who fears that he'll become the object of the investigators' scrutiny. Frayn manages to take what could be a trite setup and imbue it with genuine depth. Her plotting skills and insights into human nature will evoke deserved comparisons to authors like Laura Lippman and Ruth Rendell. (May)