Tendrils of the Past

The deaths of Charles and Sarah Drummond in their home in Dorset while their two small daughters, Abby and Mia, sleep upstairs propel this stellar standalone from Fraser (The Ties That Bind). The police conclude that Charles strangled Sarah, then stabbed himself in the chest, but the girls’ widowed grandmother, Cicely Fairfax, can’t believe her son-in-law, of whom she was fond, could have killed his wife and then himself. Cicely adopts Abby and Mia, who are led to believe that their parents were “killed in a car accident,” and they move away from Dorset. Fifteen years later, when Mia falls and hits her head, she experiences a vivid flashback, and the sisters begin to wonder what really happened the night their parents died. They ask their grandmother and uncle for information, and an article by a local journalist sparks queries that could endanger their lives. Alternating between 15 years earlier and the present, Fraser does an expert job dropping clues and building tension. The slow revelation of the truth is like watching a photo develop until the image is clear. Fraser is in top form. Agent: Juliet Burton, Juliet Burton Literary (U.K.). (Jan.)