What’s every parent’s worst nightmare? Having your child die? Having your child commit a murder? Loss and grief are analyzed in Fiona’s new suspense thriller called “The Suspect”.

When two eighteen-year-old girls go missing in Thailand, their families are thrust into the international spotlight: desperate, bereft, and frantic with worry. What were the girls up to before they disappeared?

Journalist Kate Waters always does everything she can to be first to the story, first with the exclusive, first to discover the truth and this time is no exception. But she can’t help but think of her own son, whom she hasn’t seen in two years, since he left home to go traveling. 

As the case of the missing girls unfolds, they will all find that even this far away, danger can lie closer to home than you might think…

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I loved that the book was told from different perspectives: the mother, the detective, the reporter. Each following their own interests – to maintain the memory of their child umblemished, to catch a runaway witness and to protect whatever is left of their relationship. Each has a case.

The book conveyed very convincingly the issues with foreigners traveling to Thailand. The locals will be looking to scam them (like the scooter scam), overcharge for tattoos and drinks and take advantage of tourists looking for a cheap place to stay by offering locations not even fit for a dog to stay in.

The two girls’ journey is no different from many others before them. Waiting for their A-level results, they have taken family money and went for a two-week backpacking trip which turned into a dick carousel for one of them and a worrying result for the other. Money goes missing, drugs and booze abound and when a mysterious fire engulfs them, they were already dead. One strangled, the other dead by unknown means. The Thai police, understandably, don’t want another foreigner murder to investigate and since it’s bad for tourism, they are quickly to class the deceased as dead by accidental means, smoke inhalation. Even though the victims were naked and one had obvious bruises around the neck.

The parents are relying on the media to spread awareness but they have to contend with choices as – cremating the remains of their young daughters to make the flights back home cheaper or dish out for the embalmed remains to be carried across with no changes. One of the parents, previously a reporter on the story, finds herself dragged in when the only survivor of the fire and now missing turns out to be her son.

What was he doing in Bangkok when he was supposed to be in Phucket? He appears to have been working a menial job at the place which burned down. Washing dishes, cleaning and cooking in return for free housing. He was not going home to his parents. At least he wasn’t outside begging…

His mother learns a few hard truths about her golden son: he was kicked out of uni, he was partying and taking drugs and he was failing at everything. That’s why he barely called once a year to say hello but refused to disclose his true location or take advantage of his pre-paid flight home.

It’s only when the media frenzy turns their attention to him, he escapes from Thailand and goes back home. The only reason people found out about him was due to a speeding ticket in a rental car which ended up at his parent’s house.

The plot thickens further when Jake is actually in a Thai prison – twist after twist the truth comes to light. A story of a very lonely boy, the failures of fostering and parenting and the poor Rosie looking for love in all the wrong places. In the end it was their co-nationals who were responsible for their death.

All in all, I loved the book and it made me slightly weary of traveling abroad, even with people I know. You never know who’s going to let their wild side grow and derail the trip. The murder mystery was good all the way to the end and I loved how the suspect was never a murder suspect. Just a wanted person. Book should have been called “Missing persons” or something like this 🙂