In haunting memory

In her debut novel, Jennifer McMahon expertly unfolds a complex tale of murder and haunting with a touching and powerful coming of age story.

School nurse Kate Cypher returns to her hometown to ponder over a decision about her Alzheimer-stricken mother's future. But when her homecoming coincides with a teenage girl's murder in the nearby woods, Kate is forced to relive memories of an identical slaying 30 years before.

Del Griswold, Kate's childhood friend, had her troubled young life brutally cut short in the spring of 1971. Cruelly nicknamed Potato Girl by her peers when she was alive, stories of her haunting New Canaan have become an integral part of the town's lore since her untimely death.

Skilfully interweaving the events of 1971 with those of three decades later, Ms McMahon paints a compelling picture of childhood angst as she tells of two girls, both outcasts, who become best friends. Kate is the new girl in town who lives in a hippy commune, while Del, a poor farmer's daughter, is openly bullied by her peers. Unlike her friend, Kate has an overriding need to be accepted by the in crowd, a need that will ultimately lead the two girls to fall out.

As Kate is drawn further into childhood memories she would much rather forget, she begins to unravel the mystery of the two murders. This task is complicated by the realisation that her old friends are not quite what they seem - all are harbouring secrets of their own. Added to this is a concept Kate is initially unwilling to consider and a question she would rather not have answered: could Del be seeking revenge from the afterlife?

As the investigation progresses, someone appears to be trying to frame Kate for the two murders but Kate must also confront the possibility that her mother may be connected to the most recent killing. Where had her mother been on the night of the murder, and why were her hands covered in soil?

Written in the first person narrative in the form of Kate's account of recent and distant events, this novel solely presents facts and memories as seen by the narrator. The main characters are described as they are perceived by Kate, all with their unique flaws that make them authentic and individual. It is, however, the author's poignant portrayal of Del, so desperately brave and achingly self-contained, that so movingly describes the heartbreak and misery caused by bullying.

I found this book difficult to put down and entertaining from start to finish. This may be Ms McMahon's debut offering but if her next book matches the calibre of Promise Not To Tell, this is one author who will not be disappearing from the bookshops any time soon.

• For Ms Calleja Portelli, words are a magic with no hidden tricks.

• A review copy of this title was supplied by Arco - Allied Retail & Commercial Co. Ltd.