The Red Thread
by Roderick Townley
Dana has disturbing dreams about a boy being murdered centuries in the past. Her psychologist hypnotizes her to help access memories from her previous life, and discover the origin of the nightmares. Dana begins to realize that people from her past lives are still nearby, involved in her modern-day life. Her father and mother, her little brother, her boyfriend, and even her rival at school might all be reincarnations of people she knew in her past lives… and one of them is a murderer.
I really enjoyed the twists and turns of the mystery, as Dana uncovers more memories from her past lives. At first, it only comes in little bits and pieces, so we don’t know much about what truly happened in the past. Then Dana begins to discover some things about the past that really scare her and reveal some disturbing truths about herself. Events that happened in the past begin to leak into her present, and the danger becomes real and immediate. The suspense was wonderful, but there are a few violent scenes that were upsetting to read. It got to the point where I didn’t want to read this book at night, for fear that it would give me nightmares, because I’m a big scaredy cat.
I really liked Dana’s character. She is sensitive and artistic. She has a temper, but holds everything very close inside. She spends most of the book lost in introspection, and analyzing the people around her, just the type of psychological mystery that I enjoy. The mystery hinges on the personalities of the people around her.
The writing is excellent, and it draws you into every emotional scene. This author really knows how to paint a scene with very few words, drawing attention to little details that make it feel real and full of meaning.
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