Precious Thing
by Colette McBeth
Crime Reporter Turned Novelist (1/3/2014)
Colette McBeth was a crime reporter for BBC TV. Her ability to describe a crime scene, the relationships between reporters and police, and a criminal thought pattern make her first novel, PRECIOUS THING, readable. If you like light thrillers or stories about highly dysfunctional relationships, give this novel a try.
While I appreciate McBeth's first effort and hope she'll continue writing, there are several reasons I would not generally recommend this book. The plot is predictable and instead of writing flashbacks into the story, the author makes use of datelines. The narrator, Rachel, starts out as a strong character but becomes whiney and unlikeable. The telling of the story is for the benefit of the antagonist, Clara, instead of the audience so Rachel spends pages telling about her friendship and love of Clara without really showing us much of their friendship.
The reader never gets a full view of Rachel's relationship with her mother although we are told enough about it to get the idea of the level of dysfunction. The full story of an incident that occurs in the past that has a strong impact on the plot is kept from the reader but we are told enough to understand that impact. The concept of this novel is solid but is left unfulfilled in the construction of the story.
