The Woman Outside My Door

What would you do if your 7-year old child walked up to you in the park with a lollipop in their mouth that you didn’t give them?  Furthermore, when asked, they tell you an old lady in the bushes who says she wants to be their “New Granny” gave it to them?

Eeek! It’s the stuff of parents’ nightmares, and that’s the creepy, unnerving scenario that confronts our protagonist, Georgina when the story opens.  It definitely pulled me right in and set my hopes high for the rest of the book.  This is a very respectable debut effort by Irish author Rachel Ryan, and I think she’s got a lot of the right ideas and writing skill to keep writing good books for years to come.

That said, there are some things I thought could have been better.  Let’s start with the good stuff first though:

It’s a great premise.  Georgina has recently lost her mother, Rose, and her son, Cody, is missing his grandmother.  Is he creating an imaginary “New Granny” to help his grief over losing her?  Her husband, Bren, thinks so, and he’s quick to dismiss Georgina’s concern’s as overreacting or mental instability, which she’d previously experienced after Cody’s birth.  Is she losing her mind again?  It’s the classic unreliable narrator trope.

It has a solid plot.  Yes, some of it may be a little far-fetched, but at least it’s in the realm of possibility, which is more than I can say for many thrillers. I can’t say much without spoilers, but it highlights a very real and sad aspect of Ireland’s history, where the story is set, which allows insight and sympathy for the characters involved and their motivations.

It has tight, short chapters.  Most chapters are 3-5 pages, so the story moves along quickly, which keeps the atmosphere of suspense going nicely.

Where it fell a little short for me:

An unnecessary secondary storyline.  The story of Bren’s philandering never felt necessary or fully integrated into the plot and pulled attention away from the best part of the story which was “New Granny”.  After that strong opening,  it felt like the story shifted for awhile to Bren and Georgina’s relationship, and frankly it was pretty boring.  I wanted more “New Granny” creepiness and less of their marital issues.

The ending was good, but could’ve been great.  It had a measure of excitement and peril, but ultimately it felt a little rushed.  After building up this creepy mysterious “New Granny” the whole book, I would’ve liked more … something!  

It’s truly a solid effort, and I liked it overall.  I’ll be interested to see what Rachel Ryan writes in the future!

★★★ ½  (rounded to 4)