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Possession: A Review

By February 13, 2021Book Reviews
Possession by Katie Lowe

All Hannah wants is a peaceful existence in her quaint Derbyshire cottage, but she is unlikely to get it. 10 years ago, her husband Graham was gruesomely murdered with a kitchen knife in their home. Hannah has no recollection of that fateful night. Luckily for her, the police were successful in apprehending the killer.

Fast forward to the present, Amy Byers, host of the popular true crime podcast Conviction, is about to turn Hannah’s life upside down. She’s announced Graham’s murder as the subject of season 4, claiming that the police had it wrong all along. Suddenly, the skeletons from the past are tumbling out of the closet and Hannah’s friends and family start questioning her innocence (and sanity). Hannah is portrait of a woman unhinged… and now her memories are resurfacing one by one.

Possession is one hell of a spicy page-turner! I felt like a frog boiling in a pot. I had no idea what I’d gotten myself into until it was too late. The main character Hannah is a skilled therapist and yet ironically, is guarded and emotionally unavailable. At first I found her absolutely exasperating and resented her inability to communicate. But as the trauma takes over and the state of Hannah’s delicate psyche becomes increasingly precarious, I found myself feeling for her.

It’s easy to sigh and dismiss the use of an unreliable narrator as a hackneyed trope, but it really worked here. I applaud Katie Lowe’s writing, which takes on a disorienting and almost hallucinogenic quality that lends itself to the overall atmosphere of the novel. You’ll love the podcast element too, it’s contemporary, believable and fun.

I recommend Possession to anyone craving an exhilarating and compelling psychological thriller replete with generational curses, internet trolls and auditory hallucinations- oh my! And wow, that ending? Easily my favorite part. Watch your back, it packs a punch.

Rating: 4/5 Stars

You can get your copy of Possession here today, or wherever books are sold.

A big thanks to Netgalley, St. Martin’s Press and Katie Lowe for a free copy of Possession in exchange for an honest review.