Miles, however, knows that twenty years ago when he needed money to start the company that has now made him a millionaire, he sold sperm to a fertility clinic. Chloe Swanson, an aspiring film documentarian, knows that her mother used a New York sperm bank to become pregnant twenty-two years ago. The master of psychological suspense is back with a deadly race against time when the unconventional heirs of a dying tech millionaire begin to meet mysterious ends. If you’re not a big fan of crime fiction or consistent-paced thrillers (instead, preferring to stick to those that make your skin crawl a bit), I’d recommend skipping this one.

Light Perpetual by Francis Spufford is uplifting and bittersweet, and the writing reads like poetry at times. Barclay deftly twists and turns all these characters into a taut and engrossing thriller that will keep readers guessing until the end.There are a few characters here, and at times I struggled with keeping up with them all, and that did stall the story for me. I thought he did a good job exploring the father-daughter relationship with Chloe and Miles was a well-developed character with a clear redemption arc.

Linwood Barclay balances the handling of contemporary issues with artful storytelling: as ever, he demonstrates his consummate skill at weaving multiple plot lines towards a deeply satisfying and unexpected ending. This book started with a prologue following Todd, 21, told in the third person point of view, as he tried to swindle money out of an elderly over the phone. As 9 becomes 8 and 8 becomes 7, the two must figure out WHO feels they would benefit most if there were less heirs? It is chock-full of shrewd and sharp-witted narrative, in addition, Barclay is a wizard of concluding chapters with a white- knuckle shocker.

As a sperm donor in the past, Miles has nine children that he’s never met, nine adults who could be carrying his illness. He was one of the paper’s most popular columnists before retiring from the position in 2008 to work exclusively on books. There are a lot of characters, some to really like and root for such as Miles himself and Chloe who he meets shortly after his diagnosis. Now, he is adamant that he must discover the names and location of those children who were born with his help.