Final Cut by S.J. Watson

The book opens with a confused tumbling of limbs, places, people and events. This confusion continues right through to the end.

A young woman has a new identity but she's not sure why. She goes back to a small place she has been to before, to make a film. The film is fragmented pieces that coincide with half-truths and stories, bits of memories. There are suspicions, rumours and things that don't quite add up. Something has gone on and maybe still is going on - but what is it and why is everyone afraid?

The story is told in the first person but in two timelines: then and now. It is a dark and atmospheric tale that looks at identity, memory, abandonment, mistrust and belonging, as well as community and the collective effect of trauma. There are red herring characters as well as the parochial shutting out of outsiders, like those in folklore horror stories. It is set in a fictitious town called Blackwood Bay in northern England, which is a former smugglers' village on a rugged coast.

An intense read with the repetitive thoughts of confusion and doubt, sometimes seeming as if it is overdone. But in the end it is probably just right. Recommended for those who enjoy dark psychological fiction.

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Published by Transworld Digital on 6 August 2020.
Advance review copy supplied by the publisher.

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