Mad Mabel

Author: Sally Hepworth
Genre: Psychological Thriller
352 pages
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Synopsis
Meet Mad Mabel.

Elsie Mabel Fitzpatrick is eighty-one years old. She’s lived on her idyllic street, Kenny Lane, for sixty years–longer than anyone else. Aside from being a curmudgeon who minds everyone else’s business, few would suspect that Elsie has a past that she has worked exceedingly hard at concealing. Because when it comes to murder, no one ever suspects little girls or old ladies. And Elsie Mabel Fitzpatrick, once a little girl and now an old lady, has a strange history of people in her life coming to a foul end.

When a new little girl (talkative, curious, nosy) moves into the neighborhood and stops at nothing to befriend Elsie, her carefully-constructed life threatens to come crashing down as the secrets in Elsie’s past start coming to light. Who was “Mad Mabel” fifty years ago? Who is Elsie Fitzpatrick today? And if the past has a habit of repeating itself, who has the most to lose?

My review
Mad Mabel is the first novel I’ve read by Sally Hepworth, and after seeing so many positive reviews from readers I follow, I was excited to dive in and discover a new-to-me author. I knew going in that this was a character-driven domestic thriller, and while I found some of the characters compelling, the story never quite pulled me in the way I’d hoped.

There were some humorous moments, a few surprises, and interesting themes surrounding reputation, childhood trauma, family secrets, and whether we can ever truly escape the identities created for us in the past. Hepworth does a good job developing her characters, but for a story built around death, suspicion, secrets, and a painful past, I wanted more intensity and a sharper edge.

Unfortunately, the ending was a total miss for me and really brought the whole story down. I can see Mad Mabel working well for book clubs, Sally Hepworth fans, and readers who enjoy character-driven mysteries with a softer edge. I’m glad I gave it a try, but ultimately, this was a pretty average read for me.

My recommendation: a pretty average read.