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A Novel
by Nora Murphy
Book Reviewed by:A gripping debut domestic suspense novel, Nora Murphy's thrilling The Favor explores with compassion and depth what can happen when women pushed to the limit take matters into their own hands.
Leaving would be dangerous. Staying could be worse.
Leah and McKenna have never met, though they have parallel lives.
They don't―ever―find themselves in the same train carriage or meet accidentally at the gym or the coffee shop.
They don't―ever―discuss their problems and find common ground.
They don't―ever―acknowledge to each other that although their lives have all the trappings of success, wealth and happiness, they are, in fact, trapped.
Leah understands that what's inside a home can be far more dangerous than what's outside. So when she notices someone else who may be starting down the same path she's on, she pays attention. She watches over McKenna from afar. Until one night she sees more than she bargained for. Leah knows she can't save herself, but perhaps she can save McKenna.
Leah and McKenna have never met. But they will.
Murphy, a lawyer who has studied intimate-partner violence, effectively illustrates how even the most high-achieving people can find their self-confidence and their freedom eroded bit by bit at the hands of a manipulative and controlling spouse. The Favor is propulsive and morally compelling. Though it lacks the plot twists seasoned readers of thrillers might be expecting, it nevertheless offers plenty to chew on and debate...continued
Full Review
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(Reviewed by Norah Piehl).
If the premise of Nora Murphy's The Favor — two unconnected strangers conduct revenge by proxy in what should be a perfect crime — sounds familiar, that might be because of its parallels to the plot of a classic book and film.
Strangers on a Train might be best known as a 1951 noir film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, but its screenplay (co-written by Raymond Chandler) was based on a 1950 Patricia Highsmith novel of the same name. In both the book and the film, two men strike up a conversation on a train trip, bonding over the difficulties (especially the difficult people) in one another's lives.
In what seems at first to be a thought experiment, one of the men suggests that if each killed off the source of the other's ...
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If you liked The Favor, try these:
by Rachel Hawkins
Published 2023
From New York Times bestselling author Rachel Hawkins comes a deliciously wicked gothic suspense, set at an Italian villa with a dark history, for fans of Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware.
by Julie Clark
Published 2023
The Lies I Tell is a twisted domestic thriller that dives deep into the psyches and motivations of two women and their unwavering quest to seek justice for the past and rewrite the future.
B.A. Paris, New York Times bestselling author of The Therapist
Taut, compelling and deliciously dark, I tore through The Favor.
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