Familiar by J. Robert Lennon

Elisa is driving home after visiting her son's grave, she focuses on a small crack in the windscreen when suddenly the crack is no longer there. Then she realises her car is quieter, in fact it's not the same car and she is wearing different clothes. She soon finds out that her job is different as are her friends and some people she knew before she hasn't haven't even met yet. She's still married to Derek and they had two sons as in her previous existence in this life her oldest, Silas, is alive and wasn't killed in an accident. Derek tells her that she seems different but he can't quite work out how she has changed. She becomes convinced that she has slipped into a parallel universe.

 

We are never sure if she is living an alternate life or is suffering from some kind of breakdown.    Although this may annoy some in the end for me it wasn't really important. This novel is a story about marriage, parenthood and a dysfunctional family.

 

Probably not for readers who like everything sown up and explained at the end but this didn't bother me. I finished Familiar yesterday afternoon and I'm still thinking about it and Elisa this morning, this one is going to need a bit more time for me to digest it before moving onto the next, it gives you plenty to think about. 

 

Rating: 4 out of 5