Like the main character in Mary Dixie Carter's debut novel, The Photographer, I love taking pictures, which is why I selected this propulsive novel as my pick for the 2021 PopSugar Reading Challenge's "Subject You are Passionate About" prompt. This novel ended up being a great selection for the prompt as it combines interesting elements of photography technique and style with a story that is downright creepy ... yet very, very good.
Delta Dawn is a New York photographer who spends her days taking pictures of the lives of the city's upper crust denizens. She finds herself capturing birthday parties more than anything else, and knows that it is her job to deliver happy memories to these elite families to cherish forever ... which is why her nights are spent manipulating pictures in Photoshop to create smiling faces, joyful moments, and close-knit families. But she also spends her evenings focused on her obsessions, which lately include the Straub family.
After photographing eleven year old Natalie Straub's birthday party, Delta has become obsessed with the family, Amelia, Fritz, & Natalie; their enviable home; and their seemingly perfect life. Delta wants something that the Straubs have, and she is shamelessly ruthless in her attempts to get it. From finagling her way in as Natalie's new babysitter, to making friends with Amelia, Delta ensures that she becomes someone that the Straubs need in their life. But how close is too close and just what does Delta hope to gain from this newfound relationship?
Going into The Photographer, I expected it to be much like the other women's domestic suspense novels on the market - a verifiably unhinged woman supplants the matriarch of a powerful and well-connected family only to get her just desserts in the end. However, from the very first page of this unsettling novel, I was hooked on Carter's writing style and tone, and soon realized that this wasn't the same worn out suspense plot that has been recycled over and over again throughout the years in this genre. Carter brings something dark, disturbing, and fresh to her character of Delta Dawn. While Delta seems "almost normal," readers know that something is off with this woman ... the question is just how deranged is she? That's the fun of this book - I raced through the pages, finding myself absorbed in Delta's relationship with the Straubs, and anticipating how it would all play out in the end. I enjoyed the intimation of closeness and confidentiality Carter creates between readers and Delta, letting them peek into the corners of Delta's life that she keeps hidden from the world, yet also not letting readers in on the full story. If you are paying attention, you will catch Delta's slips, recognize her tells, but only if you are very observant - she is one crafty manipulator.
This fast-paced, intimate, yet unnerving novel is not to be missed by fans of the genre. Recommended to readers who would love to read a "You-esque" novel of the female variety.
Availability: Book; eBook in cloudLibrary
Rating: ***** Stars (I loved it) Reviewer: Brooke, Public Relations Librarian
ARE YOU AND THIS BOOK A GOOD MATCH? DISCOVER MORE WITH NOVELIST APPEALS! The Photographer
GENRE: First Person Narratives; Psychological Suspense
THEMES: Too Good to Be True (Whether it's a perfect marriage, the appearance of a "long lost" family member, or a stranger who inserts himself into the main character's life, something doesn't add up. Each has secrets that can harm or even kill.); Unreliable Narrator (Readers may not be able to trust the version of events narrated to them in these complex and sometimes disturbing stories.)
TONE: Creepy; Suspenseful
STORYLINE: Character-Driven
WRITING STYLE: Compelling
CHARACTER: Twisted
LOCATION: Brooklyn, NYC
SUBJECT: Babysitters; Birthday Parties; Desire; Eleven-Year-Old Girls; Envy; Family Secrets; Husband and Wife; Infertility; Live-In Companions; Manipulations by Women; Obsession in Women; Perfection; Rich Families; Women Photographers
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