Out of Mind

by: Catherine Sampson

Published by: Mysterious Press

Reviewed by Julie Failla Earhart

The critics were not kind to Catherine Sampson’s sophomore novel, Out of Mind. Publisher’s Weekly called it “uneven” and Booklist referred to it as “mildly appealing.” I, on the other hand, had a much different experience. Maybe it was because I didn’t read her first novel, Falling Off Air, but I found Out of Mind a marvelous read.

Robin Ballantyne is now the single mother of three-year-old twins, a nightmare all by itself. Her job as a journalist for a London television company keeps her doubly busy. Robin makes documentaries and is working on a show about missing people. Then one of her colleagues, Melanie Jacobs, disappears from an embedded-journalist training school, yet no one seems concerned. Robin barely knew Melanie other than by sight and by her reputation as a woman unafraid of man, beast, or war. After calling Melanie’s parents to express her sympathies, Melanie’s mother asks Robin to look into things since it seems that neither the law nor the television station seem to care. When Robin agrees, that sets the entire chain of events into action.

Robin identifies the last person to see her alive, Mark Darling. Mark is in Cambodia, but that doesn’t stop Robin from using her expense account, and with her photographer, takes the next flight out.

The plot gets a little confusing when Robin returns to England, with more questions than answers. Her investigation leads her to Mark’s completely dysfunctional family, with whom Robin becomes more and more obsessed.

With a twist I never saw coming, Sampson created a character that was for the most part believable. I had some trouble believing that Robin would leave her kids with her neighbor to look for a woman she never knew, but on the other hand, hard journalism often requires that kind of willingness to abandon home and hearth.

Out of Mind was, for me, a suspenseful read that kept me up past my bedtime.

Armchair Interviews says: If you like suspense with your mysteries–and good writing, check this out.

Author’s Web site: http://www.CatherineSampson.com