Book Review: "Her One Mistake" by Heidi Perks
“Her One Mistake” by Heidi Perks
Synopsis: Charlotte was supposed to be looking after the children, and she swears she was. But while her three kids are all safe and sound at the school fair, Alice, her best friend Harriet’s daughter, is nowhere to be found. Frantically searching everywhere, Charlotte knows she must find the courage to tell Harriet that her beloved only child is missing—and admit that she’s solely to blame.
Harriet, devastated by this unbearable loss, can no longer bring herself to speak to Charlotte again, much less trust her. Now, more isolated than ever and struggling to keep her marriage afloat, Harriet believes nothing and no one. But as the police bear down on both women, trying to piece together the puzzle of what happened to this little girl, dark secrets begin to surface—and Harriet discovers that trusting Charlotte again may be the only thing that will reunite her with her daughter....
This breathless and fast-paced novel—perfect for fans of Big Little Lies and The Couple Next Door—takes you on a chilling journey that will keep you guessing until the very last page.-Simon and Schuster
Rating (out of 5): 3.5
Review: “Her One Mistake” hooks you with a premise anyone who has ever been responsible for another person’s child has worried about. Charlotte takes her friend Harriet’s daughter Alice to a school fair, and shortly after Alice disappears completely. To make matters worse, Charlotte was briefly on Facebook at the time of Alice’s disappearance, and so she faces ostracism from all but one of her closest friends.
It soon becomes clear that more is going on with Harriet than the horror of having a missing daughter, and her husband might not be all that he seems. I can’t really intimate more without giving you major spoilers, but the plot only thickens from there.
I raced through this book in a couple of days of commutes. While I never considered making it a DNF, I didn’t find this to be of the caliber of what I consider the truly great contemporary mystery writers: Tana French, Sophie Hannah, Laura Lippman. The characters aren’t fully fleshed out in a way that makes them truly relatable, and the twists are a little too many and too rapid—and the central twist is one we have seen performed more deftly quite a few times in other mysteries.
I still think that this one is worth your time, particularly for a beach trip or a time when you need more of a diversion than a life-changing experience. The rapid pacing and frequent twists will keep you engaged through the end of this quick read.
TL;DR: A solid mystery to tote in your beach bag. Don’t expect any subversion of the genre or surprises that will make you gasp here, but I think it’s quite likely you’ll be entertained to the end.
If you enjoyed this, you should try:
“The Girls in the Garden” by Lisa Jewell
“Kind of Cruel” by Sophie Hannah
“Every Secret Thing” by Laura Lippman
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