Intercessions

Intercessions, a crime novel about two young girls who are approached by a pervert while walking two school one morning, is author Kathleen Eull's debut novel. The attack on the girls is a horrific one, to be sure, but instead of taking the more common path of carrying readers along as law enforcement officers try to identify and apprehend the killer, Eull chose instead to focus on the surviving victim and what the girl's life becomes in the aftermath of the abduction and murder of her best friend. Narrator Corianne Dempsey, now a young woman, unreliable as her testimony can at times be, makes it very clear that she has never felt safe again since the moment she began to run back home in complete panic - nor does she ever expect to feel safe again.

On the first few anniversaries of the murder, as the townspeople gather to remember the young victim, Corianne's mother brings her for a few days stay at the remote farm belonging to Evie, her own girlhood best friend, and the woman's husband, Bill. Here, Corianne comes closest to finding the kind of peace she can only dream about at home. Over a number of years, before the visits abruptly stop, Corianne develops a disturbing crush on Bill, one that the man finds it more and more difficult to ignore or hide.

Years later, Corianne is again so plagued by overly realistic nightmares that she finds it almost impossible to sleep. Her long-term relationship with her boyfriend is splintering before her eyes, she is more and more reclusive every day, and her therapist is unable to help her. In desperation, Corianne decides that surprise visit to Bill and Evie's farm is exactly what she needs if she is ever to regain control of her life. At the farm, with Bill's help and guidance, Corianne begins to sort through her childhood memories hoping to determine how much of what she remembers is true - and how much is not. What really happened that day?

Intercessions is an impressive debut that reminds readers just how literary in nature crime fiction can be when it is in the right hands. Eull has created memorable characters here that become more and more realistic as their flaws are exposed over time. All of them are dealing with struggles of their own, and their actions directly reflect those internal struggles. As Eull, reminds us, crime victims are not limited to the obvious ones. The ultimate impact of the crime recounted in Intercessions is staggering.

Upon closing the last page of this debut novel INTERCESSIONS by Kathleen Eull, I wanted to talk with the author. I wondered what prompted this novel. It feels so…personal. If this isn’t a fictionalized version of her or someone she know’s story, then I truly applaud such a nuanced and thoughtful debut.

Corianne was with her friend Rebecca when she was abducted many years ago and later found murdered. She’s still struggling with the trauma from it, and she is seeing a psychiatrist. She is dating Sean, but he’s gone a lot overseas as a photographer. Corianne feels pulled back to the farm she stayed at when she was younger (with her mother’s friends). Back then she had an attraction to Evelyn’s husband Bill. When she goes back to the farm, old feelings about the trauma reappear along with her attraction to the husband. Will she ever figure out what happened that fateful day so many years ago?

This is a quiet novel with a lot of description. The reader feels like they are at the farm. The languid days between bursts of chores come through, and Eull’s descriptions are copious. I think some readers might feel it is slow and tedious. This is definitely literary with a lot of internal musings, not fast-paced or suspenseful crime fiction. I knew that going in, and I didn’t mind it.

This is written in first person, and Corianne is not an unreliable narrator. She’s been through a lot of trauma, though, and might not make the best decisions. Many of the men in this novel aren’t great, which I think is worth noting.

Another thing worth noting is that a child was killed in this novel, and that might be a tough subject for some. I feel like I’m giving a lot of cautions in this review, but that’s because I think you need to know what you’re going to get: a slow-paced, literary, almost meditation on the after effects of trauma and trying to peel back all of the self-defenses to get to the truth. And what I thought had happened wasn’t actually what happened, so I thought the author did a good job in the whodunit.

I was very unsure of Corianne’s life timeline. There was the arc when Rebecca was murdered (about when Corianne was 8-10 years old), present day (maybe almost 30 years old?), and there was an intervening timeline of when she was a late teen it seems. Her mother died, and her father also died in there somewhere. I do like to have a more certain timeline.

I also thought it was odd that her psychiatrist made house calls, which involved a lot of travel. I understand it was for a big plot point, but that didn’t seem very realistic.

Overall, I thought this was a solid literary debut on the aftereffects of trauma, and I recommend it for those who are okay with the cautions I listed because I think this could be a great fit for a select group of readers.

Reading Intercessions felt exactly how reading good book should feel. One of those books where you forget you’re reading altogether. It was a refreshing and interesting way to tell this kind of crime story. Eull perfectly illustrates the pain of remembering and how the trauma we experience as children shape the people we become. I’m still unsure how I feel about the overall resolution but all in all, it was a really impressive debut novel. I’m excited to see what she does next.

Intercessions by Kathleen Eull is available on November 22, 2023. Thank you to NetGalley and Black Rose Writing for my eARC of this book!