An audio book.
Miriam Lewis, a fat middle-aged spinster, lives on a narrow-boat. When she was a schoolgirl she was abducted with her friend. She escaped, her prettier friend died. She finds a dead body in the next boat - Daniel, 23. Laura Kilbride, 25, had visited him. She has a history of minor crime and inappropriate behaviour. She was knocked over years before by her mother's lover, suffering body and brain damage. Police take her in then release her. She regularly helps an old, childless lady Irene (widowed 6 years before, sometimes confused), who lived next door to Angela, who's recently died and who was Dan's mother.
Angela's sister Carla used to be married to Theo, a novelist. Their son Ben died 15 years before while at alcoholic Angela's. He'd been 3.
Miriam works in a bookshop (on a boat). There she met Theo, who'd written a famous book but who fell silent after Ben died. Miriam gave him her autobiography to assess. He used it as the basis of "The one who got away" - a crime novel that relaunched his career. We get extracts from the novel. Miriam had threatened to take him to court about the copying. In the novel she's accused of abandoning her friend
So, there are many damaged people. Irene's convenient for the plot - at times perceptive, at others forgetful. Not a reliable witness. Nor is Laura, who's clever and disinhibited. Miriam sees Laura as a kindred spirit and tried to befriend her. She thinks that Laura killed Dan so she tries to frame Carla.
Irene has seen goings-on at Angela's. Why was Theo there? Dan was a graphic artist, There were drawings of Carla naked (he'd used them to get money out of Theo) and of Dan causing Ben's death.
More evidence is found. Laura's arrested. Then Theo is taken in for questioning (his bloody knife is found). He confesses. The police aren't convinced. Irene records a confession by Carla. She is imprisoned. She killed partly because she thought Dan had let Angela take the blame for Ben's death.
Laura is attacked while on remand. When released she goes to live with Irene. Meanwhile, Theo receives fan-mail which he thinks comes from Miriam's assailant. He goes to Miriam. They could tell the police, and Theo would compensate Miriam, but we learn in the epilogue that a few months later a man's body is found in a half-submerged narrow-boat.
I like the dialogue - especially Laura's and Irene's words.
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