Happy Woman, Abby Corson

Abby Corson's debut novel THE CONCIERGE was an unusual, and really good, crime fiction outing, that quite possibly came with a bit of insider information, given the author's background in luxury travel and lifestyle writing. Which did kind of give this reader just a moment's pause for thought, because in HAPPY WOMAN the central character, Gwynne Hogg, is dealing with the not inconsiderable fallout from her father's arrest, and subsequent confession to a series of serial killings.

I mean it would put you off your stride just a bit, and there is nothing in this world designed to prepare or guide you through that moment when you discover your much loved father had a secret quite like that. Especially as Hogg's father was a man that she implicitly trusted, one that her mother absolutely adored, and somebody who had been quietly looking after his son. It's not surprising that this family, the 3 of them, and her uncle, as well as her husband, and her young daughter, start to find their well-ordered, and it has to be said, financially very comfortable lives, falling apart - some of it gradually, some of it spectacularly, some of it inexplicably. To say nothing of the seemingly inexplicable worry that Hogg has that there is a murderous gene inside her as well - although her drinking leads to some very worrying experiences in her own small family, enough to send her husband into a spiral of concern for his wife, and his daughter.

Told as a message to her young daughter, Gwynne Hogg had a successful PR company, a beautiful home, a loving relationship and a daughter she adored, until the day, at her parent's meal table, that the police knocked on the door. From there, the spiralling is dramatic, told always from Hogg's point of view, there's controlled desperation in her tone, which makes her an interesting reader / narrator interaction. The spiralling is all the more present, as you're inside her head for most of the struggle, as she finds a way to be the support her mother, in particular, as well as keep her father's transport company going as well as her own business, her daughter's routine intact, her marriage functioning, and her drinking under control. Well that last one's probably more wishful thinking than anything else, as her drinking might just become a bigger issue than that whole "my father is a serial killer" thing. 

It's not until the final moments of HAPPY WOMAN that the truth behind some members of the Hogg family's reactions to all of this becomes clear. Until that point, readers are already dealing with some very big "what would I do" questions. What would you do if your father suddenly confessed to being a serial killer, your mother had a gentle but very determined breakdown, your friends and frenemies started backstabbing, your husband started feeling left out, your brother and uncle turned out to be pretty useless, and everything that was solid starts to shift dramatically. What would you do, as a reader, if you've no idea quite how or why or what was going on in this novel, and whether or not you get Gwynne Hogg or not?

Corson's developing a very dab hand at this "in the head of" somebody who may or may not be quite what they seem scenario. In her first novel the concierge Harry told a story from his point of view, in this one Hogg is demonstrating a story from her point of view and in both there seems to be an unnerving capacity to take the gloves off, to seem to be as honest about their individual failings as they want to be - a private internal monologue that most definitely should never have been said out loud. 

My summation of the first novel at the time was:

It's often tricky to pull off that sort of close in, self-involved voice, yet THE CONCIERGE does it with just enough doubt to make it very engaging, and dare I say, most unusual crime fiction undertaking. 

Turns out Corson can, and has, done all of that again.