December 24, 2013 / Leslie

Review: The Night Guest by Fiona McFarlane

The Night Guest
by Fiona McFarlane

Genre: Mystery / Suspense
Publisher: Faber & Faber
Publish Date: October 1, 2013
Format: Hardcover | 256 pages
Rating: 4½ of 5

Ruth, a 75-year-old widow, lives alone in a secluded beach house in a coastal Australian town. Her sons are grown and while they check up on her by phone, neither live nearby. Her husband, Harry, has been gone for five years.

Ruth’s needs are simple but her days are lonely and she leads an isolated existance. She eats pumpkin seeds for breakfast – there is little else in the pantry – and watches the surfers on the beach from her window. She thinks back on her childhood and growing up in Fiji with her missionary parents, and reminisces about an unrequited love.

As Ruth looks out the window at the surfers on the beach, she sees a woman approaching her doorstep. The woman introduces herself as Frieda Young and says she’s here to help. She was sent through a government program as a caregiver for an hour or so a day: prepare meals, take on housework, etc.

Frieda’s arrival seems too good to be true. At first she is a wonderful companion and helper, a tireless worker, volunteering to do everything for Ruth, but she gradually changes from friendly, cheerful caregiver to easily annoyed, sarcastic, and often losing patience with Ruth. At first Ruth seems alert and in command, but is she? Questions arise, clues mount and things don’t add up, but Ruth accepts it all even though Frieda becomes manipulative and creepy.

About the half way point the tone of the novel changed from a light tale to a suspenseful, slowly building psychological thriller. Who is Frieda and what are her intentions? Even at the start she seemed to good to be true, but Ruth’s sons never verified her credentials. Did the government really send her? Much of the novel is through Ruth’s point of view. Is she a reliable narrator or is she losing her mind? I liked Ruth and was worried about her as she became confused and dependent on Frieda.

I enjoyed this well-written, thought-provoking story. I was surprised to learn this was a debut novel and from a young author. She has a keen sense of the trials of aging and dementia. This was a haunting, emotional and at times alarming tale with well developed characters that could be drawn from real life. It will make you want to pick up the phone or get in the car and check up on someone you care about.

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Source: Review copy.
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