In the Post-war era, two brothers are born and raised to a father who is a fanatical believer in determinism - the philosophical theory that all events, including the actions of human beings, are inevitable. It denies the existence of free will, propounding that people could never have made any other decision. In the 1990s/2000s a brother and sister grow up to be very close, until one day a violent and delusional young man attacks the brother, causing horrific injuries and psychological trauma. It doesn't seem like these storylines are related, however the lives do intersect and in very tragic ways, with long roots in the past.

When Celadon calls this book "deeply complex", they are not joking. It is a complex, multi-layered plot, with multiple points of view and multiple timelines. I confess I found it confusing and jarring at times, with the constant transitions from present to past in the various character storylines. There were some aspects I found a little tired - the weary cops always several steps behind and the husband who downplays the wife's fears - that elicited an eyeroll from me.

The brother and sister supposedly have great affection for each other, however we don't see much evidence of that. Some of the plot twists were brilliant, and the main antagonist is definitely diabolical to the very end, although I found the ending to be a letdown. It felt like a frantic tying-up of loose ends, with constant jumping around in time. I had to read it twice before it made sense to me.

Overall, I have to conclude that I felt indifferent to it at the end. I wasn't connected to the characters and I didn't feel like I had much of a stake in the outcomes. It felt a little wooden to me. That being said, I see many positive reviews and regular readers of Alex North seem to love it. Thank you to Celadon for an ARC to review.