Raven Lane

Written by Amber Cowie

Narrated by Emily Sutton-Smith

The truth can bring out the worst in the best of friends.

Esme and Benedict Werner have an idyllic life in a tight-knit community until an accident in their cul-de-sac ends in the tragic sudden death of one of their dearest neighbors. After vindicating eyewitness accounts morph into contradictory memories, suspicion, and unaccountable accusations, Benedict is arrested. Esme’s life, too, is changed forever.

As the neighborhood largely turns against her and her family, Esme has time to think about her past and what to do next. Then her fellow residents start looking deeper, questioning one another, and themselves, about hidden lies and betrayals.

Esme has more than her share of secrets. And the consequences of what happened on that fateful late-summer evening on Raven Lane are far from over. When the mask of civility slips, can friends and neighbors recover from seeing the monstrous truths beneath?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio
• Release date: Nov 12, 2019
• ISBN: 9781799749080

Amber Cowie

Amber Cowie is a novelist living in a small town on the west coast of British Columbia. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Salon, The Globe and Mail, CrimeReads, and Scary Mommy. Her first novel, Rapid Falls, was a Whistler Book Awards nominee. She holds a history degree from the University of Victoria and is a mother of two. She likes skiing, running, and inventing stories that make for a questionable internet search history. Visit her at AmberCowie.com or on Twitter and Instagram @AmberCowie.

Reviews for Raven Lane

[irenecole · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Drugs, family dysfunction, and sexcapades of the semi wealthy and formerly famous play a big role in this domestic drama. I had high hopes for this one and while it started out well enough the pace was rather slow and the story dragged out longer than necessary. I would have enjoyed it more if any of the main characters had been likable. Perhaps others may enjoy it more than I did, I didn't really feel invested in the outcome.

I received an advance copy for review.

[cherylk_44 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I liked this book. There were enough good things about it to keep me reading until the end. Although, I do wish that the "intensity" level was higher. The people of Raven Lane did have many secrets. They are not the "perfect" neighbors that they want you to think they are. Example is Esme and Benedict. They may seem like they are a good couple but when Benedict is arrested for murder; their world comes crumbling down around them including their skeletons in the closet. As the story progresses; the secrets are revealed. While, I did like this book and the characters were fine; as I stated before the "intensity" level is what I found lacking. There was not enough to make me "gasp" in shock. As you might expect from a thriller. As I got to know the neighbors, I really would not want to be their friends. The conclusion to this book was a bit of a letdown.

[susan.h.schofield · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This is normally the kind of book I love - a good domestic drama with just a little suspense and mystery mixed in. But the characters were so wholly unlikable and dynamic of the street was just too hard to believe. It opens when Benedict accidentally hits their neighbor, the famous author Torn Grace (an awful character name), as he backs out of his driveway. From there things get very messy as he is soon suspected after his wife's Esme's affair with Torn is revealed. Everybody seemed to be in everybody else's business yet nobody knew what was really going on with their spouse or in Kitty's case her child. Kitty was so annoying and domineering - she was worse than an HOA with all her rules for the street. Benedict was a jerk and Esme did not end up being the good person she was made out to be. I was suspicious of Anthony from the beginning - something about him seemed off. I did not like the book within a book feature - it was difficult to tell when Esme was reading Torn's book because there was nothing to distinguish it from the rest of the book like a font change or italics. I also found it unbelievable that Benedict's lawyer were tell them to make up a story about their marriage and lie in court as part of his defense. There were a little of things mentioned that never really went anywhere - Benedict's business partner, Jose, the red string around Julia's wrist, what really happened to Esme's missing phone.I received a digital ARC of this book from NetGalley.