The Dead Ex - Jane Corry

The Dead Ex is from author Jane Corry.

Vicki is the main protagonist. She is an unreliable narrator, suffering from a faulty memory amongst other things. And she lies. When the police arrive at her door to question her about her dead husband's disappearance she is stunned. Surely they can't believe that she had anything to do with him or his disappearance. Or could she? What about his current wife Tanya? Scarlet and Zelda's stories are also told concurrently to Vicki's. Zena is a dealer and a con who uses her eight year old in her 'business.'

While I quite enjoy multiple storylines, I felt like this one went back and forth too long. Corry has indeed crafted connections between the two narratives. But I felt she tried to keep the reader guessing too long with much foreshadowing and many, many teasers. When the 'big' reveal came, I found myself underwhelmed. And without providing any spoilers, I had a hard time believing what had been alluded to. Vicki presents as far too scatterbrained and unprofessional to have been employed as she was. And given that background, the way she allows the police to treat her is completely ridiculous. On the flip side, her current health concerns do contribute to memory loss. I felt like I should be on team Vicki - but I couldn't get on board. I just didn't like her or empathize with her. Part Two gives us another female character to consider. And more actions that I had a hard time buying. I persevered and made it the end, but had pretty much lost interest by this point.

I've enjoyed Corry's previous books, but this one fell flat for me. Here's an excerpt of The Dead Ex.