Traced by Catherine Jinks
I am a fan of both Jinks’ adult thrillers (Shelter, The attack, and her children’s stories (A very unusual pursuit, The reformed vampire support group), and am always keen to pick up another book written by her. Traced is set in the time of COVID, with Jane MacDonald working as a contact tracer who knows that there are people who don’t want to be contacted, because of varying reasons, one of them being domestic abuse. When Jane realises that one of the contacts is the man, Griffin Clynch, that she and her daughter Tara have been hiding from for years, things begin to become very difficult for her. She knows that she must warn Clynch’s partner to leave him but is also appalled when she realises that he lives very close to her. She must protect her daughter and herself.
Jinks takes the reader back and forwards from 2014 to 2020, relating the events that have led Jane and her daughter to change their names, occupations and location. The author is an expert a describing domestic abuse and coercive control, describing the stages that Clynch goes through with Tara, Jane’s daughter. He is initially charming, but gradually he manages to isolate his victim from friends and family, getting her to change jobs, lose confidence and eventually live in fear for her life. The feelings of the helplessness of Tara and his latest victim, Nicole, are described vividly, and it is easy to see how they could become ensnared by him, too afraid to ask for help. However, Jane is a strong person who battles to save her daughter and Jinks brings to life the feelings of a mother pushed to her limits.
The build up of suspense kept me reading to finish the book in a couple of sittings, as I feared that the abuser would find Jane and Tara and dreadful things would happen. And the terrifying climax could well keep readers up at night!
People who enjoy novels by Jane Harper may like to add Jinks’ repertoire of psychological thrillers to their reading list.
Themes: Domestic violence, Coercive control, Psychological thriller.
Pat Pledger
