Pictures of You by Caroline Leavitt
On a foggy, desolate American country road two cars collide, in doing so bringing together the lives of their inhabitants and casting light on the hidden truths that brought them there in the first place.
Isabelle is a young woman who married young, driving a wedge between herself and her biological family. She reluctantly abandoned one life at the promise of everything she wanted from another, only to find tragedy and disappointment at every step from then on. April is a mother of one in an apparently happy and stable marriage. Isabelle survives the crash; April does not.
Pictures of You follows life in the immediate aftermath of the crash for Isabelle, who is haunted by grief, blame and the media. It also introduces Charlie and Sam, respectively the widower and child of April, as they struggle to make sense of the situation and establish what might have caused it.
The eight year-old Sam knows more about the tragedy than he first lets on, and his feelings of guilt about the crash make him reluctant to share the truth with his oblivious father.
Isabelle eventually attempts to reclaim her life, but finds herself inadvertently drawn into the world of Sam and Charlie. Isabelle and Sam bond over a mutual love of photography, but Charlie is furious that the person who – blamelessly or otherwise – caused the death of his wife could have any part in the life of his son.
I really enjoyed reading this book, difficult as it was at times. Like any tale born of disaster, Pictures of You is characterised by high emotions, feelings of guilt and the difficult process of forgiveness.
Each of the main characters played a different part in the accident, but as the story progresses we realise that events were far from clear-cut. We see Isabelle, Sam and Charlie at their most tortured and their most exuberant, acting with kindness one moment and selfishness the next. We learn more about the deceased April, too, including clues about her mental state that might explain her actions prior to the start of the story.
Pictures of You is a great read for anyone who loves a good dramatic tragedy. Though the story is set over the course of several years and contains numerous twists and shocks, it remained believable and never once seemed to drag. The characters were suitably flawed and contained genuine depth, and Leavitt ties the story up without need for exasperating clichés or neat little bows.
Published next week by Allen & Unwin, you can pre-order the paperback for £6.99, or get the Kindle edition for £6.84.
Rating: 4/5
Recommended for: Those who enjoy emotional, dramatic tragedy with believable characters.
Matt Pitman
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