THE SAFE PLACE

4 stars out of 5

When emotionally damaged people find each other and start to play games, it can be hard to find a winner. Such is the case here as three "adults" and one child - all with serious issues - come together trying to live in their own special world. Instead, they end up in a world of trouble.

Emily is a loser - if you don't believe that, just ask her. The actress wannabe just flubbed her umpteenth audition, lost her office temp job because she's so inept, and was  kicked out of her apartment - all in one day. What's more, she's  burned so many bridges between herself and her parents that she can't go home again. 

Her boss at the company that just fired her, Scott, is on the surface a highly successful financial CEO who's married to a beautiful wife, Nina. Nina and their mute young daughter, Aurelia are living in secretive luxury in France. Even as he brokers deals, though, Scott is terrified that something he's been trying to hide will spring up and destroy his precious family. Suddenly, he sees an opportunity, and its name is Emily. Yes, she's flawed; but Scott is convinced that they're the perfect flaws to complement those of his wife and daughter, and adding her to the family as his wife's personal assistant will bring the stability they all crave.

Or not. Yes, the vast property is eye-popping, the money flows freely and Emily is enchanted with Nina. Even the shy Aurelia takes a shine to Emily (more like a dull luster, but for this child, that's saying a lot). But the longer she lingers, the more Emily starts to think something's amiss (not the least of which is no access to WiFi or cell phone service). Nina's reaction to accidental visitors instills even more doubts in Emily's mind about what she's signed up for.

Also clear, though, is that if Emily asks too many questions - or ventures too far from the complex - the consequences may be dire. Put another way, she's not sure she really wants to stay, but she's afraid of what might happen if she tries to leave. All told, an intriguing, hard-to-stop-reading book, and I thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review an advance copy.

The Safe Place by Anna Downes (Minotaur Books, July 2020); 368 pp.