Tyler
Karras is newly married and planning to buy a house to start a family with his
wife when he learns that his brother Nick, who recently fell asleep at the
wheel, killing their parents and sister, has become involved with San
Francisco’s Russian mafia. Ty urges Nick to quit running errands for the
Russians—that is until his pregnant wife becomes the victim of a heartless
crime. Clouded by alcohol and anger, Ty asks the Russians for a simple
exchange: he’ll give them the woman responsible for his wife’s death if they
promise to free his brother from his debts. However, Ty makes a devastating
mistake: he kidnaps the wrong woman. Recently separated from her wealthy,
cheating husband, Hannah, instead of feeling like a helpless victim, purloins
her strength and independence and promises to help Ty.
The Mistaken is a success
in two distinct ways. First of all, it is a page-turning thriller with
fascinating plot twists that grip the reader. But secondly—and more
importantly—it is an intriguing look into what drives people to act in violent
ways. Ty is a seemingly stable and kind man at the start of the story, but the
unjust death of his wife and unborn child and the alcohol-fueled rage that
burns in him drive him to seek a sickening revenge. Sex-trafficking is a
horrific fate, even for the heartless woman who caused his wife’s death, but
Nancy Thompson paints a picture of Ty’s backstory and motivation to make the
reader understand his logic and to wish for his redemption in the end.
The
story is told in first person, mostly through Ty’s perspective, but the reader
often hears Hannah’s side of the story and even gets a glimpse of Ty’s wife’s
point of view before her death, which accentuates their relationship and fuels
the reader’s desire to see Ty’s enlightenment. In Hannah’s point of view, we
see a strong woman firm in her self-awareness, which removes altogether the
propensity for a damsel-in-distress type character, even though she is an
innocent victim. Her strength makes her likeable and inspiring.
If the
novel has one weakness, it is that in the beginning of the novel the
characters’ tragedies seem almost too numerous to be realistic, but the reader
is quickly swept up in the plot, and the characters are well drawn enough to
feel real in their own right. Though Hannah and the criminal woman being
doppelgangers may seem to be a bit of a plot device, it is necessary to the
story.
This
book bends the formula for the crime thriller genre—in only the good ways.
Nancy Thompson has a firm grasp on human motivation, what drives good people to
turn to the dark side—and what can bring them back. The Mistaken is an adrenaline-pulsing read.
