Lee Allen's Blog - Posts Tagged "chris-whitaker"

We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


A powerful crime thriller that explores the fragmented nature of justice, penance and redemption.

On his release from prison, Vincent King returns to his hometown, collected at the prison gates by his old friend, now sheriff, Chief “Walk” Walker. Vincent was imprisoned when a young girl was killed thirty years earlier. The girl’s sister, Star Radley, also still resides in their hometown, living in the shadow of the past.

Star’s daughter, Duchess, only thirteen years old, often finds herself in the position of carer to her younger brother and to her mother, whose substance abuse and lack of stable employment endanger the stability of a family barely held together by a thread. The neighbours hover around Star like vultures, men who have no good intentions in mind.

Duchess strives to protect her mother from the predators at their door, unknowingly triggering a chain of tragic events with unforeseen consequences that may ultimately unstitch the fragile fabric of the past and leave only desolation in its wake.

‘We Begin at the End’ is a character-driven, epic tale, beginning with the smouldering embers of emotional trauma and slowly building to an intense, emotional inferno. Written in a style that perfectly evokes the detachment that comes with emotional trauma, while simultaneously shackled to the pain of history, its deep scars a constant reminder; the novel paints a tragic tapestry of childhoods lost and characters barely clinging to living a life, merely surviving from day to day. Whitaker introduces us to each of the players, immersing us into the story until we are as emotionally invested as the characters themselves.

Central characters Duchess, Vincent and Walk are particularly well-written, encouraging empathy even when you cannot agree with their actions. In many ways these three are, or should be, at odds with each other and in other ways so similar – each is on a journey, the end to which they have no control over; their focus on others rather than themselves, doing penance for sins that may not be their own, suffering for choices that were taken away from them. There are many hidden depths to the story that are not fully realised until the very end, with a final, tragic twist that is beautifully done and a denouement you can feel deep within your soul.

Moving and thought-provoking, ‘We Begin at the End’ is a superb, slow-burning drama that will continue to resonate with you long after you’ve read the final page.



View all my reviews
Visit me on Facebook
Follow me on Twitter
Follow me on Instagram