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Red Leaves
Eric Moore has a prosperous business, a comfortable home, a stable family life in a quiet town. Then, on an ordinary night, his teenage son Keith babysits Amy Giordano, the eight-year-old daughter of a neighboring family. The next morning Amy is missing, and Eric isn't sure his son is innocent.
In his desperate attempt to hold his family together by proving his - and the community's - suspicions wrong, Eric finds himself in a vortex of doubt and broken trust. What should he make of Keith's strange behavior? Of his wife's furtive phone calls to a colleague? Of his brother's hints that he knows things he's afraid to say?
In a "heart-wrenching and gut-wrenching" (New York Daily News) race against time and mistrust, Eric must discover what has happened to Amy Giordano and face the long-buried family secrets he has so carefully ignored.
In his desperate attempt to hold his family together by proving his - and the community's - suspicions wrong, Eric finds himself in a vortex of doubt and broken trust. What should he make of Keith's strange behavior? Of his wife's furtive phone calls to a colleague? Of his brother's hints that he knows things he's afraid to say?
In a "heart-wrenching and gut-wrenching" (New York Daily News) race against time and mistrust, Eric must discover what has happened to Amy Giordano and face the long-buried family secrets he has so carefully ignored.
300 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
180 people are currently reading
1903 people want to read
About the author
Thomas H. Cook
96 books353 followersThere is more than one author with this name on Goodreads.
Thomas H. Cook has been praised by critics for his attention to psychology and the lyrical nature of his prose. He is the author of more than 30 critically-acclaimed fiction books, including works of true crime. Cook published his first novel, Blood Innocents, in 1980. Cook published steadily through the 1980s, penning such works as the Frank Clemons trilogy, a series of mysteries starring a jaded cop.
He found breakout success with The Chatham School Affair (1996), which won an Edgar Award for best novel. Besides mysteries, Cook has written two true-crime books including the Edgar-nominated Blood Echoes (1993). He lives and works in New York City.
Awards
Edgar Allan Poe – Best Novel – The Chatham School Affair
Barry Award – Best Novel – Red Leaves
Martin Beck Award of the Swedish Academy of Detection – The Chatham School Affair
Martin Beck Award of the Swedish Academy of Detection – Red Leaves
Herodotus Prize – Fatherhood
Thomas H. Cook has been praised by critics for his attention to psychology and the lyrical nature of his prose. He is the author of more than 30 critically-acclaimed fiction books, including works of true crime. Cook published his first novel, Blood Innocents, in 1980. Cook published steadily through the 1980s, penning such works as the Frank Clemons trilogy, a series of mysteries starring a jaded cop.
He found breakout success with The Chatham School Affair (1996), which won an Edgar Award for best novel. Besides mysteries, Cook has written two true-crime books including the Edgar-nominated Blood Echoes (1993). He lives and works in New York City.
Awards
Edgar Allan Poe – Best Novel – The Chatham School Affair
Barry Award – Best Novel – Red Leaves
Martin Beck Award of the Swedish Academy of Detection – The Chatham School Affair
Martin Beck Award of the Swedish Academy of Detection – Red Leaves
Herodotus Prize – Fatherhood
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 430 reviews
December 26, 2015
Okay so I found this book at the bottom of a stack of already read books at a yard sale a couple of doors down from where I live. It was clear to me from the get go that it had not been read by anyone in the family of it’s current home, it’s pristine condition leaving no doubt on that score. I quickly handed over my toonie and absconded with my find.
It is an ordinary story, about an ordinary family caught up in an extraordinary event. Very sparsely written from the POV of Eric, the father whose teenage son, babysat an eight year old girl one night; an eight year old girl who is missing the following morning.
Eric tells us then, what unfolds over the following days as the search for Amy, the missing girl continues.
I remember Stephen King talking about the nakedness of one of his Bachman stories, without even a rug on the floor, he said. Eric’s story is like that but it also makes me think of whip cream, the thick, viscous liquid you can pour into a bowl. Until you beat it and beat it until finally it becomes so thick it is standing in peaks and can no longer be poured. Ever again.
Thomas Cook says so little and I hear so much!
Gripping, powerful, provocative stuff.
It is an ordinary story, about an ordinary family caught up in an extraordinary event. Very sparsely written from the POV of Eric, the father whose teenage son, babysat an eight year old girl one night; an eight year old girl who is missing the following morning.
Eric tells us then, what unfolds over the following days as the search for Amy, the missing girl continues.
I remember Stephen King talking about the nakedness of one of his Bachman stories, without even a rug on the floor, he said. Eric’s story is like that but it also makes me think of whip cream, the thick, viscous liquid you can pour into a bowl. Until you beat it and beat it until finally it becomes so thick it is standing in peaks and can no longer be poured. Ever again.
Thomas Cook says so little and I hear so much!
Gripping, powerful, provocative stuff.
April 9, 2022
I've found myself referring to this book recently on this site and now realise that I read it so long ago I hadn't posted a review. So, given the time gap, this is really just a few thoughts I associate with this excellent novel.
- It's the only full length book I've ever read in a day. Strictly speaking it wasn't all in one sitting: I was travelling, by train, from Devon to London for a meeting and I got so embroiled in it I was upset when I reached Paddington and had to stop reading. The Tube was too packed to contemplate giving it a go and I was therefore forced to wait until my return journey. I was nearly to the end when the train pulled in to my home station. I hurried home and finished it before doing anything else. I have no recollection of the meeting I attended or of anything else that day.
- I'll not go into the plot other than to say the book walks us through a period in the life of a family at at time the parents are trying to cope with the fact that their son is accused of a murder. Did he do it? Well, that's a big question and as I read the book my thoughts flowed first one way and then the other on this point. The suspense is maintained superbly and the ending is one that still sticks in my mind. For days after I could think of little else.
- It's a book I've recommended to loads of friends (something I seldom do) and to my knowledge they all enjoyed it. And when I think about the most memorable books I've read this one certainly sits in the top ten.
- I've subsequently read a few more books from this author and I do like his style, but none have matched the tension and sheer impact of this one.
- It's the only full length book I've ever read in a day. Strictly speaking it wasn't all in one sitting: I was travelling, by train, from Devon to London for a meeting and I got so embroiled in it I was upset when I reached Paddington and had to stop reading. The Tube was too packed to contemplate giving it a go and I was therefore forced to wait until my return journey. I was nearly to the end when the train pulled in to my home station. I hurried home and finished it before doing anything else. I have no recollection of the meeting I attended or of anything else that day.
- I'll not go into the plot other than to say the book walks us through a period in the life of a family at at time the parents are trying to cope with the fact that their son is accused of a murder. Did he do it? Well, that's a big question and as I read the book my thoughts flowed first one way and then the other on this point. The suspense is maintained superbly and the ending is one that still sticks in my mind. For days after I could think of little else.
- It's a book I've recommended to loads of friends (something I seldom do) and to my knowledge they all enjoyed it. And when I think about the most memorable books I've read this one certainly sits in the top ten.
- I've subsequently read a few more books from this author and I do like his style, but none have matched the tension and sheer impact of this one.
June 28, 2015
Eric Moore runs a frame and photo shop. For years, he has prepared carefully framed portraits and created collages of family photos for his customers. Picture frames holding snapshots of lives frozen, untouchable, and in that moment, immune to what may come in the future. Soon, his own family begins to fall apart in the wake of a little girl who has gone missing. His son comes under suspicion and we are called to question just how well we know the people in our lives.
'It's what people do in families, isn't it? They love people they don't like.'
The author's writing style appealed to me for this type of a story. Plain, to the point, and right on task. He sustains the suspense and general feeling of unease and carries it throughout the book. Good read!
'It's what people do in families, isn't it? They love people they don't like.'
The author's writing style appealed to me for this type of a story. Plain, to the point, and right on task. He sustains the suspense and general feeling of unease and carries it throughout the book. Good read!
May 20, 2025
3.5 stars
As the book opens, Eric Moore is a relatively contented man. He owns a camera shop that sells photographic merchandise, develops film, and frames photos;
he's married to a community college English teacher named Meredith;
and he and Meredith have a 17-year-old son named Keith. Keith is a quiet boy who spends his spare time playing computer games, taking walks around the town, and occasionally making deliveries for his dad's store.
Camera shop owner Eric had higher ambitions as a youth, but his hopes were derailed by a difficult upbringing. Eric's father was a cruel narcissist who bankrupted the family with bad financial investments and the purchase of luxuries - like custom made suits and fine wines - for himself.
Meanwhile, Eric's mother was cowed by her spouse, and scrimped to feed the children and to clothe them from thrift shops.
On top of all that, Eric's beloved little sister died from a brain tumor.
Eric's selfish father, who's still a nasty curmudgeon, is now in a retirement home; and Eric's mother is long gone, having died when her car went off a bridge. The legacy of all this is an ordinary life for Eric and a troubled life for Eric's brother Warren. Warren was the butt of their father's disdain, constantly being told he was useless and wouldn't amount to anything. As it turns out, Warren is an alcoholic who works sporadically as a house painter.
Things are about to change for the Moore family, and not in a good way. One evening, the Moores' neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. Giordano, ask teenage Keith to babysit their 8-year-old daughter Amy. Keith - who's babysat Amy before - agrees, and he watches the child while the Giordanos go out to dinner. The Giordanos return at around 10 PM, Keith leaves, and the next morning, little Amy is missing!
The Giordanos are immediately suspicious of Keith, and their concerns are shared by the police, who interview the boy again and again. Eric and Meredith insist their son had nothing to do with Amy's disappearance, but Eric isn't absolutely 100% sure and his ambivalence is felt by both his son and wife.
Eric's brother Warren, who bunked with Keith while recovering from surgery, sticks up for his nephew, insisting Keith would never hurt a little girl.
Meanwhile, Keith is viewed askance by the townsfolk; and Mr. Giordano - who's beside himself with worry and fear - threatens violence if Keith doesn't 'come clean.' Meanwhile Keith keeps insisting he had nothing to do with Amy's disappearance, and his behavior becomes increasingly erratic as suspicion and questions pile up on him.
As things devolve, Eric becomes more and more troubled.
He's worried about his son Keith; plagued by memories of his dysfunctional family; thinks his wife may be having an affair; is sick of his brother's drinking and fecklessness; and cringes during his weekly visits to his dad's retirement home.
Things play out as they will, and by the end of the book, the mystery is resolved.
I was engaged by the story, which is crafty and suspenseful. My major critique would be that the characters sometimes behave unrealistically, but it's a novel after all.
Recommended to fans of mysteries.
You can follow my reviews at https://reviewsbybarbsaffer.blogspot.com
February 28, 2023
Impactante.
May 20, 2019
Muy buen libro!
Un libro adictivo. Me lo he leido en un día!!
Narrado en primera persona, es un libro íntimo, reflexivo donde el protagonista nos va relatando los hechos acontecidos en varios horizontes temporales y que afectaron profundamente a su entorno y su familia.
No busques grandes giros, ni escenas viscerales y sangrientas detalladas en este libro. Es una obra con pocos diálogos, que te atrapa en ese casi monólogo del protagonista. Vas sospechando el drama que se avecina, pero aún así no puedes soltar el libro.
Qué mala es la duda y la sospecha, que poco a poco va corroyendo y destruyéndolo todo.
Totalmente recomendable su lectura!!
Valoración: 9/10
Lectura: agosto/2018
Un libro adictivo. Me lo he leido en un día!!
Narrado en primera persona, es un libro íntimo, reflexivo donde el protagonista nos va relatando los hechos acontecidos en varios horizontes temporales y que afectaron profundamente a su entorno y su familia.
No busques grandes giros, ni escenas viscerales y sangrientas detalladas en este libro. Es una obra con pocos diálogos, que te atrapa en ese casi monólogo del protagonista. Vas sospechando el drama que se avecina, pero aún así no puedes soltar el libro.
Qué mala es la duda y la sospecha, que poco a poco va corroyendo y destruyéndolo todo.
Totalmente recomendable su lectura!!
Valoración: 9/10
Lectura: agosto/2018
September 1, 2013
There are few writers out there as capable of writing of the flawed and delicate nature of human condition as Thomas H. Cook. He doesn't resort to verbosity or poeticisms, he utilizes fairly sparse prose and a phenomenal astuteness of observation to capture the dynamics of families, marriages, parent and child relationships in a way that's absolutely captivating. He also can tell a great story, suspenseful and smart, thrilling and very very moving. When a teenage boy gets accused of a crime, his father, a man armed or, more accurately, shielded by Cook's customary main character aloofness enjoying his perfectly normal small town life, is forced to reexamine his relationship with his son, his wife, his brother...suddenly neither the past nor the present are what they seemed and there are secrets, terrible secrets threatening to tear away the very fabric of his existence. Family, Cook's character observes, is loving people you don't like...a perfect example of Cook's astuteness I spoke of earlier. There is nothing quite as frustrating, debilitating and soulsucking as familial bonds. Defying all logic, people will voluntarily surround themselves and deal with human beings that would under normal circumstances never even go near. There is a particular brand of unhappiness these bonds can bring, as can any love really, and this book is a fine example of such a tragedy. Or maybe it's about how well do we really know people we love. Both probably. Anyway, this is an absolutely phenomenal book both as a drama and a thriller right down to its emotionally staggering ending. Highly recommended.
May 13, 2015
Supposing your teenage son is under suspicion when an eight year old girl disappears, especially since he was baby sitting her the night before her disappearance? This is the situation facing Eric and his wife Meredith, with their son Keith.
Despite a smattering of the F word and the fact that I didn’t like the main character, Eric I found this a compelling read. Even given his own history, I did find it strange though how easily, to my mind, Eric seemed to accept his son’s guilt. Yet he remained blind to other family problems from his past and within his current situation. Still, the story got me in and I was thoroughly involved all the way, until towards the end, when for me it all fell apart. Maybe other people will have different ideas, but I had several issues about the end, which I can’t go into without giving too much away. Suffice to say that what I anticipated being at least a 4, probably 4.5 star read got marked down. Will leave it at 3 because the rest was so good but the ending wrecked it for me. Readers will have to make up their own minds about this ending and whether it worked. I felt it was a cop out
Another point which I thought was worth mentioning is I would never have gone out, left a child with a babysitter and then not looked in on her when I got home. Maybe that’s just me. The cover of this book is gorgeous and the reason I picked this book up initially.
Despite a smattering of the F word and the fact that I didn’t like the main character, Eric I found this a compelling read. Even given his own history, I did find it strange though how easily, to my mind, Eric seemed to accept his son’s guilt. Yet he remained blind to other family problems from his past and within his current situation. Still, the story got me in and I was thoroughly involved all the way, until towards the end, when for me it all fell apart. Maybe other people will have different ideas, but I had several issues about the end, which I can’t go into without giving too much away. Suffice to say that what I anticipated being at least a 4, probably 4.5 star read got marked down. Will leave it at 3 because the rest was so good but the ending wrecked it for me. Readers will have to make up their own minds about this ending and whether it worked. I felt it was a cop out
Another point which I thought was worth mentioning is I would never have gone out, left a child with a babysitter and then not looked in on her when I got home. Maybe that’s just me. The cover of this book is gorgeous and the reason I picked this book up initially.
April 11, 2022
PASS ON THIS ONE
Tragedy befalls Eric Moore’s small town life when eight year old Amy Giordano disappears from her home. Suspicion immediately centers on Eric’s adolescent son Keith, who was Amy’s baby-sitter on that fateful night and the last person to see young Amy before she disappeared – we think.
This is the first of many problems with this book. Not only does no one know when Amy was last seen – no one even has the sense to ask. Amy’s parents return from their night out on the town, Keith the baby-sitter leaves and the following morning Amy is gone with no one having checked on her until she doesn’t show up at the breakfast table.
After this credibility gap I had immense trouble buying much else in this book which I believe is an attempt to portray how everyday life for an everyday family in an everyday town can be turned up-side down when once in a lifetime circumstances shatter their idyllic existence.
Eric passively watches the town prey upon his son – and even he suspects poor Keith of the worst. His loving wife is a shrew with little or no maternal instincts and even the less than satisfying ending left me wondering why I bothered finishing this book. At best Red Leaves would make a mediocre short story – as a 300 page novel it fails completely.
Tragedy befalls Eric Moore’s small town life when eight year old Amy Giordano disappears from her home. Suspicion immediately centers on Eric’s adolescent son Keith, who was Amy’s baby-sitter on that fateful night and the last person to see young Amy before she disappeared – we think.
This is the first of many problems with this book. Not only does no one know when Amy was last seen – no one even has the sense to ask. Amy’s parents return from their night out on the town, Keith the baby-sitter leaves and the following morning Amy is gone with no one having checked on her until she doesn’t show up at the breakfast table.
After this credibility gap I had immense trouble buying much else in this book which I believe is an attempt to portray how everyday life for an everyday family in an everyday town can be turned up-side down when once in a lifetime circumstances shatter their idyllic existence.
Eric passively watches the town prey upon his son – and even he suspects poor Keith of the worst. His loving wife is a shrew with little or no maternal instincts and even the less than satisfying ending left me wondering why I bothered finishing this book. At best Red Leaves would make a mediocre short story – as a 300 page novel it fails completely.
November 26, 2015
Writing style? Great. Pacing? Also excellent? Challenge? I couldn't relate to the protagonist and, in fact, he frustrated me from start to finish. Every other character was authentic, although we view them as Eric, the main character, views them. But Eric? I wanted to grab him by the shoulders and shake him until he did something sensible from page 1 forward. Still - Red Leaves is an uber-quick read, so . . .decide for yourself.
November 6, 2025
3.5 if I could. This is a very fast paced mystery. Very sad story of a teenager accused of kidnapping a young girl he was babysitting. The story is narrated by the teen’s father. The author kept the tension high throughout the book. The ending surprised me and like I mentioned above - extremely sad, as a young girls’s kidnapping would be, but the aftermath (which I won’t spoil of course) is truly heartbreaking.
April 19, 2024
This is gripping, compelling, tragic and very well written. It will stay with me for some time.
February 25, 2009
I was about halfway through this book when I noticed one of the quotes on the back. "Thomas Cook," it said, "writes like a wounded angel." What the hell does that actually mean? My husband did a marvellous imitation of an angel staggering around clutching an open stomach wound while typing, but I don't think that was the idea. Anyway, I have no idea what about this book stirred up such passionate (if idiotic) imagery. I found it really mediocre.
The leaves metaphor was really carried too far - yes, you've called your book "Red Leaves", and it's set in autumn. This does not mean that every second page you must work in some reference to leaves. People's eyes fluttered closed with the sadness of falling leaves, family photographs (our main character works developing photographs) fall off the counter like... well, like falling leaves. And so on and so forth. It was like a desperate attempt to be "literary", and it really didn't work.
The story itself - dull. Man's misfit teenage son is accused of abducting the child he was babysitting. Man wonders if he actually ever liked teenage son, or himself, or his brother. Or his wife. I woudn't be surprised if none of these people actually liked him, because every time they have a conversation with him he's holding such an intense interior monologue about them I'm surprised he can still function in the real world. I have had a bad run of books with terrible interior monologues recently.
The ending is as dull as the rest of it - bah, a failure from start to finish, and without even the satisfaction of being terrible enough to invoke the sort of spitting rage that something like "Breaking Dawn" does, for example. I think I'd almost rather read something really terrible than something dull.
The leaves metaphor was really carried too far - yes, you've called your book "Red Leaves", and it's set in autumn. This does not mean that every second page you must work in some reference to leaves. People's eyes fluttered closed with the sadness of falling leaves, family photographs (our main character works developing photographs) fall off the counter like... well, like falling leaves. And so on and so forth. It was like a desperate attempt to be "literary", and it really didn't work.
The story itself - dull. Man's misfit teenage son is accused of abducting the child he was babysitting. Man wonders if he actually ever liked teenage son, or himself, or his brother. Or his wife. I woudn't be surprised if none of these people actually liked him, because every time they have a conversation with him he's holding such an intense interior monologue about them I'm surprised he can still function in the real world. I have had a bad run of books with terrible interior monologues recently.
The ending is as dull as the rest of it - bah, a failure from start to finish, and without even the satisfaction of being terrible enough to invoke the sort of spitting rage that something like "Breaking Dawn" does, for example. I think I'd almost rather read something really terrible than something dull.
May 18, 2021
One of my daughters gave me this book for Mother’s Day and I’m so very glad she did. I love a good page turner mystery, and this definitely fits that category. I’ll be checking to see what other novels by Cook pique my interest.
In this book, an 8 year old girl is abducted from her bedroom in the middle of the night. The prime suspect is their neighbor, a teenage boy who babysat her the night she disappeared. His father is the narrator of the story, struggling to completely believe in his son’s innocence as small things come to light. During this time, he also begins to question some of his memories of his own childhood regarding the loss of his mother and sister. Essentially, there is bonus mini-mystery within the book as well.
I definitely recommend this book. It’s a quick read that will keep your interest from beginning to end.
In this book, an 8 year old girl is abducted from her bedroom in the middle of the night. The prime suspect is their neighbor, a teenage boy who babysat her the night she disappeared. His father is the narrator of the story, struggling to completely believe in his son’s innocence as small things come to light. During this time, he also begins to question some of his memories of his own childhood regarding the loss of his mother and sister. Essentially, there is bonus mini-mystery within the book as well.
I definitely recommend this book. It’s a quick read that will keep your interest from beginning to end.
February 9, 2024
I was hooked from the beginning and never expected the ending. Well done in my opinion.
October 7, 2010
What you think you may see is not always what actually is...
Eric Moore, the narrator of the story, is married with a teenage son, Keith. Eric owns and runs a small film-developing business in town, and his wife teaches at the local community college. They live in a nice quiet home, private and secluded. But the pretty picture that is their family begins to shatter when a little girl goes missing, a girl for whom Keith had been babysitting just the night before. Predictably, the police focus their attention on Keith, and it's not long before even Eric finds himself mired in suspicions of his only son.
This is my first time reading Thomas H. Cook, and I really liked his writing. This one is relatively short (289 pages) and keeps your interest, so it's perfect for reading over the course of an autumn weekend. I found it tragic, moving, heartrending, and mysterious.
Eric Moore, the narrator of the story, is married with a teenage son, Keith. Eric owns and runs a small film-developing business in town, and his wife teaches at the local community college. They live in a nice quiet home, private and secluded. But the pretty picture that is their family begins to shatter when a little girl goes missing, a girl for whom Keith had been babysitting just the night before. Predictably, the police focus their attention on Keith, and it's not long before even Eric finds himself mired in suspicions of his only son.
This is my first time reading Thomas H. Cook, and I really liked his writing. This one is relatively short (289 pages) and keeps your interest, so it's perfect for reading over the course of an autumn weekend. I found it tragic, moving, heartrending, and mysterious.
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April 12, 2017
This is definitely a page turner. I had no major annoyances. The prose is probably somewhat better than can be expected for the genre. It fulfilled my expectation of a plot-driven novel which was not read for stellar characterization. I thought that it held no surprises, and, though I did correctly guess one thing that was a surprise to the first person narrator, I did not guess the ending.
I chose this because it filled a spot in a challenge where I was reading award winners. The author was new to me. It was definitely good enough I would happily read another by him, even though this genre isn't my usual fare. A good, solid 3-stars which for this genre is not just OK, but might equate to a 4-star for a more literary read.
I chose this because it filled a spot in a challenge where I was reading award winners. The author was new to me. It was definitely good enough I would happily read another by him, even though this genre isn't my usual fare. A good, solid 3-stars which for this genre is not just OK, but might equate to a 4-star for a more literary read.
November 27, 2018
Amazing book. Cook's writing and pacing is perfection. He takes the mystery genre to an entirely new, rich level!
June 19, 2017
This is a powerful and uneasy book about a family surrounded by suspicion and lies. Eric Moore is our narrator and his honest and painfully raw account of a terrible event that occurs when his teenage son Kevin babysits Amy, an eight year old neighbour, and the following morning she is discovered missing.
Living with a secretive, mono-syllabic teenager isn't easy at the best of times, but when your teenager is then accused of unspeakable things and does very little to persuade you of his innocence, the tension in the story really heats up. It's a page turner which an ending which caught me out.
Living with a secretive, mono-syllabic teenager isn't easy at the best of times, but when your teenager is then accused of unspeakable things and does very little to persuade you of his innocence, the tension in the story really heats up. It's a page turner which an ending which caught me out.
August 12, 2013
One of the most fascinating parts of Red Leaves was the developing psychosis of the main character Eric. As he learns more about the situation his family, and more specifically Keith, has been caught up in he becomes increasingly suspicious about everything and everyone. This is further intensified by him learning details about his family that he had managed to ignore or refuse to see when he was younger, it causes him to start questioning everything he though he knew about his life and what his family is capable of. He doesn’t trust his brother, his wife, his father and he especially does not trust his son. The further he sinks into this constant skepticism the more paranoid he becomes, creating scenarios where there are none and making details out of the past that never existed. Red Leaves shows how when the cracks start to show in the foundation how easy it truly is for everything to fall apart.
The writing style choice by Cook was very risky in my mind but it worked after I got over the initial surprise. When I began the book I couldn’t quite pinpoint what felt so off, but after a few pages it dawned on me, Red Leaves is written in a passive voice. One of the things English teachers will tell you about writing right away (or at least this was the case with mine) is that you want to write in an active voice, writing passively can cause disconnect between the reader and writer as well as a myriad of other issues. When you reach the end of the book the reasoning for this style choice is made apparent, though I’m not sure it couldn’t have been avoided if Cook had wanted to. It does take getting used to but I don’t think it hindered Red Leaves at all.
The plot was wonderful and easily the highlight of the book, though I don’t say that to demean the other facets, it just is the strongest for me. By using the psychosis Eric goes through as the book progresses it keeps the reader from determining who might have been behind Amy’s disappearance. It forces you to try and make your own assertions, deducing which of Eric’s paranoid discoveries are real and impactful on the case and which are just delusions his troubled mind has created. Along the way the characters around Eric, from his wife to his son and even to Amy’s father and Eric’s brother Warren, all change and transform in front of Eric’s eyes as well as the reader’s but in different ways. While Eric sees everyone behind a lens of suspicion the reader has a slightly clearer view, but even still Cook is masterful in hiding what really happened leaving all options open to the reader’s interpretation.
My main complaint about the book is the ending. Part of it did not surprise me but the “who done it” reveal was disappointing to say the least. It left me feeling like all the emotions I had built up for the characters and the desire I had to finally determine who was the guilty party was for nothing. Though characters were impacted they were not done so nearly as much as they could or should have been. It felt like a cop out which was terribly disappointing after the vast majority of the book had been so thrilling. Overall though I did enjoy Red Leaves and I think it is a solid mystery/thriller.
Rating: 3.5/5
The writing style choice by Cook was very risky in my mind but it worked after I got over the initial surprise. When I began the book I couldn’t quite pinpoint what felt so off, but after a few pages it dawned on me, Red Leaves is written in a passive voice. One of the things English teachers will tell you about writing right away (or at least this was the case with mine) is that you want to write in an active voice, writing passively can cause disconnect between the reader and writer as well as a myriad of other issues. When you reach the end of the book the reasoning for this style choice is made apparent, though I’m not sure it couldn’t have been avoided if Cook had wanted to. It does take getting used to but I don’t think it hindered Red Leaves at all.
The plot was wonderful and easily the highlight of the book, though I don’t say that to demean the other facets, it just is the strongest for me. By using the psychosis Eric goes through as the book progresses it keeps the reader from determining who might have been behind Amy’s disappearance. It forces you to try and make your own assertions, deducing which of Eric’s paranoid discoveries are real and impactful on the case and which are just delusions his troubled mind has created. Along the way the characters around Eric, from his wife to his son and even to Amy’s father and Eric’s brother Warren, all change and transform in front of Eric’s eyes as well as the reader’s but in different ways. While Eric sees everyone behind a lens of suspicion the reader has a slightly clearer view, but even still Cook is masterful in hiding what really happened leaving all options open to the reader’s interpretation.
My main complaint about the book is the ending. Part of it did not surprise me but the “who done it” reveal was disappointing to say the least. It left me feeling like all the emotions I had built up for the characters and the desire I had to finally determine who was the guilty party was for nothing. Though characters were impacted they were not done so nearly as much as they could or should have been. It felt like a cop out which was terribly disappointing after the vast majority of the book had been so thrilling. Overall though I did enjoy Red Leaves and I think it is a solid mystery/thriller.
Rating: 3.5/5
September 20, 2013
This is pretty much exactly what a soap opera would look like transcribed into a literary form. I don't mean everyone is banging one another and there's some long lost uncle brother who starts an affair; I mean the character's actions are laughable - just pure overly dramatic nonsense. I can certainly understand how a writer gets caught up in a moment, in an emotion they are trying to channel, but often that happens at the expense of logic. Eric's wife is introduced as a normal person, but the next morning she is a miraculous, illogical bitch. The entire conversation Eric has with her is some bizarre, poorly written and clunky metaphor for their current situation. She dramatically (and for no reason) turns away from him and suddenly begins discussing the seasons - something I, at least, have never had happen to me. All of the dialogue is forced, completely nonsensical, and ridiculous. It reminds me a lot of an often mocked line from Star Wars II - Attack of the Clones.
"I don't like sand. It's coarse and rough and irritating... and it gets everywhere."
That was a horrid attempt to remind the viewers of past tragedy, just as this book continually tries, in no small number of bad ways, to allude to the troubles and mystery the characters are facing. It is the epitome of stretching dialogue to try and fit an idea, which is pretty much the opposite of what dialogue should be - which is natural and flowing.
"I don't like sand. It's coarse and rough and irritating... and it gets everywhere."
That was a horrid attempt to remind the viewers of past tragedy, just as this book continually tries, in no small number of bad ways, to allude to the troubles and mystery the characters are facing. It is the epitome of stretching dialogue to try and fit an idea, which is pretty much the opposite of what dialogue should be - which is natural and flowing.
April 19, 2008
I got through two discs (listening in the car), and I don't understand why Amy's parents didn't check in on her when they got home that night. I just don't buy it. That would have saved the entire cloud of suspicion around the boy, and I don't understand why nobody ASKED them right away if they checked in on her when they got home.
Frankly, the narrative was too long-winded for me to even care about how it was resolved. I was mildly interested in the idea that the question of his son's innocence slowly seeps into the father's doubts, and eats away at him, but the character wasn't deep enough, or the plot wasn't fast enough for me to stick with it.
Frankly, the narrative was too long-winded for me to even care about how it was resolved. I was mildly interested in the idea that the question of his son's innocence slowly seeps into the father's doubts, and eats away at him, but the character wasn't deep enough, or the plot wasn't fast enough for me to stick with it.
October 20, 2011
Thomas H. Cook elevates the mystery genre to the level of literature with his poetic prose and exploration of philosophical dilemmas. While the plot revolves around a little girl's disappearance, the real subject is the corrosive effects of suspicion. Symbolically, the narrator owns a camera shop, and his desire to "frame" events rather than see them clearly wreaks more havoc than the crime itself. The central mystery is solved but others raised along the way are not, leaving us with the cautionary message that our choice of interpretive lens has the power to influence reality.
June 14, 2019
This is more a novel about a family member being a suspect of a crime than a mystery.
Eric Moore’s life is changing when his son becomes a suspect of abducting or even mutdering Amy, a girl he had been babysitting. You follow the anguish in a family, when their child is a suspect.
Eric’s childhood and teenage memorires are also described in fladhbacks.
I was a little disapointed of the end.
Eric Moore’s life is changing when his son becomes a suspect of abducting or even mutdering Amy, a girl he had been babysitting. You follow the anguish in a family, when their child is a suspect.
Eric’s childhood and teenage memorires are also described in fladhbacks.
I was a little disapointed of the end.
October 14, 2022
This is a mystery that unfolds from the side of the family of the suspect of a crime some readers may find off-putting as it involves a missing child and a teenage suspect. There are two interwoven themes to this story. One is illusion, specifically, can you know who anyone really is? The other is the effect of suspicion. As Eric, the main character, puts it to the reader, "Suspicion is an acid. . . . Everything it touches it corrodes. It eats through the smooth, glistening surface of things and the mark it leaves is indelible."
With these two themes, the story explores what happens within a family whose son is the suspect of the crime. The author gives the reader more than one mystery which makes the story more complex and psychologically nuanced. The plot is well conceived and well written. This reader found the story to be a page turner, not because of cliffhanging action or suspense, but because of how the author's writing ends each chapter. I simply found I wanted to keep going.
With these two themes, the story explores what happens within a family whose son is the suspect of the crime. The author gives the reader more than one mystery which makes the story more complex and psychologically nuanced. The plot is well conceived and well written. This reader found the story to be a page turner, not because of cliffhanging action or suspense, but because of how the author's writing ends each chapter. I simply found I wanted to keep going.
February 2, 2011
I’ve gotta say- Thomas Cook hasn’t disappointed me yet. Red Leaves is the fourth novel I’ve read by this terrific mystery writer and it was excellent. Not my favourite so far, but still a great read. Let’s face it, there are only so many mystery stories to tell: murders committed by psychopaths, depraved sex crimes, crimes of passion, greed or power run amok. Cook is the cream of the crop of writers in this genre for a couple of reasons. First of all, the man can turn a phrase. Secondly, his characters are complicated people with messy human lives. Cook does a terrific job, in every book I’ve read, of turning them inside out and exposing their frailties, fears and darkness.
Red Leaves tells the story of the Moore family: Eric (owner of a camera shop), Meredith (teacher at a small community college) and Keith (their teenage son). They live in a small New England town and live, what Eric believes at least is, a perfect life. That is until eight-year-old Amy Giordano goes missing and the last person to have seen her is Keith, who’d been babysitting her that evening.
As Eric struggles to come to terms with his failed relationship with his son and his growing suspicions that Keith might actually have had something to do with Amy’s disappearance, other cracks in his life start to appear. What follows is a terrific page turner as Eric races to protect Keith and shore up his own life against the damage secrets and lies cause.
I’ve said it before about Cook, he is a wonderful observer of human nature and he writes about the things that we love and fear as well as any other popular writer I’ve ever read. If you haven’t given him a try, I’d encourage you to check him out.
Red Leaves tells the story of the Moore family: Eric (owner of a camera shop), Meredith (teacher at a small community college) and Keith (their teenage son). They live in a small New England town and live, what Eric believes at least is, a perfect life. That is until eight-year-old Amy Giordano goes missing and the last person to have seen her is Keith, who’d been babysitting her that evening.
As Eric struggles to come to terms with his failed relationship with his son and his growing suspicions that Keith might actually have had something to do with Amy’s disappearance, other cracks in his life start to appear. What follows is a terrific page turner as Eric races to protect Keith and shore up his own life against the damage secrets and lies cause.
I’ve said it before about Cook, he is a wonderful observer of human nature and he writes about the things that we love and fear as well as any other popular writer I’ve ever read. If you haven’t given him a try, I’d encourage you to check him out.
March 24, 2011
Cook, most famous for his novel The Chatham School Affair, writes grim one-shots that look at murder through blood-colored lenses. Red Leaves tells the story of Eric Moore, a photo-shop owner who finds his family embroiled in the case of a young girl who went missing from her bedroom sometime during or in the night after his son babysat for her. The suspicion and pressure of the investigation puts pressure on the seams of Eric’s life, both past and present, and those seams don’t hold. It’s a dark but haunting world, with skillfully-crafted prose and heartbreaking storytelling. Definitely worth a read. I’ve added all Cook’s other books to my wishlist.
A few other thoughts:
* This book does an excellent job setting up the tragedy it will tell. The reader knows from the beginning that things will turn out badly, but we don’t know exactly how or why. Grim grim grim, but gripping.
* Cook’s writing is spare and precise, which fits the story well. It reads quickly but deeply, and it’s hard not to enjoy thoroughly.
* The book turns a lot on the corrosive effect of suspicion, of ourselves, our loved ones, and our neighbors. Cook hits on the fact that suspicion causes trouble of itself — once you start suspecting people of things, it’s hard to chase that away.
* The story also hits on the tales we tell ourselves about our lives. Moore thinks he has an excellent life and a happy family, but as the pressure of the story comes to bear, we realize that he hasn’t got either and that his life is looking much more shabby than we’d originally suspected.
* The payoff at the end of the book is great, even if you can see it coming (as with Shakespearean tragedies, for instance). Here, however, there’s no Iago.
A few other thoughts:
* This book does an excellent job setting up the tragedy it will tell. The reader knows from the beginning that things will turn out badly, but we don’t know exactly how or why. Grim grim grim, but gripping.
* Cook’s writing is spare and precise, which fits the story well. It reads quickly but deeply, and it’s hard not to enjoy thoroughly.
* The book turns a lot on the corrosive effect of suspicion, of ourselves, our loved ones, and our neighbors. Cook hits on the fact that suspicion causes trouble of itself — once you start suspecting people of things, it’s hard to chase that away.
* The story also hits on the tales we tell ourselves about our lives. Moore thinks he has an excellent life and a happy family, but as the pressure of the story comes to bear, we realize that he hasn’t got either and that his life is looking much more shabby than we’d originally suspected.
* The payoff at the end of the book is great, even if you can see it coming (as with Shakespearean tragedies, for instance). Here, however, there’s no Iago.
October 23, 2010
I would not, as have others, call Red Leaves a crime story or mystery - and the ending came as no surprise. I would classify it as a sort of a morality tale - and what did come as a surprise is how well the author 'taught his lesson' regarding the devastating effects of suspicion and of hiding one's deepest thoughts and emotions.
In this fully-rendered fable, the main character - Eric - clearly illustrates how a person can ruin his own life by allowing the truth to be sugared over by 'how it's sposed to be'. Then, through Eric, the author allows us to see what happens when that brittle film of sugar is shattered, and all of the life floating just under the surface drains away. All that's left is a bitter sludge of regret... surely the most sad and corrosive of emotions.
In short, I feel that Thomas H. Cook did a good job of writing a rare form: a suspenseful character study. He developed the tension hand in hand with his only-too-real characters. I maybe didn't ENJOY this book, but I recommend it to others who, like me, may need reminding of its 'moral'.
In this fully-rendered fable, the main character - Eric - clearly illustrates how a person can ruin his own life by allowing the truth to be sugared over by 'how it's sposed to be'. Then, through Eric, the author allows us to see what happens when that brittle film of sugar is shattered, and all of the life floating just under the surface drains away. All that's left is a bitter sludge of regret... surely the most sad and corrosive of emotions.
In short, I feel that Thomas H. Cook did a good job of writing a rare form: a suspenseful character study. He developed the tension hand in hand with his only-too-real characters. I maybe didn't ENJOY this book, but I recommend it to others who, like me, may need reminding of its 'moral'.
July 9, 2009
Well, I'm really not sure where to start. Red Leaves left me feeling as if I'm at a theme park, in line for the biggest, most popular ride, the excitement is building because I'm next in line, and right when its my turn the ride breaks and they close it down.
Thomas H. Cook writes Red Leaves from Eric Moore's point of view. He is the father of 15 year old Keith, who is suddenly a suspect in the disappearance of an 8 year old girl he was babysitting. Eric struggles with memories of his own childhood, and his wifes possible infidelity as he tries to find out what happened the night Amy went missing before his son is arrested for the crime.
The story is a wonderful one, but I feel that Cook rushed it along. Right when I was settling in for the ride it was over. The characters could have been developed much better and the ending should have been expanded. There were all these pages leading up to the shocking ending and then in just a few pages its over. I liked his writing and I believe that he has great potential. I will give him another try.
Thomas H. Cook writes Red Leaves from Eric Moore's point of view. He is the father of 15 year old Keith, who is suddenly a suspect in the disappearance of an 8 year old girl he was babysitting. Eric struggles with memories of his own childhood, and his wifes possible infidelity as he tries to find out what happened the night Amy went missing before his son is arrested for the crime.
The story is a wonderful one, but I feel that Cook rushed it along. Right when I was settling in for the ride it was over. The characters could have been developed much better and the ending should have been expanded. There were all these pages leading up to the shocking ending and then in just a few pages its over. I liked his writing and I believe that he has great potential. I will give him another try.
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