K's Reviews > The Likeness

Wow -- it's been a while since I didn't want a book to end. This book worked on more than one level -- as a gripping mystery, as a psychological thriller, as a study of human relationships, and more.

Cassie Maddox, a police officer traumatized by her last undercover assignment, reluctantly agrees to go undercover yet again when the murder victim in question turns out to be a woman who could be Cassie's double. Not only did this woman resemble Cassie physically but she has been using the exact fake identity adopted by Cassie for her last undercover case -- Lexie Madison. "Lexie" had been posing as a graduate student in English and living with a tightly knit group of fellow students. In an effort to discover Lexie's murderer, Cassie begins posing as Lexie, pretending to Lexie's housemates that Lexie actually survived her stabbing and is now returning to her normal life.

Is it possible to adopt someone's identity and pose as that person to the people who knew her best? There were some deliciously tense moments, as you can imagine, when it wasn't clear whether Cassie would pull it off. This added to the drama of the mystery's revelation layer by layer. But more interesting than the mystery itself, and even more interesting than Cassie's adventures fooling Lexie's housemates, was the enmeshed relationship among the housemates and Cassie's pull to become a part of the group despite her best efforts to maintain professional distance. Tana French did a wonderful job of exploring the dynamics of a group of close friends clinging together out of insecurity and creating a seemingly utopian existence, and how it can suddenly all fall apart.

Even if you don't consider yourself a mystery fan, I recommend this book to anyone who appreciates a multi-layered story which asks interesting questions about human nature.