Views from My Highland Cottage: I've Got You Under My Skin, by Mary Higgins Clark

I’ve Got You Under My Skin

Mary Higgins Clark

(Simon & Schuster, 2014)

Author Mary Higgins Clark is dependable—she knows how to write thrillers. The characters are interesting, her books are paced well. I’ve Got You Under My Skin is no exception.

A rich socialite was murdered 20 years ago and Laurie Moran, a television producer of reality shows, wants to bring all the suspects together again—the grief-stricken husband; the dead woman’s daughter and three of her friends who were celebrating their high school graduation 20 years ago at the home with a large party and a sleepover; the long-time housekeeper; a close family friend; plus an old girlfriend of the husband who also shows up to watch the filming of the TV show.

The show’s producer, Laurie Moran, is no stranger to murder herself. Her young husband, a physician, was brutally gunned down five years ago while he played in the park with his young son. Then the killer with startling blue eyes looked at the terrified young boy and told him, “Tell your mother she’s next, then it’s your turn.” Laurie, her son, and her father, an ex-cop, have lived under this threat ever since.

Every person participating in the reality show comes under suspicion for the socialite’s murder as scenes from 20 years ago are staged for the show. Each person is interviewed by a famous criminal lawyer, and long-buried secrets come to the surface. While attention is focused on the 20 year old murderer, the notorious “Blue-Eyed Killer” stalks Laurie and her son unnoticed, plotting his final revenge.

The basic premise that people who suffered so much already would allow such an invasion of their privacy by participating in a reenactment TV show seems a little far-fetched to me, but the author explains it satisfactorily. The police and media made them all suspects 20 years ago, so this represents an opportunity for them to clear their names. However, it turns out that each person has a good motive for murder of the socialite, and no one has an alibi.

Although the ultimate outcome is predictable, there are surprises and a few plot twists. The book goes down easy, making it a good choice for summer reading.