*Rosenfelt,
David. On Borrowed Time. Minotaur: St. Martin's. Feb 2011. c.304p. ISBN
978-0-312-59836-5. $24.99. Fiction.
Is freelance journalist Richard Kilmer losing his mind? How else can he explain the disappearance of his fiancée, Jennifer, after a roll-over accident with Richard at the wheel? His friends in New York seem to think she never existed, claiming that events he clearly remembers never took place. When he publishes an article about his experience, illustrated with an artist’s recreation of Jennifer’s appearance, a woman named Allison telephones to say Jennifer looks like her twin sister, Julie, now gone missing. With Allison’s help and that of other trusted friends, Richard sets out to track down his past as an investigative journalist and the powerful individuals now manipulating not only every aspect of his life but the state of his mind itself. VERDICT This bald plot summary fails to do justice to Rosenfelt’s skill at throwing one baffling curve ball after the other in a gripping thriller driven by questions of identity, the reliability of memory, and the difficulty of distinguishing between reality and fantasy. The author of seven Andy Carpenter novels (Dog Tags) offers yet another outstanding stand-alone novel (after Down to the Wire), sure to please his many fans. Anyone who enjoyed Dennis Lehane’s Shutter Island will love this mind-boggling tale.