We Begin at the End is written by Chris Whitaker and was published in 2020. On the front cover, it declares that the book is “the must-read crime novel of the year”.
My mum read it and recommended it to me and I was aware it was the winner of the Gold Dagger for Best Crime Novel from the Crime Writers’ Association.
In an attempt to clear my backlog of books I decided to give it a go. And I am so glad I did!
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Plot
Thirty years ago, Vincent King became a killer. Now, he’s been released from prison and is back in his hometown of Cape Haven. The town’s chief of police, Walk, is pleased to have his childhood best friend home. However, not everyone is pleased to see Vincent. His ex-girlfriend Star Radley is also the sister of the girl he killed.
Meanwhile, Duchess Radley, Star’s thirteen-year-old daughter, is part-carer, part-protector to her younger brother, Robin, as well as to her deeply troubled mother. The other children at school mock Duchess and her family, but she doesn’t care. She is the ‘outlaw’ Duchess Day Radley.
However, when Duchess inadvertently sets off a dangerous chain of events, nobody realises the tragic consequences it will have for not only her family but the whole town.
We Begin At The End Book Review
I loved this book. REALLY loved it. It definitely was not what I thought it would be. I guess it is, at its core, a crime novel but it is so much more than that.
The mystery was well handled and I didn’t predict the outcome, which is rare judging by the last few crime books I’ve read. However, the mystery wasn’t why I loved this book. It was characters. They were well-drawn, realistic characters with depth and vulnerabilities. I adored Walk and little Robin, but Duchess…wow. Duchess will be up there with Cyril Avery, Jude St. Francis and Shuggie Bain as a character I’ll never forget. She was a feisty, swearing, gunslinging outlaw, but beneath that tenacity and bravado was just a scared girl who didn’t know who to trust.
The dialogue made me smile as it was so witty in places but then so heartbreaking poignant in others. The descriptions of the small town were also really well done. I could vividly see the town and Walk’s neighbours.
The mystery itself was intriguing and I found myself thinking I had it all sussed out, just to be proven wrong. And while it is a murder mystery, it’s a story with love at its core. Both familial and romantic love play a huge part in this book as we see what lengths the characters will go to to protect their loved ones.
Although it broke my heart in several places, I absolutely adored this book and would love to read a sequel to find out what happened to these characters I grew to love.
Has Chris Whitaker written any other novels?
Chris Whitaker has written several other novels, including:
- Tall Oaks
- All The Wicked Girls
- The Forevers
- All the Colours of the Dark
What should I read after We Begin At The End?
If you’re looking for another gripping read by Chris Whitaker, I’d definitely recommend his debut novel, Tall Oaks.
We Begin at the End also reminded me of the Aaron Falk series by Jane Harper. Each book also has complex but likeable characters with a murder mystery at its core.