EVER AFTER by Barbara Francesca Murphy – Murder Thrillers, Women’s Friendship Fiction, Mystery

Ever After by Barbara Murphy reveals the treachery, fear, love, and emotion woven throughout a tenuous friendship.

Imogen Armstrong Brown can’t wait to be interviewed by a local newspaper. She holds the well-hidden secret of her sworn enemies, four women who rebuked her from their close group friendship. A tragic event around Horseshoe Bay featuring this scrupulous group had shown Imogen that the group was neither sincere nor innocent, but deeply pretentious, ruthless, and defiant even to the law.

Over the course of this story, readers will learn of all the dark corners that Nora, Tiffany, Lydia, and Reeva try to hide.

Each character’s background and upbringing paint their aspirations and fears in the present. Even the strengths in their personalities, such as being hardworking and loving, are hampered by challenges from mental disorders to trauma from bad parenting, and sometimes a simple lack of contentment. Murphy showcases the coping strategies that each of the four employs in a desperate bid to maintain sanity, closeness, and unity despite a harsh reality.

The pains of the past will demand resilience from the four women if they want any chance to turn fateful challenges into opportunities for change and progress.

Readers will find all the women linked together by Justin, an intriguing character whose admirable nature and willingness to help others is overshadowed by his flirtatious and proud behavior. A breathtaking reveal is just around the corner as these relationships are teased apart.

Murphy’s easy choice of words gives this text a flow that welcomes readers of all ages. Engaging dialogue shows the depth of her characters as they play off of each other.

Ever After sparkles with breathtaking twists and turns that will hold readers in suspense from beginning to end, particularly after a hypnotic prologue that promises an unforgettable and extraordinary adventure. With each secret revealed, the story offers a deeper look inside the world of its perfect-looking people. For thriller lovers and supporters of women’s friendships, this will be an exciting and highly inspirational read.

Overall, Ever After is a composition whose words will pull at the heartstrings of its readers. The brilliant uses of elements such as tragic flow, dramatic irony, anxiety, denouement, and catharsis, combine to produce an unforgettable read. Murphy’s magisterial work shines a probing light into the nature of friendship, the life-altering impact of infidelity, and the ultimate cost of a truly poor decision.

“Some paths lead us into the light, but others take us down an ever-dimming pathway into darkness.” – Wofford Lee Jones