Title: The Hidden Hours 
Author: Sara Foster
Published: May 1st 2018
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Australia
Pages: 384
Genres: Fiction, Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense, Thriller
RRP: $19.99
Rating: 4.5 stars
Arabella Lane, senior executive at a children’s publisher, is found dead in the Thames on a frosty winter’s morning after the office Christmas party. No one is sure whether she jumped or was pushed. The one person who may know the truth is the newest employee at Parker & Lane – the office temp, Eleanor.
Eleanor has travelled to London to escape the repercussions of her traumatic childhood in outback Australia. To her horror, she has no memory of the crucial hours leading up to Arabella’s death – memory that will either incriminate or absolve her.
As Eleanor desperately tries to remember the events of that fateful night, her own extended family is dragged further into the dark, terrifying terrain of blame, suspicion and guilt.
Caught in a crossfire of accusations and lies, Eleanor isn’t sure she can trust anyone – not even herself. As she races to uncover the truth, she realises that someone is intent on stopping her. Someone who, like Eleanor, knows just how deadly the darkest secrets can be.
Keeping her secret may save her family.
But telling it may save her life.
Review:
‘It is at this point that the memories hazy. As Eleanor comes back to the present, a sudden rush of air blows her long hair away from her face as the tube train approaches. That mojito last night had been one drink too far, tipping Eleanor into the new few swirling, disorientated hours.’
Two women, Arabella, in her prime, stunning but dead, and Eleanor, young and suffering from memory loss of the night Arabella died, are at the centre of The Hidden Hours. Sarah Foster’s fifth novel is every bit as good as her previous four novels. The Hidden Hours is defined by enrapturing suspense and a weighty mystery. I was catapulted into the body of this novel, from the very start, to the final sentence.
Arabella is senior executive based at a children’s publishing firm in London. She has recently met an untimely death. Arabella’s final resting place was the River Thames. Arabella’s body surfaces one bitterly cold morning, following her office work party. It is unclear as to what was the cause of Arabella’s death. It could go either way, some say she was pushed to her death, others believe she may have voluntarily ended her life by throwing herself into the Thames. With the truth so unclear, a new employee at Arabella’s firm may hold the key to what happened that cold winter’s night. Eleanor is the newest employee of Park & Lane, she has recently made the big move from Australia to Britain, hoping to put her troubled childhood behind her. Sadly trouble comes to find Eleanor again when the office party she attends takes a tragic turn. Eleanor suffers from a memory blank of the night Arabella died. She is uncertain as to whether or not she is able to offer up any information on Arabella’s death. The possibility of being involved frightens Eleanor. During the course of the book Eleanor works to recall her fractured memories. It ignites feelings of her difficult past in Australia and Eleanor is not prepared to confront these confronting times. With everyone desperate to get to the truth, the pressure is on for Eleanor to remember what happened.
The praise West Australian author Sara Foster has collected for The Hidden Hours is substantiated. Endorsed by none other than Australian crime fiction queen Jane Harper as ‘an enthralling mystery’, it took only the very first paragraph to get me completely hooked.
I loved the structure of The Hidden Hours, it worked so well. Moving effortlessly between two time frames, the present day and 2005, Sara Foster drip feeds the reader a story of events that happened in the past, that directly correlates to events in the present. This serves to draw out the suspense and mystery, but the timing is spot on, so I never felt like my attention dipped in any way. This is a sign of a writer who truly knows her craft, and is comfortable within the psychological suspense genre.
Foster also crosses the boundaries in terms of place and setting. The Hidden Hours divides its time between the hustle and bustle of dreary London, and the vast expanse of the Australian outback in the 2005 narrative thread. Foster has the art of comparison down pat. I felt the bones of each of these locales with such clarity. I think this comes from Foster’s direct experience in both these locales, she knows both like the back of her hand. It is this first hand experience that transfers well to her setting descriptions. I could read passage after passage of Foster’s location prose, it was a true language feast for this reader!
‘The last of the morning’s frost still glitters on the ledges of doors and windows. Bulging grey clouds obscure the sky, and the cobblestones are slippery from overnight rain. Eleanor hugs herself, wrapping her cardigan tightly round he, in part to keep her warm but also to hide he unironed cheap white blouse, as she shifts apprehensively from foot to foot. She is still getting to used to the eviscerating coldness of London in December.’
Characterisation comes easy to Foster. Arabella, the young publishing star, who is found dead with no clear explanation, is etched out perfectly by Foster. Likewise, readers will find Eleanor, the principal protagonist of the story, equally well presented. There is a murkiness that still swirls around these characters and the outer character set. A number of the male characters that feature in this story I had my suspicions about their behaviour. My lack of trust in some of the supporting character set also extended to the female cast members. This included Eleanor, who has such fractured and traumatic memories, definitely fell into the unreliable narrator role.
There were a number of resounding themes that I was able to pull from my experience of reading The Hidden Hours. From childhood trauma, post traumatic stress, memories, suppression of guilt, personal crisis, family drama and secrets, Foster covers plenty of ground in her latest book of psychological suspense and mystery.
The Hidden Hours is a nail biter, heavy on the tension side of things, and offering up plenty of opportunities to second guess your own theories concerning the central mystery. The Hidden Hours is another mind blowing read from West Australian superstar Sara Foster.
The Hidden Hours by Sara Foster was published on 1st May 2018 by Simon & Schuster Australia. Details on how to purchase the book can be found here.
To learn more about the author of The Hidden Hours, Sarah Foster, visit here.
The Hidden Hours is book #104 of the 2019 Australian Women Writers Challenge
