The
Good Liar by Catherine McKenzie has a theme of betrayal
with the backdrop of a horrific tragedy. Readers will be reminded
of 9/11 or the Oklahoma City bombing, and the victims, those
that died and those that survived. The story is told through
the lives of the women affected, characters that present different
faces, the public one and a masked one that they hope to keep
secret.
The author
noted, “There were a couple of threads coming together.
Years ago, after September 11thI remember seeing the chain
link fence where the missing photos were posted. I had a thought,
could one of these people have used the tragedy as an opportunity
to disappear. I did not want to mimic the actual event, but
it was in my thoughts. It was not set in New York, but in
Chicago and I tried to move away from the rawness of September
11th. I had a lot of friends living in New York on that day.
One of my friends had been in the adjacent tower. I do remember
watching the events unfold and wondering if my friends were
OK. My husband and his mother were in the Twin Towers a week
before during that time of the day.”
When
a gas explosion rips apart a Chicago building, the lives of
the women are forever altered. Over 500 people killed and
thousands more have been wounded. To honor the one year anniversary
Teo Jackson films a documentary about the “Triple Ten
Explosion,” which happened on the tenth month, the tenth
day, and at 10 AM. The past and present perspectives of Cecily
and Kate are told, while Franny’s story is told in the
documentaryinterview transcripts.
“I wanted a writing challenge. I know as a writer I
have to create a three-dimensional world of rooms, smells,
and sounds. There was a tool taken away from me. With a transcript,
you don’t get to say how the person was feeling or have
access to their internal thoughts. As a lawyer, I read a lot
of transcripts. It is interesting to me what can get lost
from actually being in the room to reading the transcripts.
It seemed at times it was not how I remembered it; yet, there
it was on the page. Even in a documentary people have a narrative
and can manipulate the story.”
A year ago, Cecily was photographed in a timeless shot capturing
a pure moment of shock as she stands there staring at the
wreckage, fearing her husband, Tom, and best friend, Kaitlyn,
have been killed. On the anniversary, she has survivor’s
guilt, knowing she was supposed to be in the building that
day, but per usual was late. Another victim, Kate ran from
the scene of the explosion, deciding to leave behind her young
children and husband. She escapes to Canada hoping to make
a new life for herself and that her past secrets won’t
catch up with her. The third person, Franny, resents her life
after finding out she was adopted and that Kaitlyn was her
mother, but fate ends any attempt with reconciliation.
This
is a complex story that delves into the lives of the victims.
It has a major twist towards the end of the story bringing
the women together in an unexpected way.
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