The
Three Beths by Jeff Abbott is a psychological thriller
that explores family dynamics. The story of missing loved
ones grabs at the readers, sparking curiosity. Readers are
drawn into the story, feeling empathy for the characters.
“There were these two separate ideas that came together.
I thought about these cases where someone has gone missing
and the police have a pretty good idea of who did it, but
no evidence. Sometimes in that situation it is a family member.
That brought me to the second idea, I kept thinking what would
be like, for a daughter to be constantly defending an accused
parent. The OJ Simpson case is a famous example. How did his
children regard their father? What would it be like to live
as a family member after their father was accused of murder?
The characters of Mariah and Craig popped into my mind. It
was a Lego block of an idea. Sometimes ideas lock together
like Lego blocks and formulate a story.”
The plot unfolds with the touching thoughts of Mariah, “My
mom would never leave me.” Beth Dunning, her mom has
disappeared without a trace and has been missing for a year.
The police chief, Dennis Broussard, who once had feelings
for Beth, suspects Mariah’s dad, Craig. Broussard has
tunnel vision since there is no body and no physical evidence
linking Craig to the supposed murder. Mariah feels compelled
to clear her father’s name and find her mom, considering
the townspeople are trying to run the Dunnings out of town.
Her feelings jump from guilt to anger to loneliness. Determined
to investigate she takes the suggestion of a high school friend
who is now a true-crime blogger An estranged wife, Bethany
Curtis, of a tech millionaire also went missing six months
earlier. What links the two disappearances is the name, Beth.
What Mariah finds out is that many of the answers seem to
lie with a third Beth, Lizbeth, who seems very elusive. As
the clues lead her closer to answers, she and her dad are
threatened, with the truth more devastating than she could
have imagined.
“I wrote Mariah as someonedealing with a lot as a young
twentyish old. Mariah must come to terms that the world she
knows no longer exists. I would say she is determined, fearless,
stubborn, impulsive, with some anger issues. She is probably
one of the most complicated characters I have ever written.
I sympathized with her because she had to deal with so much
and everything in her life went to hell. She has put everything
on hold until she finds a resolution about her mom and cannot
move forward until she finds answers. She is loyal and loves
both her parents.”
Readers will get into the minds of all the characters. They
follow the betrayals, lies, and deceits and realize that most
of the characters are very flawed. People will not want to
put this book down, until they also find answers and the truth
regarding the disappearance of the three Beths.
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