A young schoolteacher falls for a man on Death Row whom she believes is falsely accused, only to begin wondering after their marriage – and his release.
Twenty years ago Dennis Danson was arrested for the brutal murder of Holly Michaels in Florida’s Red River County. Now he’s the subject of a Making a Murderer-style true crime documentary that’s taking the world by storm – the filmmakers are whipping up a frenzy of coverage to uncover the truth and free the victim of a gross miscarriage of justice.
Samantha may be thousands of miles away in Britain, but she is as invested in Dennis’s case as any of his lawyers. Perhaps even more so, as her letters to the convicted killer grow ever more intimate. Soon she is leaving her life behind to marry Danson and campaign, as his wife, for his release.
But when the campaign is successful, and Dennis is freed, events begin to suggest that he may not be so innocent after all. How many girls went missing in Red River, and what does Dennis really know?
About the author
Amy Lloyd won the Daily Mail and Penguin Random House First Novel competition in 2016 with her thriller 'The Innocent Wife'.
My Review
If you've ever wondered what prompts a woman to fall in love with a man on Death Row, then this book goes some way to answering the question. In Samantha's case, she has a pretty dull life as a teacher and is looking to escape after the break-up with her boyfriend. She has anger management issues and it's clear that Dennis not only gives purpose to her life but he's safely behind bars. Thanks to the film crew and the efforts of the campaign to free Dennis, Samantha soon finds herself married to a man she barely knows and that's when the problems really begin. I enjoyed the suspense of not knowing if Dennis was guilty or not and whether Sam was in danger. Seeing how the world has moved on following Dennis's release is cleverly done and although the story is fairly predictable, it is well written.
