Synopses & Reviews
From award-winning author Lisa Tuttle comes a riveting novel that combines the contemporary story of one man’s search for a missing young woman with history’s most enduring legends of the disappeared. Gripping and unforgettable, here is a spellbinding mix of the mysteries that inhabit our everyday lives–and a mind-bending exploration of what happens when someone vanishes without a trace.
Ever since his father disappeared when he was nine years old, Ian Kennedy has had a penchant for stories about missing people–and a knack for finding them. Now he’s a private investigator with an impressive track record. But when a woman enters his London office and asks him to find her lost daughter, Ian faces a case he fears he cannot solve–and one he knows he must.
Laura Lensky’s stunning twenty-one-year-old daughter, Peri, has been missing for over two years–a lifetime, under the circumstances. But when Ian learns the details of her disappearance, he discovers eerie parallels to an obscure Celtic myth–and to the haunting case that launched his career, an early success he’s never fully been able to explain. Though Ian suspects Peri may have chosen to vanish, his curiosity leads him to take on the search. Soon he finds himself drawing not only from the mysteries that have preoccupied his adulthood, but from the fables and folklore that pervaded his youth. What follows is a journey that takes Ian and those who care for Peri into the Highlands of Scotland, as the unknowns of the past and present merge in the case–and in their lives.
Rich in pathos and steeped in secrets, The Mysteries opens a thought-provoking door from one world into the heart of another, where some of our most perplexing enigmas–and their answers–are startlingly alive.
Review
"Successfully balancing the miraculous and the mundane, The Mysteries offers a variety of unexpected pleasures and marks the overdue return of a stylish, distinctive storyteller." The Washington Post
Review
"Tuttle builds the story convincingly, shifting easily betweenmodern-day London and old folk-tales of fairy abductions that foreshadow the plot. Stylishly written, with evocative use of folklore elements." Kirkus Reviews
Synopsis
Award-winning author Lisa Tuttle delivers a riveting novel combining one man's search for a missing woman with history's most enduring legends of the disappeared.
"A thriller, detective story, and fantasy all in one . . . Unique, a winner "--Dean Koontz What happens when someone vanishes without a trace?
Ian Kennedy always had a penchant for stories about missing people--and a knack for finding them. Now a sought-after private investigator, Ian faces a case he fears he cannot solve . . . and one he knows he must.
Laura Lensky's stunning twenty-one-year-old daughter, Peri, has been missing for over two years. But when Ian learns the details of her disappearance, he discovers eerie parallels to an obscure Celtic myth and the haunting case that launched his career--a success he's never fully been able to explain. Though Ian suspects that Peri chose to vanish, he takes on the search. What follows leads him and those who care for Peri into the Highlands of Scotland, as the unknowns of the past and present merge in the case--and in their lives.
Praise for The Mysteries
"Lisa Tuttle never disappoints. . . . Richly imagined and beautifully written, The Mysteries lingers in the mind long after the last page is turned."--George R. R. Martin
"A remarkable piece of work . . . Successfully balancing the miraculous and the mundane, The Mysteries offers a variety of unexpected pleasures and marks the overdue return of a stylish, distinctive storyteller."--Washington Post Book World
"Superlative dark fantasy . . . Tuttle has total command of setting, style and her folklore sources."--Publishers Weekly (starred review)
About the Author
Lisa Tuttle was born and raised in Houston, Texas, won the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer in 1974, and now lives with her husband and daughter on the west coast of Scotland. Her first novel, Windhaven, was written with George R. R. Martin. Other novels include Lost Futures, which was short-listed for the Arthur C. Clarke Award, The Pillow Friend, and The Mysteries.