Who’d have thought Russian Stacking Dolls could be nefarious? Turns out, they are when they suddenly start appearing on the fence outside your house, on your car, in the mail, and even with the check at a restaurant.

Twelve years after Finn’s girlfriend, Layla, disappeared while they were holidaying in France, Finn has moved on and is engaged to Layla’s sister, Ellen. We’re immediately pulled into the intrigue of what happened to Layla, what Finn knows, and more importantly, what he had to do with it. The only thing we know for sure is that Finn lied to the police and that he is one of those problematic and unlikeable characters that I, personally, love.

Suddenly, Finn is told that an elderly neighbor saw Layla outside their old cottage in St Marys. Then, little Russian dolls start appearing, and Ellen becomes convinced that Layla is alive. Finn thinks someone else is harassing them, especially once emails start arriving from someone wanting to buy the cottage, casting doubt on almost everything. He becomes paranoid and secretive, especially with Ellen, and when he’s asked to make a choice between past and present, things start to spiral even further out of control.

Bring Me Back is a bit of a slow burn, told in three parts and two voices. While I had figured out the likeliest scenario about halfway through the book, there was enough clever misdirection and other problematic characters to keep me second-guessing. Even once I had figured it out for sure, there were still a couple of surprises. The conclusion is both tragic and satisfying at the same time.

While I haven’t read any of Ms. Paris’ previous works, I’m told this one is a little different, but don’t let that put you off. It’s definitely a good, quick read.