In the Blink of an Eye: A Novel

The Brennans — Finn and Bridget, and their sons, teenage Jarrah and three-year-old Toby — moved from chilly Hobart, Tasmania, to subtropical Murwillumbah, New South Wales at Bridget's insistence because they needed a fresh start. They are settling into a routine in their sprawling purple clapboard house, complete with a pool that they are all enjoying on the warm days. Finn, an artist, has devised and installed a special gate through which the pool can be accessed.

And then one morning, tragedy strikes.

In the aftermath, the inevitable questions plague them all, but especially Bridget. What happened during those brief moments? Is someone to blame?

When Finn becomes the target of a criminal investigation and in the ensuring media glare, he is determined to protect his family, first and foremost. But Bridget is wracked with guilty and grief, and enraged -- at Finn, at herself, at her inability to rewind the clock and relive those precious minutes.

As Bridget descends further and further into grief, and feels apart from her husband and surviving son, she seeks solace, comfort, and answers in the last place anyone would expect those things could be found.

As his parents are consumed by their own emotions, Jarrah, who is equally devastated, is left on his own to deal with his feelings which include sudden, frightening, and very adulthood realizations he is not equipped to handle.

Author Jesse Blackadder introduces readers to the Brennans, a relatable family. Finn and Bridget's love to each other is not in question, nor is their devotion to their family, despite Finn's misstep that served as the catalyst for their move. They truly enjoy their children, and Finn's commercial prospects for his artistry are looking brighter. But that requires a shift in the family dynamics and morning schedules. Blackadder lays out the backdrop against tragedy can unfold, and then deftly portrays the morning when their world comes crashing down around them in stark, gut-wrenching fashion. It is difficult reading, to be sure.

What is even more painful is what follows. Blackadder charts each characters' journey realistically and authentically. By that time, of course, she has convinced readers to care deeply about her characters so that their pain compels the action forward. The question is whether the family will survive together or irrevocably split apart. For good measure -- and moral ambiguity -- Blackadder adds Finn's legal peril and his reaction to it, inspiring readers to question whether they would make the same choices under the circumstances.

But also at issue is the survival of each individual character. Bridget's mental and emotional health becomes an issue as she delves further into the stages of grief and becomes increasingly disconnected from the reality of her life after that morning. Jarrah has never been a popular kid, with few friends. He has always felt like an outsider and been subjected to some bullying at school. Suddenly, however, he becomes the object of sympathy, which may be worse. Still, he manages to make a new friend with whom he runs as a means to escape from the pressures of home and what is happening with his parents. That friendship, however, causes him to confront his own truth and future.

In the Blink of an Eye is an empathetic and deeply moving portrayal of a family in crisis following unimaginable tragedy. Because of Blackadder's restrained writing style, it is ultimately a story about forgiveness, strength and the ability to endure the deepest imaginable emotional pain, and, ultimately, hope.

Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.