No one writes an anti-hero better than Joseph Knox. Lynch is the burned out con-artist with a back-story that haunts him throughout Imposter Syndrome, the new novel by the bestselling crime noir author. It is a potent back-story that Knox skilfully alludes to throughout the narrative that intrigued me as well as endeared me to Lynch as it depicts a raw vulnerability within this shady protagonist.
Imposter Syndrome is a fast-paced thriller that is written in the compelling, gritty style that is so distinctive to Joseph Knox. With its unique plot, it is dark and twisting as it portrays the underbelly of the rich and privileged within London.
The novel opens with con man Lynch escaping Paris on the Eurostar with no money wearing a shiny, ‘drab second-hand suit.’ Arriving at Heathrow looking ‘cheap and dishonest,’ he accidently collides with Bobbie, a rich heiress destined for rehab in the US. Bobbie is knocked to the floor, and when Lynch offers his hand to help her from the floor, she accidently mistakes Lynch for her long lost brother. Bobbie’s tormented brother, Heydon, mysteriously disappeared five years ago, and is presumed dead.
Against his better judgement, Lynch joins the erratic, vulnerable Bobbie for a drink. The drink leads to more, and subsequently Lynch blacking out for the night. He wakes up to discover Bobbie gone, but she has left him with an extremely unwanted, prison-style tattoo on his face. The tattoo is an exact replica of the tattoo Heydon also had on his face when he went missing. With no financial means to get the tattoo removed himself, Lynch is persuaded to venture to the luxurious home of Bobbie’s parents and steal from them. However the elaborate plan does not work, with Lynch encountering Miranda, the daunting mother of Bobbie and Heydon.
Rather than being angry at discovering a thief in her home, Miranda sees the uncanny resemblance between Lynch and her lost son. She asks the dishevelled, tired out con man to adopt Heydon’s identity for the night in an attempt to try to catch his killer.
As Lynch pursues his mission in return for a healthy financial pay-out and removal of the facial tattoo, he soon finds he can’t let go – even when he is free to do so. There is something in Heydon’s troubled and emotive past that draws out a hidden integrity and compassion in Lynch. As a reader, it also brought out my compassion. With dark forces at that play and no knowledge of who he can truly trust, Lynch travels through the underbelly of London in an attempt to solve the dangerous family mystery.
Imposter Syndrome is intriguing and fast paced. It is also emotional and character driven, which I really liked. At times I found it a little bit too fast paced in which I sometimes lost the thread of the plot. But I did enjoy it, especially the dark grittiness, the twists and the emotive unravelling layers of Lynch’s character. As I mention above, Imposter Syndrome is a distinctly Joseph Knox novel.
Imposter Syndrome was published by Transworld Books on 11 July, so is available to read now.
Thank you Anne Cater from Random Things Tours for inviting me to the blog tour of this compelling crime noir. To follow the blog tour, please see below.
Thanks for the blog tour support x