Hello readers, I do hope you are all keeping good in these covid times. I have found a little gem for you all. Edgy, gripping, intense – Playdate by Alex Dahl is a fast paced thriller full of suspense that cleverly switches between the different characters involved, including the child herself. A seven year old called Lucia Blix is snatched while on a play date in a small town in Norway. I would guess that this is the worst nightmare of any young mother. The abduction is masterfully done, leaving little trace. The race begins to find her.

At first, a well known pan European criminal network is thought to be behind it. But the days and months pass without any breakthrough. All the time we’re learning more about what motivated the abductor and the girl’s new life.

There is much to admire about this novel and it is full of good believable twists. Nothing is as it seems and we gradually find out how different events are interwoven.

A feeling of suspense persists throughout the entire novel, there is no let up. As I got towards the end, I couldn’t put it down unsure if a grizzly ending was on the way.

The motto of the story is either you should or shouldn’t trust strangers with your children depending on the desired outcome.

Playdate gets four stars out of five.