The Dead Girl in 2A: A Novel

by Carter Wilson

Overview

From USA Today bestselling author Carter Wilson comes a psychological thriller about forgotten strangers, dark pasts, and a secret so big it just might destroy everything.

They meet on a plane, but nothing about this situation is coincidental… This flight will take them somewhere they never expected to go

Jack Buchannan knows the woman sitting next to him on his business flight to Denver—he just can't figure out how he knows her. Clara Stowe isn't in Jake's line of work and didn't go to college with him. They have nearly nothing in common apart from a deep and shared certainty that they've met before. As their airplane conversation deepens, both struggle to figure out what circumstances could have possibly brought them together. Then, in a revelation that sends Jake reeling, Clara admits she's traveling to the Colorado mountains to kill herself, and she disappears into the crowded airport immediately after landing. Though Clara is gone, Jake is determined to track the girl in the city and figure out their connection.

The Dead Girl in 2A is the story of what happens to Jake and Clara after they get off that plane, and the manipulative figure, a two-dimensional man who has brought them together decades after they first met. Intensely creepy, beautifully written, and full of Carter Wilson's signature whom-can-you-trust paranoia, this is a psychological thriller unlike any you've read before.

When two strangers discover they're connected in ways they could never have imagined, what ensues is a mind-bending race to the truth. This taut, riveting psychological thriller from the award-winning and bestselling author Carter Wilson will leave you reeling.

Named one of the best mysteries and thrillers of 2018, The Dead Girl in 2A is:

• Perfect for fans of Ruth Ware and AJ Finn
• For readers who enjoy who-can-you-trust mysteries and psychological thrillers

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781492686033
Publisher:	Sourcebooks
Publication date:	07/02/2019
Pages:	416
Sales rank:	271,771
Product dimensions:	8.10(w) x 5.50(h) x 1.40(d)

About the Author

Carter Wilson is the USA Today bestselling author of eight critically acclaimed, standalone psychological thrillers. He is an ITW Thriller Award finalist, a five-time winner of the Colorado Book Award, and his works have been optioned for television and film. Carter lives outside of Boulder, Colorado.

Editorial Reviews

05/06/2019

On a flight to Denver, Boston freelance writer Jake Buchannan recognizes his seatmate, Clara Stowe, but he can’t remember from where, in this gripping standalone from Wilson (Mister Tender’s Girl). As Jake tries to figure out the connection, he bonds with Clara over the fact that the two otherwise healthy 30-something-year-olds are suffering from memory loss. Then Clara confides that she plans to head up to the Aspen area and kill herself. Jake is unable to persuade her to change her mind, and she disappears after landing. It later becomes clear that their reunion was no coincidence. Alternating between Jake’s viewpoint and Clara’s diary, the multifaceted plot reveals that a year earlier, in Boston, both of them began participating in a memory research clinical trial led by a seedy man named Landis. Jake resolves to learn the truth about Landis’s scheme and save Clara from her fate. Wilson provides plenty of creepy and downright disturbing moments on the way to the unexpectedly heartfelt conclusion. Psychological thriller fans will be well satisfied. Agent: Pamela Ahearn, Ahearn Agency. (July)

Publishers Weekly

"With a story as riveting as it is mysterious, Wilson's The Dead Girl in 2A is a terrifying plunge into the depths of a childhood trauma rising back into the light. Wilson's characters are as deep as the mystery that surrounds them, and the fast-paced plot doesn't disappoint. This is not to be missed." — R.H. Herron, international bestselling author of Stolen Things

"Will grip you from the first chapter and never let go. A lightning- paced thriller reminiscent of Dean Koontz. I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough!" — Liv Constantine, internationally bestselling author of The Last Mrs. Parrish

"Carter Wilson’s novels slip under your skin with the elegance and devastation of a surgeon’s scalpel. In his latest book, Wilson weaves a gripping tale in which the present can die in a single careless moment, and the past is as unknowable as the future. The Dead Girl in 2A is a high wire act, exquisitely balanced between shattering suspense and the sudden opening of our hearts. I couldn’t put this book down. Bravo!" — Barbara Nickless, author of the award-winning Sydney Parnell series

"One of those books you devour in a single sitting. The Dead Girl in 2A promises a lot from the start and delivers in spades." — Alex Marwood, author of The Wicked Girls

"Readers will be intrigued by this exploration of how scientific experimentation... goes awry, leaving a trail of bodies and few survivors behind." — Booklist

"Wilson provides plenty of creepy and downright disturbing moments on the way to the unexpectedly heartfelt conclusion. Psychological thriller fans will be well satisfied." — Publishers Weekly

"Dean Koontz fans in particular will find a lot to enjoy. A disturbing, propulsive, and satisfying thriller. Wilson is an author to watch." — Kirkus Reviews

"A deftly scripted psychological thriller of a novel, "The Dead Girl in 2A" showcases author Carter Wilson's distinctive narrative storytelling style and expertise. An original and intensely riveting read from cover to cover…" — Midwest Book Review

"Best-selling author Wilson (Mister Tender’s Girl) delivers a solid stand-alone psychological thriller with a clever premise that brings to light the devastation of memory-altering drugs in psychological warfare research." — Library Journal

From the Publisher

2019-05-13
A troubled ghostwriter's past may be the key to an explosive secret.

Life hasn't been the same for Jake Buchannan since the accident that seriously injured his 8-year-old daughter, Em, and drove a wedge between him and his wife, Abby. Jake just hopes that his new job writing the memoirs of a mysterious and wealthy Colorado man will at least ensure they can pay for Em's medical bills. When he meets former teacher Clara Stowe on his flight to Denver, he's instantly drawn to her. Small talk turns to something more profound when Clara reveals that she plans to kill herself at the site of two mountain peaks, Aspen's Maroon Bells. And that's not all. Clara was adopted as a child, as was Jake, and neither can remember their childhoods before they were adopted. It's enough to convince Jake that they've met for a reason, and he implores Clara to contact him if she needs him. Through alternating narratives, it's revealed that Clara and Jake were both invited by a mysterious man named Landis to take part in a clinical trial designed to help them unlock memories and meet their full potential. Both were given an evocative, illustrated book and a vial of pills and have gone through various changes in the months since, such as heightened empathy for Jake and Clara's self-imposed isolation and fascination with death. When Jake is approached by a woman claiming that Landis isn't quite what he seems, he finds himself in a relentless quest for the truth that just might kill him. Wilson (Mr. Tender's Girl, 2018, etc.) explores how good intentions and hubris can lead down dark paths while tackling themes of sorrow, guilt, and the intoxicating power of memory and human connection with equal aplomb. He even throws in a murder mystery for good measure and delivers a denouement that is both strangely sad and exceedingly creepy. Dean Koontz fans in particular will find a lot to enjoy.

A disturbing, propulsive, and satisfying thriller. Wilson is an author to watch.

Kirkus Reviews