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LIVING DEAD GIRL
by Tod Goldberg
Soho Press inc, May 2002
190 pages
$24.00
ISBN: 156947284X


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

Tod Goldberg takes a huge risk with Living Dead Girl and it pays off. It is the story of Paul Loden, an anthropology professor estranged from his wife, who learns of her mysterious disappearance from her home. Molly Loden had separated from her husband after the suspicious death of their two-year-old daughter, Katrina. Molly has been living in an isolated cabin near Granite Lake in Washington State and has not been seen for the last ten days. When a concerned neighbor contacts Paul about his missing wife, Loden takes a leave of absence from his California community college job and heads out north to try to search for Molly.

The author takes the unusual step in writing the novel by giving his main character a stream of consciousness while describing the action of the book. This means that the reader is going to be privy to every thought and sensation Paul is experiencing while he is telling the story. Several authors have tried using this narrative method in their works and failed to hold reader attention. Tod GolbergĖs Living Dead Girl benefits from this literary device and gives the reader something to think about after finishing reading the book.

It is a haunting story in which secrets and lies go hand in hand with this mystery. Full of anguish, grief, and desperation, Paul searches high and low for his missing wife. What he gets in return is the suspicious stares by the local police who believe that Molly was a victim of foul play and that her husband was responsible in her disappearance. Was she murdered? Did she commit suicide? Goldberg lets us go inside the mind of the protagonist showing us everything he has to fear. Paul's thoughts are very scary making us doubt his sincerity in narrating his story. Once the truth is revealed it will have everyone reevaluating what he or she has read. Tod Goldberg knows how to create an impact with his latest novel.

Reviewed by Angel L. Soto, December 2002

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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)


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