Friend Request.

When Louise receives a FaceBook friend request from Maria Weston she is shocked and unnerved. Maria was a sometimes friend from school who disappeared on the night of the school leaving party in 1989, and although her body has never been found she has long been presumed to be dead. 

Now there's an upcoming school reunion and in the days leading up to it, Louise tries to uncover the truth about the request. On the night of the reunion something even more shocking than the strange friend request occurs, something that leaves Louise frightened, confused and searching for even more answers.

 Laura Marshall's Friend Request is a well written and brilliantly plotted debut novel. It's an extremely clever story that is recounted in chapters that alternate between the present day and Louise's school days. There are also short chapters dotted here and there voiced by an anonymous character which add a menacing touch to the book. Much of the flashback 1989 material is set in the period leading up to and the night of the leaving party which nicely mirrors the present day reunion.

Louise is a sympathetic character and the twisted ending to the story was simply mind-blowing to me. (It also went a long way towards helping to explain a lot of Louise's anxieties.)

Friend Request is a dark twisting tale, full of menace and suspense. It was a clever, accomplished book that I loved.

Highly Recommended.