Dear Readers,
What first caught my attention about the thriller Dawn Before Darkness wasn’t the stalking plot. It was the guardianship plot. Let me explain.
Psychological thrillers are full of dangerous exes, but far fewer ask a more unsettling question: what happens when someone uses the legal system itself as a weapon in ways you’d never expect?
That’s the premise at the heart of Liz Lazarus’ fourth novel, a book that deserves far more attention than it has received. Lazarus has built a body of work around intelligent women confronting legal and emotional danger, but Dawn Before Darkness may be her most personal novel yet.
Veterinary technician Dawn Smith thinks she’s making a clean break when she ends a relationship with the charming but increasingly suspicious Nicholas VanBroklin. Instead, she finds herself the target of a relentless stalker who refuses to let go. As the harassment escalates, Dawn discovers that protecting herself is only part of the battle. When Nick begins targeting her aging mother through the guardianship and conservatorship system, the stakes become far more frightening.
What begins as a story about a manipulative ex slowly becomes a story about how easily systems meant to protect vulnerable people can be turned against them.
Inspired by real experiences with guardianship and informed by interviews with stalking victims, the novel conveys a sense of plausibility that makes its twists even more unsettling. If you’re looking for a psychological thriller that delivers suspense while tackling issues rarely explored in commercial fiction, Dawn Before Darkness is a hidden gem worth discovering.
Happy Reading!
Meryl Moss, Publisher, BookTrib
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