Secrets and lies

A haunted marriage is just as terrifying as a haunted house.

Alice Feeney, Rock Paper Scissors

In Rock Paper Scissors (2021), Alice Feeney gives her readers both a haunted marriage and a haunted house. In fact, the house is haunted by the marriage.

Amelia Wright wins a free weekend in an isolated Scottish church converted into a home. She drags along Adam, her reluctant husband. They drive there in a snowstorm and are lucky to find the place. Or are they?

Adam, a successful screenwriter, has a rare condition popularly known as face blindness. That is, he cannot recognize faces, not even his own in the mirror or that of his wife. This fact turns out to be central to the entire plot.

Their marriage is on the ropes, and this weekend is viewed by both as the last chance to save it. It doesn't help that they are both driven by secrets and lies, which compound as the weekend progresses.

Nearby there lives a woman named Robin, also motivated by secrets and lies. She is the one who awarded the "prize" of a free weekend. By slashing their tires and performing other acts of mischief, she terrifies the couple.

Little by little Feeney uncovers the secrets and reveals the lies, leading to one surprising twist and turn after another. You will want to read this novel as fast as you can, for if you slow down at all you might realize just how farfetched it all is.