William Landay

All That Is Mine, I Carry With Me, William Landay
Jeff Larkin and Phillip Solomon met when they were in seventh grade. The two almost 13-year-olds soon became best friends. In 2015, after a several decades long hiatus, Jeff Larkin emailed Phil to meet him for a beer. Phil, an author, was in a bit of a writer’s slump, but when he heard the details that had emerged over the intervening years, concerning the disappearance of Jeff’s mother, Jane Larkin, he became intrigued with the idea of writing her story.
Jane Larkin disappeared when she was 39-years-old, on November 12, 1975. She was the mother of three children: Jeff, Miranda and Alex. She had been married to Dan Larkin for 17 years. Her older sister, Kate, always disliked Jane’s husband Dan. She and her sister had matching rings. Jane never took hers off. When Jane disappeared, all eyes pointed to Dan Larkin, the husband, as they usually do. No evidence was found. No body was found. No indictment came. Dan professed his innocence. Tom Glover was the detective investigating Jane’s disappearance. For forty years, he carried her picture in his wallet because the case was unsolved.
Jane’s disappearance had an effect on each of her children. Miranda was the youngest, and at almost 10-years-old, she needed her mother’s guidance and love. She was often depressed. Jeff, almost 12, was in his brother’s shadow. He needed his mom’s support. He was angry for a long time. Alex, was older and soon would be off to college. He was the best able to handle the trauma and would soon leave the scene of the maelstrom.
This novel is written in four distinct parts:
Book 1 begins in 2015, when Phil and Jeff reunite. The background of the events of 1975 are introduced and carried forward.
Book 2 is told in Jane Larkin’s voice, and is Miranda’s version of the events and its effects.
Book 3 begins in 1993, when Jane Larkin’s body is found. It is told in Jeff’s voice, now almost 30-years-old. He has been estranged from his father. The discovery opens a whole new can of worms and investigations.
Book 4, takes place in 2017 and is told in Dan’s voice. He is now 81-years-old and in serious decline from Alzheimers. New discoveries have been made about the murder. In 2017, the case is closed.
Briefly, this is the story. Miranda Larkin comes home from school to a surprisingly quiet, empty house, in November of 1975. Where was her mother? She patiently waited, assuring herself that her mother would soon return. Although her car was found, Jane Larkin was never seen again. Miranda could not imagine life without her mother. She began to unravel. Jeff Larkin insists that his mother will return. Miranda and Jeff are close. They comfort each other, but soon, Jeff begins to unravel. He blames his dad for his mother’s disappearance. Dan Larkin is not a soft and fuzzy person. He is compulsive about neatness and order. His reactions seem wooden to them, almost like they were prepared in advance. Alex, the oldest child is more aloof and less judgmental. He is a successful athlete in high school, soon to graduate and go on to college. He is consumed with himself and wishes to study to be a lawyer like his dad, Dan Larkin. In 1994, when some members of the family decide to sue Dan Larkin for wrongful death in a civil suit. Alex does not sue his father. The court scenes are riveting and revealing. The posturing of the lawyers, their performance art and showmanship is well portrayed. Is vengeance or justice the ultimate goal, in the end? Is it fair to base any case on circumstantial evidence? As secrets are revealed, are they misinterpreted, over judged? Should family members sue each other civilly if they can’t get what they perceive as justice in a criminal court?
The characters in this novel, major and minor, are all well developed and defined. The author examines the idea of murder inside and out. He points out that when Phil Solomon knew he should end the life of a deer that was suffering, he was not sure he could do it. Afterward, he felt no remorse. He knew he did what was right. Is that how a murderer feels? Is their behavior so outrageous or delusional that they feel nothing afterwards? When Dan Larkin decides he wants to end his own life, is he committing a kind of murder? If family members do not prevent it, are they committing murder too? If they assist in any way are they guilty of murder? If you believed a relative committed murder, even though there was no proof of the crime, could you forgive them or would you forever insist on their guilt. What really happened to Dan Larkin at the end of the book? What really happened to Jane Larkin? Was her missing ring ever recovered? What is the meaning of Miranda’s tattoo that translates to the title of this book?… (més)

In 1963 Boston, with a mysterious killer known as the Boston Strangler stalking the city, the three Daley brothers--Joe, a cop; Michael, a prosecutor; and Ricky, a master thief--track down a killer with ties to their family's own lethal secrets.

There’s lots of police corruption in this story. But I liked the character development and family dynamics. There was too much violence for my taste. The ending wasn’t believable but I still liked the way it worked out. Overall, a mixed bag for me.… (més)

Happy Publication Day! (March 7, 2023)

4.5⭐


Many thanks to Random House Publishing Group- Ballantine and NetGalley for granting my wish! All opinions expressed in this review are my own. This novel is due to be released on March 7. 2023.


On November 12, 1975, ten-year-old Miranda Larkin returned home from school to find her mother gone. Thirty-nine-year-old Jane Larkin was declared missing and her husband criminal defense attorney Dan Larkin, would remain the prime suspect in the eyes of lead investigator Detective Tom Glover but with no evidence or witnesses, Dan was never charged. His children remain divided on their opinions about their father’s role in their mother’s disappearance and needless to say this would complicate their relationships with their father and between themselves in the years to come.

In 2015 author Philip “Phil” Solomon is contacted by his school friend Jeff Larkin after a long gap of forty years and is encouraged by Jeff and his sister Miranda to base his next book on the Jane Larkin case. In the course of his research, Phil talks to different people who knew about the case, revisiting the events that followed the disappearance and the subsequent friction between the family members that has left its shadow even in the present day.

Will Jane’s children ever find out what happened to their mother? Was Dan truly responsible for his wife’s disappearance or was there more to the case than what everyone assumed? How will finally finding out what happened to Jane impact the already fractured Larkin family? Closure.. but at what cost?

Shared through multiple PoVs, All That Is Mine I Carry With Me by William Landay follows the members of Jane Larkin’s family through 1975 to the present day. The author captures the tension, heartbreak and conflict that follows in the aftermath of the events of 1975 perfectly – the emotions are real and the characters are distinctive in their voices and reactions. Among her children, the eldest, Alex, leaves for college soon after and we don’t get to know much about his inner thoughts barring the fact that he stands by his father while the younger children, Jeff and Miranda, are conflicted about how they feel about their father and his (presumed) role in their mother’s disappearance. Alex is given a relatively minor role but the remaining characters are very well-written. We witness how the children navigate their way through Jane’s absence, their complicated relationship with their father and how they cope with Jane’s disappearance both as children and how the trauma follows them into their adult years. In contrast, we see Dan, Jane’s cunning, smug and self-assured husband who vehemently denies any involvement in Jane’s disappearance and remains seemingly unaffected by the accusations being thrown his way- from the investigators, Jane’s family and his children. I really liked how the plot is developed at a (relatively) slow yet steady pace, presenting us with different pieces to the puzzle while also allowing us to fill in the blanks as we see fit. Not all our questions are answered but that is all right because the author prepares us for that. As the narrative progresses we are compelled to presume (just like the characters in the story) and predict, but the author waits for you to turn the very last page to give us a finale that will stay with you.

With its crisp writing and fluid narrative, this is a novel that you will not want to put down. Overall, All That Is Mine I Carry With Me by William Landay is a compelling read that I would not hesitate to recommend.… (més)

Andy Barber is an assistant district attorney in Massachusetts. He is respected in the community and is often pulled in when there is a local homicide. However, when a local teenage boy is found murdered in a nearby park and Andy's 14-year-old son Jacob becomes the prime suspect, Andy's perspective must change, and suddenly he finds himself on the defensive side of the courtroom. When Andy's own family history is discovered and released to the public, revealing that his father is in prison for murder, the question of genetics and a possible inherited violent gene comes to light. As doubts to Jacob's innocence surface, Andy is determined to defend Jacob at all costs.

I don't remember hearing a lot of hype about this book when it came out, but I must've read something that influenced my decision to add it to my wishlist way back when, and it's been sitting on my pile for quite some time. Lately I've been consciously reading a lot of books that have had or will have screen adaptations made of them, and though I'm a little late to the party with watching the AppleTV miniseries (which I will begin shortly after writing this review), I figure better late than never. Going in, I knew that one of the big draws of this novel was a plot twist. I'm always up for a good one of those, so I was eager to see if I could figure it out. And I thought I had done so, but I was fooled. This one came wham! bang! right at the end. As far as plot twists it wasn't the best I've read, but it wasn't at all what I expected either, so that made it good.… (més)