Annie had a lonely childhood, the only child of divorced parents and a victim to broken promises. When her mother brought a young man, Marlowe, into their home, Annie (known as Ophelia, at that time) found herself drawn to him as much as she loathed him. Before long, circumstances flew out of control as her stepfather was killed before her eyes and their house set on fire. Ophelia (Annie) escaped with Marlowe, leaving a trail of murders behind them. By this time, she'd retreated within herself and reality was a thin veil before her eyes. She then became pregnant with Marlowe's child.

Ophelia's father finally found the strength to get involved and hired Gray Powers to track down Ophelia and rescue her from Marlowe. After a long stay in rehab, Ophelia "died" and Annie Powers was born. Gray fell in love with the sensitive young woman and gave her the opportunity of a lifetime -- a new identity.

Annie has now lived five wonderful years with Gray, albeit experiencing a few episodes of backsliding into the fog of the past. She sees a therapist regularly, takes medicine for debilitating migraines, and her daughter is her life. Then one day, she feels someone's eyes on her and knows someone is watching her. Gray tries to convince her that she's overly tired and all is well, but Annie knows better. A walk on the beach finds someone following her, leaving Annie more convinced than ever that Marlowe has come back to find her, keeping his promise that she will always be his. In order to keep her daughter's parentage a secret, Annie must flee and assume a third identity, leaving her daughter with Gray.

And this is where I leave you in this review. BLACK OUT by Lisa Unger is a fantastic story, the plot complex in a mind-boggling yet stimulating page-turning way. I'd love the opportunity to sit down with people who've read Unger's book to contemplate the plot and the terrifying thought of what might happen if this were a true story. This book is chilling, powerful, and it's incomprehensible to me that there would be people alive who might do the things that happen to Annie and justify their behavior for the good of the person. Do you love thrillers? Should you read this book? Oh yes, I say.

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