Book Review: All Around the Town by Mary Higgins Clark

Jul 5, 2011
Caroline Trent-Gurbuz

Mary Higgins Clark, All Around the Town - Illustration, Tom Hallman

Kidnapped at age 4, Laurie had a traumatic childhood; as an adult, she - and her multiple personalities - is the prime suspect in a murder investigation.

Laurie Kenyon is a good girl who has had to endure terrible things: in 1974 she was kidnapped by a couple who kept and tortured her for two years; several years later, she is a college student embroiled in a murder. With no knowledge of the crime she allegedly committed, Laurie turns to her older sister, Sarah, and Dr. Justin Donnelly for help. All Around the Town is a fascinating look at trauma, multiple personality disorder, and the disturbing lengths people will go to make themselves happy.

Plot Overview: Death, Damage and Selfishness

Laurie is the sheltered girl of two affluent parents. Sarah, older by 8 years, takes her role as big sister seriously, protecting and coddling Laurie when necessary. So when Laurie is kidnapped, Sarah and her parents are horrified, for good reason. Abducted by an unbalanced couple, Bic and Opal, Laurie is repeatedly molested for over two years.

After she is returned to her family, Laurie never quite returns to normal, though she appears to physically heal from her ordeal. She successfully graduates from high school and is a sophomore at Clinton College when the effects of her traumatic kidnapping come to light. The body of her college professor, Allan Grant, is found, and Laurie becomes the prime suspect, although she has no memory of committing the murder; as she fights to defend herself, her multiple personalities – Kate, Leona, Debbie and Lee – surface.

Compounding matters is the return of Bic, transformed into a successful televangelist. While Laurie tries to manage her personality disorder, Bic and Opal methodically manipulate her, tapping into her worst, most painful memories.

Criticisms and Compliments

All Around the Town is a disturbing novel, one that captures the reader from its first pages. Laurie Kenyon’s story is so desperately sad that is hard to keep reading. With Mary Higgins Clark’s evocative writing and plot twists, however, All Around the Town is a novel that the reader feels compelled to finish, just to see what kind of recovery and justice Laurie will have.

All Around the Town’s only weakness lies in the murder of Allan Grant. Higgins Clark puts such focus on Laurie and Bic that the investigation into Grant’s death seems to be an afterthought or a tagline to reel in a reader. It’s not an entirely necessary plot line, but it serves as a nice vehicle for Laurie’s multiple personalities. All Around the Town is a page-turning, unsettling novel that is definitely worth a read.