Review: Exit

Exit by Belinda Bauer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I have heard a lot of good things about Belinda Bauer and have bought several of her books on these recommendations, but I hadn't got round to reading any of them until EXIT when given the opportunity to listen to the audiobook. I have to say it was not at all what I expected, which I think was some form of physiological thriller, perhaps a domestic noir. EXIT is actually a gentle, funny, sometimes darkly so, mystery about 'assisted' suicide gone wrong.

Felix Pink is a 75 year-old widower, an 'Exiteer', part of a group who attend to those who want to take their own lives, to end their own suffering, to be with them at the end but, crucially, do nothing to cause the actual death. When Felix, and his new, inexperienced, young partner, attend to their latest 'client' something goes terribly wrong and Felix believes he has made the biggest mistake of his life. But later, as he tries to atone for his mistake, Felix begins to believe he may have been setup. Meanwhile, a young detective, Calvin begins to investigate the death and the role that two strangers seen on CCTV may have had in it.

The book is beautifully written and the audiobook narration by Tim McInnerney is sympathetic and entertaining. The main characters are realistic and charming, as are many of the supporting cast. Despite the subject matter, some of the scenes are truly comical and, although I felt those from Felix's viewpoint worked significantly better than those from Calvin's, I really enjoyed the book to its poignant conclusion and will be going back to read those other Belinda Bauer book on my TBR pile.

Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin Audio for access to the audiobook.

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