Ilja Kuiper 4VC
The Safe House
My expectations and first reactions
I read this book for my assignment, because my older sister recommended me. When I read the back
of the book, I was very curious about the whole book. I was very interested to read something about
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and wanted to learn more about this. I expected that this book could
tell me more about this disorder and tells me an exciting story. Also, I expected that I would continue
reading after the first pages.
Summary
Leo and Liz Mackenzie were found dead by their cleaning woman. Their daughter, Fiona Mackenzie,
survived, but her throat had been cut too. Fiona ended up in the hospital, where the doctors
discovered she was traumatized. The police knew that Fiona was in danger, because she was the only
witness in this case. They were afraid the murderer would come back to finish what he started.
Fortunately they found a solution. Samantha Laschen, a specialist in Post Traumatic Stress Disorder,
lives in the country side with her daughter Elsie. Because she is very experienced and lives in a house
which is very remote, she could help Fiona to restore. After long hesitation, Sam accepted the
proposal and took Fiona into her house.
Sam’s boyfriend, Danny, is less happy with Fiona. He is very angry, because Sam didn’t consult with
him. He leaves for while. Sam seeks distraction by Michael Daley, Fiona’s doctor. Together, they go
sailing several times.
Then, everything goes horribly wrong. Sam finds a note on her desk from Fiona and Danny. They have
written that they are really sorry, but they want to continue together. As if it couldn’t be worse, Sam
gets a phone call from the police with the news that Danny and Fiona are found dead in a burned
down van. The police think it’s suicide. Sam is really upset and seeks help by Michael. They are going
to sail again. Sam changes in the beach house. There she makes a shocking discovery. She finds a
little swan made of paper. That’s what Danny always used to make for Elsie. She draws the
conclusion that Michael took Danny and Fiona to the beach house before he was going to kill them.
Sam confronts Michael with her suspicion on the boat. Michael tries to kill her too, but doesn’t
succeed, because he got an accident on the boat.
When Samantha is back home, the police tells her Michael is dead. They say the case is solved, but
Sam thinks differently about that. One day, she finds a paper in Fiona’s room. On the paper, she lets
know she wants to leave all her money to Michael Daley when she’s dead. Sam thinks that’s very
strange, because she still has family alive. Sam interrogates all her family members and other people
who have known Fiona and discovers that the girl in her house wasn’t the real Fiona. The fake Fiona
and Michael Daley killed the real Fiona and her parents to get their money.
Sam decides to move back to London with Elsie. She wants to leave everything behind and start a
new live. However, in London she can’t escape from the fake Fiona either. She burns her old house
down and kidnaps Elsie for a while. Sam will never find out who she really is.
The Safe House
My expectations and first reactions
I read this book for my assignment, because my older sister recommended me. When I read the back
of the book, I was very curious about the whole book. I was very interested to read something about
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and wanted to learn more about this. I expected that this book could
tell me more about this disorder and tells me an exciting story. Also, I expected that I would continue
reading after the first pages.
Summary
Leo and Liz Mackenzie were found dead by their cleaning woman. Their daughter, Fiona Mackenzie,
survived, but her throat had been cut too. Fiona ended up in the hospital, where the doctors
discovered she was traumatized. The police knew that Fiona was in danger, because she was the only
witness in this case. They were afraid the murderer would come back to finish what he started.
Fortunately they found a solution. Samantha Laschen, a specialist in Post Traumatic Stress Disorder,
lives in the country side with her daughter Elsie. Because she is very experienced and lives in a house
which is very remote, she could help Fiona to restore. After long hesitation, Sam accepted the
proposal and took Fiona into her house.
Sam’s boyfriend, Danny, is less happy with Fiona. He is very angry, because Sam didn’t consult with
him. He leaves for while. Sam seeks distraction by Michael Daley, Fiona’s doctor. Together, they go
sailing several times.
Then, everything goes horribly wrong. Sam finds a note on her desk from Fiona and Danny. They have
written that they are really sorry, but they want to continue together. As if it couldn’t be worse, Sam
gets a phone call from the police with the news that Danny and Fiona are found dead in a burned
down van. The police think it’s suicide. Sam is really upset and seeks help by Michael. They are going
to sail again. Sam changes in the beach house. There she makes a shocking discovery. She finds a
little swan made of paper. That’s what Danny always used to make for Elsie. She draws the
conclusion that Michael took Danny and Fiona to the beach house before he was going to kill them.
Sam confronts Michael with her suspicion on the boat. Michael tries to kill her too, but doesn’t
succeed, because he got an accident on the boat.
When Samantha is back home, the police tells her Michael is dead. They say the case is solved, but
Sam thinks differently about that. One day, she finds a paper in Fiona’s room. On the paper, she lets
know she wants to leave all her money to Michael Daley when she’s dead. Sam thinks that’s very
strange, because she still has family alive. Sam interrogates all her family members and other people
who have known Fiona and discovers that the girl in her house wasn’t the real Fiona. The fake Fiona
and Michael Daley killed the real Fiona and her parents to get their money.
Sam decides to move back to London with Elsie. She wants to leave everything behind and start a
new live. However, in London she can’t escape from the fake Fiona either. She burns her old house
down and kidnaps Elsie for a while. Sam will never find out who she really is.
