The authors sister died in her twenties from suicide.,this book is their story his searching for the reasons why.Their family history his own behavior makes for a very compelling read.#netgalley #avidpress

I received a free copy of, A Better Ending, by James Thomson, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. In 1974 Eileen Thomson committed suicide, at the age of 27. Eileen's older brother James decides to investigate his sisters life and death. Their is no bond like a the bond of siblings. This was an interesting read about a brothers love for his sister.

A….hmmmm…somewhat interesting, definitely different take on true crime, I’ll say that for it.

One day in 1974 the author came home from a baseball game to find that his younger sister, Eileen, 27, had taken her own life. Jim, his parents and his brother were left reeling. Eileen had been living in California with her high school sweetheart husband, Vic, a cop, had a job she loved and lots of friends. But her family learned she had been depressed. In the day she died she and Bic fought and he stormed out of the room; moments later a gun went off.

Cut to 2001. Jim’s parents and brother were dead and Jim found himself thinking about Eileen, wondering why she hadn’t told anyone about her troubled marriage. He hired a private investigator to track down her old friends and a disturbing picture began to emerge.

So, like I said, this was interesting. Definitely true crime, but also hard to totally categorize. First, for Jim to start investigating so long after the incident, I was amazed at how many people were still alive, around and available.

It’s hard to discuss anything about the book for fear of spoilers. I will say, generally, that there was a depressing history of violence against women and children throughout, and, in what should come as a surprise to exactly no one, men believe men when it comes to women’s claims of domestic violence…and it appears to have been no big deal in the 1970s to knock the little woman around a little. I mean, they just won’t listen, amIrite?

The book was maybe a bit long and I’m curious about the time lag between the events that take place and publication. That’s a big thing that is not explained. So, if it appeals to you, and you really like true crime, give it a go.

Interesting deep dive into the forensics of a 30 year old mystery, and the grief that continues within a family. I felt that the misogyny was very prevalent in the 70s in this family and the author himself admitted to hitting his wife once and having an affair. This made it difficult to feel as sympathetic to the author as I might. I think the overall mystery was clouded by the narrator's confusion of how someone who seemed fine could suddenly commit suicide. As more evidence came through and as time and understanding came about, it became clear that this wasn't a whodunnit or a how-dunnit, but a why-dunnit. And there really isn't a good answer as to why she committed suicide or why the men in this story acted the way they did. It made me think, and still has me considering various facets.

I definitely didn't like the narrator and that made it hard to feel empathy for him.