The Cloud of Unknowing - by Thomas H Cook (Paperback)

About the Book

Following the death of her schizophrenic son, Diana refuses to accept the authorities' conclusion that his death was accidental. She begins to send her brother David faxes and e-mails about ancient murders, and David soon fears for his own family's safety as the seductive qualities of Diana's manic energy become impossible to ignore.

Book Synopsis

David Sears grew up in the shadow of his brilliant sister, Diana, convinced by their father that she would accomplish great things. Instead, she married and had a son, Jason, who--like David and Diana's father--is schizophrenic. Her husband, Mark, a geneticist, never made peace with Jason's condition. Perhaps this is why Diana will not accept the authorities' conclusion that Jason's drowning death was accidental. Or perhaps Diana is going mad. As she builds a case against her husband and the seductive qualities of her manic energy become impossible to ignore, David finds himself afraid for his own family's safety. In The Cloud of Unknowing, Cook explores the power of blood and family mythology.

From the Back Cover

"[Diana s] inexorable descent into mania, narrated by her brother Dave, is as gripping as the mystery itself. A-" Entertainment Weekly

David Sears grew up in the shadow of his brilliant sister, Diana, told by their schizophrenic father that she would accomplish great things. But when she becomes convinced that her husband murdered their drowned son, David doesn t know what to believe. Has their family history of mental illness finally caught up with her? Or could Diana be on to the truth? In The Cloud of Unknowing, Cook explores the power of blood and family mythology.
"What s at stake isn t so much the resolution of a mystery as the integrity of a family." Time Out New York

"So spare and precise, it feels as if it has been chiseled in stone with something like a surgical instrument." Joyce Carol Oates

Thomas H. Cook is the author of nineteen novels and two works of nonfiction. He has been nominated for the Edgar Award seven times in five different categories, including Best Novel for Red Leaves, which was also nominated for a Barry and a Duncan Lawrie Dagger. His novel The Chatham School Affair won the Edgar for Best Novel. He lives in New York City and Cape Cod.
An Otto Penzler Book"

Review Quotes

PRAISE FOR RED LEAVES

"Red Leaves is both heart-wrenching and gut-wrenching. A family can be 'briefly held, ' and yet so enduring."--New York Daily News

"One of the most suspenseful of crime-fiction writers, [Cook] is also one of the most lyrical . . . Readers will glimpse blurred snapshots from their own lives--and be afraid."--The Plain Dealer (Cleveland)
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About the Author

Thomas H. Cook is the author of nineteen novels and two works of nonfiction. He has been nominated for the Edgar Award seven times in five different categories, including Best Novel for Red Leaves, which was also nominated for a Barry and a Duncan Lawrie Dagger. His novel The Chatham School Affair won the Edgar for Best Novel. He lives in New York City and Cape Cod.