The Donovans of Westmount lose a beloved son in a hit-and-run accident, and his death tears the family apart. The father learns that old sins cast long shadows. Sister Caitlin (one of the protagonists in Kindellan-Sheehan’s earlier thriller The Sands Motel) feels guilty for suggesting that her brother walk instead of taking a taxi, which leads to Chris’s death, and swears revenge on the driver.

This isn’t a whodunit: we know early on who, how, and why. The propelling action comes as the driver attempts to cover up her culpability – which includes trying to eliminate a witness – as Caitlin and her pal Carmen try to prove the driver’s guilt. Kindellan-Sheehan has a gift for suspense. She ends her chapters at just the right moment. She also describes grief very well, including that of minor characters who are losing their marriages or their lives. Everyone has secrets and no one is exempt from human conniving. Kindellan-Sheehan gets into the head of her villain, so much so that Monsieur Patate, the villain’s unfortunate Pug, lends some welcome comic relief.

Montreal is lovingly rendered and becomes another character in Cutting Corners. (The corner alluded to is Sherbrooke and Wood.)

Kindellan-Sheehan has put together a topical, fast-paced thriller. mRb