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WE BEGIN AT THE END

by Chris Whitaker ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 2, 2021

A fierce 13-year-old girl propels this dark, moving thriller.

A police chief who never grew up and a girl who never had a childhood try to solve the murder of someone they love.

A tiny, picturesque town on the California coast is an emotional prison for the characters of this impressive, often lyrical thriller. Its two main characters are a cop with an improbable naïveté and a child too old for her years. Walk (short for Walker, his last name) is chief of the two-person police department in Cape Haven and a native son. He’s kind and conscientious and haunted by a crime that occurred when he was a teenager, the death of a girl named Sissy Radley, whose body Walk discovered. Duchess Radley is that child’s niece, the daughter of Star Radley, the town’s doomed beauty. Most men lust after Star, including several of her neighbors and perhaps a sinister real estate developer named Dickie Darke. But Star is a substance abuser in a downward spiral, and her fatherless kids, Duchess and her younger brother, Robin, get, at best, Star’s benign neglect. Walk, who’s known Star since they were kids, is the family’s protector. As the book begins, all of them are coming to terms with the return to town of Vincent King. He’s Walk’s former best friend, Star’s former boyfriend, and he’s served a 30-year prison term for the death of Sissy (and that of a man he killed in prison). Someone will end up dead, and the murder mystery structures the book. But its core is Duchess, a rage-filled girl who is her brother’s tender, devoted caretaker, a beauty like her mother, and a fist-swinging fighter who introduces herself as “the outlaw Duchess Day Radley.” Whitaker crafts an absorbing plot around crimes in the present and secrets long buried, springing surprises to the very end.

Pub Date: March 2, 2021

ISBN: 978-1-250-75966-5

Page Count: 384

Publisher: Henry Holt

Review Posted Online: Dec. 24, 2020

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2021

LITERARY FICTION | MYSTERY & DETECTIVE | THRILLER | POLICE PROCEDURALS | SUSPENSE | GENERAL MYSTERY & DETECTIVE | GENERAL THRILLER & SUSPENSE | GENERAL FICTION

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BOOK REVIEW

by Chris Whitaker

by Max Brooks ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 16, 2020

A tasty, if not always tasteful, tale of supernatural mayhem that fans of King and Crichton alike will enjoy.

Are we not men? We are—well, ask Bigfoot, as Brooks does in this delightful yarn, following on his bestseller World War Z (2006).

A zombie apocalypse is one thing. A volcanic eruption is quite another, for, as the journalist who does a framing voice-over narration for Brooks’ latest puts it, when Mount Rainier popped its cork, “it was the psychological aspect, the hyperbole-fueled hysteria that had ended up killing the most people.” Maybe, but the sasquatches whom the volcano displaced contributed to the statistics, too, if only out of self-defense. Brooks places the epicenter of the Bigfoot war in a high-tech hideaway populated by the kind of people you might find in a Jurassic Park franchise: the schmo who doesn’t know how to do much of anything but tries anyway, the well-intentioned bleeding heart, the know-it-all intellectual who turns out to know the wrong things, the immigrant with a tough backstory and an instinct for survival. Indeed, the novel does double duty as a survival manual, packed full of good advice—for instance, try not to get wounded, for “injury turns you from a giver to a taker. Taking up our resources, our time to care for you.” Brooks presents a case for making room for Bigfoot in the world while peppering his narrative with timely social criticism about bad behavior on the human side of the conflict: The explosion of Rainier might have been better forecast had the president not slashed the budget of the U.S. Geological Survey, leading to “immediate suspension of the National Volcano Early Warning System,” and there’s always someone around looking to monetize the natural disaster and the sasquatch-y onslaught that follows. Brooks is a pro at building suspense even if it plays out in some rather spectacularly yucky episodes, one involving a short spear that takes its name from “the sucking sound of pulling it out of the dead man’s heart and lungs.” Grossness aside, it puts you right there on the scene.

Pub Date: June 16, 2020

ISBN: 978-1-9848-2678-7

Page Count: 304

Publisher: Del Rey/Ballantine

Review Posted Online: Feb. 9, 2020

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2020

GENERAL SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY | GENERAL THRILLER & SUSPENSE | SCIENCE FICTION

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by Max Brooks

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BOOK TO SCREEN

by Catherine Newman ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 18, 2024

A moving, hilarious reminder that parenthood, just like life, means constant change.

During an annual beach vacation, a mother confronts her past and learns to move forward.

Her family’s annual trip to Cape Cod is always the highlight of Rocky’s year—even more so now that her children are grown and she cherishes what little time she gets with them. Rocky is deep in the throes of menopause, picking fights with her loving husband and occasionally throwing off her clothes during a hot flash, much to the chagrin of her family. She’s also dealing with her parents, who are crammed into the same small summer house (with one toilet that only occasionally spews sewage everywhere) and who are aging at an alarmingly rapid rate. Rocky’s life is full of change, from her body to her identity—she frequently flashes back to the vacations of years past, when her children were tiny. Although she’s grateful for the family she has, she mourns what she’s lost. Newman (author of the equally wonderful We All Want Impossible Things , 2022) imbues Rocky’s internal struggles with importance and gravity, all while showcasing her very funny observations about life and parenting. She examines motherhood with a raw honesty that few others manage—she remembers the hard parts, the depths of despair, panic, and anxiety that can happen with young children, and she also recounts the joy in a way that never feels saccharine. She has a gift for exploring the real, messy contradictions in human emotions. As Rocky puts it, “This may be the only reason we were put on this earth. To say to each other, I know how you feel .”

Pub Date: June 18, 2024

ISBN: 9780063345164

Page Count: 240

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: March 23, 2024

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2024

LITERARY FICTION | FAMILY LIFE & FRIENDSHIP | GENERAL FICTION

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by Catherine Newman

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Monday, March 1, 2021

Review: we begin at the end by chris whitaker.

We Begin at the End is an unexpectedly intense and unforgettable story of family, loss, and hope. I've seen this classified as crime fiction a couple times since reading it, and although there is technically a crime in this book that needs to be solved, I wouldn't go into this expecting a regular crime novel. Whitaker's storytelling is deliberate and eloquent and I am so glad I had a chance to go on this journey, even if it did completely break my heart at multiple turns.

We Begin at the End follows the thirteen-year old self-proclaimed "outlaw" Duchess Day Radley and sheriff Walker--more commonly known simply as 'Walk'--as they both try to navigate their own individually difficult lives that occasionally intersect due to Duchess' mother, Star. Our story takes place in a small coastal town in California that is lowly but surely being overhauled from the quiet town it was into something more modern and developed. The people living in this town are largely resistant to the changes, which reflects well with the general sluggish atmosphere of its residents and the difficult, complicated lives they all seem to lead. The story kicks off when Vincent King, a man who has been in prison for the last thirty years, returns to town and some unexpected events occur.

Duchess, the first POV we follow, is an incredibly well-developed character that is both utterly compelling to follow and similarly difficult to follow throughout the many tragedies that occur in both her and her younger brother Robin's lives. Her anger at the world is entirely justified, in my opinion, and it was heartbreaking to watch her attempts to protect Robin and keep her family together as best as she can. Her character undergoes so much change and development that I couldn't help but feel impressed at Whitaker's writing. She is an incredibly complex character dealing with a myriad of trauma, grief, and the taking on of parental roles she shouldn't have to at her age. Everything about her is a closed off wall of anger, but the way she manages to navigate the world and learn to maybe trust or accept others was beautiful to watch.

The sheriff, Walk, is our second perspective and was someone that I found similarly compelling to follow, but in a different way, as his life stage is one completely different from Duchess' (understandably, given their ages and life situations) yet is just as difficult and melancholy as Duchess'. His story is a quieter one than Duchess' as he struggles with feeling physically and mentally unwell, as well as his rather mundane day-to-day life as sheriff. His change and development is much more subtle than Duchess', but it's unavoidably there and brings so much depth to his story and character. His relationships with Star and Vincent are both so complicated, but the ways in which Whitaker brings those out and showcases them is deftly done and adds many layers of nuance to everything.

We Begin at the End is a slow burn of anger, dejection, loss, and hope all rolled into one extraordinarily moving story. This is a story that with a slow, steady pacing that kept me hooked on the lives of each character and unable to turn away from the pages. This was a deceptively difficult story to read, and i Mean that in the sense that I didn't expect to hit as hard as it did or to make me feel as sorrowful and sad as I did for these characters stuck in these lives. I wanted for nothing more than happiness for each one, but because this book is so unfortunately real and raw, things didn't always end up as I'd hoped. And even though the ending is technically probably considered to be an uplifting one, it still made me feel a quiet sadness at how everything resolved. It's the sort of ending that you understand and that may be best as a result of everything that's happened, but it's not a satisfying one that makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside. But that's okay, because I feel like that's just what life is--things happen, and all we can do is learn to make the best of everything in whatever way we can. 

Overall, I've given We Begin at the End five stars. This is a beautiful and heartbreaking book that I would absolutely recommend to anyone interested in following the lives of some truly captivating characters.

  *I received an ARC of We Begin at the End courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*    

6 comments:

Wow, this sounds so powerful. I'm not sure I've even heard of it but its definitely one to consider😁

I had to read it twice. It is that compelling. Bravo, Chris Whitaker.

I agree completely. I.will be haunted by these characters for a while and the ending ... it was an ending or was it.a begining .. either way it made me cry

I just finished reading this book. It is very moving and I love Duchess, because she really doesn't care what 99 percent of the world thinks. There are so many people involved in this story I feel like I need to reread the story to appreciate all of the different personalities. Great writing!

Gripping compelling reading,I could not put the book down,I will be seeking out other books by this very talented writer.

I loved this book. I shared it with about 8-10 people who also loved the book. One I opened it up and started reading it I couldn’t put it down. There were parts of the book that I felt truly sad, happy or just emotional. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

• Movies & TV

Book review: Memorable tale of events and repercussions

"We Begin At The End"

Author: Chris Whitaker

Henry Holt, 384 pages, $27.99

Chris Whitaker's latest novel is a real treat. “We Begin At The End” has a great theme in forgiveness and the inability to accept it.

This is a tale of events and repercussions. Teenagers Walk, Vincent, Martha and Star were as close as friends could be. Sneaking out and driving his father's car without permission or a license, Vincent accidentally kills Star's younger sister, Sissy. He did not try to shirk responsibility and would not duck his punishment. While most friends and family would not forgive him, his worst punishment was in not forgiving himself.

Thirty years later, Vincent leaves prison. Now Sheriff “Walk” Walker is the only person who still treasures his teenage friend and takes him back to his home that has been empty all these years.

Walk is a competent sheriff and has never had a major crime to deal with the small town of Cape Haven. Martha (once Walk's girlfriend) has moved on to another town practicing family law. Star is ruined by alcohol and makes a living with part-time work and occasional singing gigs at a bar owned by a shady real estate agent with a very bad temper, Dickie Darke. She also has two children by an unknown man. The elder, Duchess at age 13, introduces herself to every one as Duchess Day Radley, outlaw. She is completely dedicated to watching out for her mother and assumes most of the responsibility for her 5-year-old brother, Robin.

As Vincent settles into his life to begin again, he is still weighted by his past mistake. Then one night Star is murdered and every bit of evidence points to Vincent. Walk does not believe it, but Vincent will not defend himself. His only request is for Walk to get Martha to defend him. Martha is reluctant to do so since she has no experience as a criminal defense attorney.

Every year I usually have what I call my book of the year. I'm confident that this one will be it and highly recommend it. It is character driven and the surprises, when revealed, will keep readers thinking about this book for a long time afterwards. I have already ordered Whitaker's two previous novels. Happy reading.

In a virtual event, Chris Whitaker discusses “We Begin At The End” at 3 p.m. Tuesday on Barnes & Noble Facebook . 

Richard Klinzman lives in Middleburg.

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StarTribune

Review: 'we begin at the end,' by chris whitaker.

In a small coastal California town, erosion is claiming the modest oceanside houses so full of history and memories — they're just falling into the sea. On a psychological level, the same thing is happening to some of the town's most loyal residents.

Walker ("Walk" to the locals) is the police chief in his decaying hometown. He has befriended a rebellious 13-year-old girl who would do just about anything to escape her troubled mother, but she's held back by a fierce love for her little brother, who's 5. The two are inseparable.

The town is rocked when Walk's childhood friend, Vincent, gets out of prison and tries to pick up with a star-crossed lover. He sticks to himself, but the town clearly doesn't want him there.

A murder is the kindling that lights the town on fire, with long-timers turning on their own.

Will the two children find a home in all this madness? Can Walk survive countless disappointments and rebuild a broken life?

In an extraordinary novel of love and loss, Chris Whitaker reminds us that we form our own families as our relatives and lovers fade away or fail us. His message: No one is alone. There is a home for us all, if we can be lucky enough to find it.

Ginny Greene is a copy editor at the Star Tribune.

We Begin at the End By: Chris Whitaker. Publisher: Henry Holt, 384 pages, $27.99.

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Word of Mouth

Submitting a book for review, write the editor, you are here:, we begin at the end.

Far be it from me to join the Hallelujah Chorus that precedes the release of a novel. However, when it comes to WE BEGIN AT THE END, whatever pre-publication praise you may have encountered is grossly understated. Chris Whitaker’s book left me shattered like a fresh egg dropped on a summer-heated sidewalk. The author has quite a backstory that I recommend you research on your own. What is interesting for our purposes is that he lives in Great Britain but sets his novels with dead-on accuracy in the rural United States.

WE BEGIN AT THE END takes place in the fictitious but reality-grounded town of Cape Haven, California, and begins with Vincent King returning there after three decades. His absence was not voluntary, or perhaps not exactly so. He was in his mid-teens when he accidentally but recklessly killed a young girl named Sissy Radley, who was the sister of Star, his girlfriend at the time. Vincent’s presence sends a ripple through the community, from troubled police chief “Walk” Walker to property developer Dickie Darke. Walk and Vincent were best friends in school, but it was the teenaged Walk who found Sissy’s body and whose straightforward testimony sent Vincent to prison. Dickie is a giant of a man with a reputation for being dangerous and deadly, even as he seeks to develop the small community and pull it out of its economic doldrums.

"Reading the last quarter of the novel may take a little longer than normal because you will want to digest the exquisite plot twists that go off like a string of explosives, moving backward through the book and forward past its conclusion."

Star is hardly welcoming Vincent’s return, but it is her children who are ultimately the most affected by it. On the cusp of adolescence, Duchess is hardened in any number of ways by taking on the premature role of parent to both her mother, who has significant substance abuse issues, and her younger brother, Robin. Her flinty exterior is her armor for the soft love she feels for her sibling. Their lives could not get much worse until their situation changes dramatically on a fateful night when an impulsive action by Duchess intersects with Star’s violent death. Vincent is found at the scene of her murder, covered with her blood and all but confessing to the crime.

Duchess and Robin are placed initially with the grandfather in Montana they never knew, which leads to a deceptively tranquil period that is only a precursor for more trouble to come. Lives are upended as truths are revealed, and moral ambiguity is woven into a violent tapestry where issues of guilt and innocence are hazy and answers are best known to only a few.

Chris Whitaker is a marvel. I read one comment that described him as “up-and-coming,” but I believe he is already there. There are enough subtle descriptions, turns-of-phrase and metaphors in WE BEGIN AT THE END to fill three books, and Whitaker is still spitting them out single-action style at the end of it, even as he leaves readers misty-eyed. Reading the last quarter of the novel may take a little longer than normal because you will want to digest the exquisite plot twists that go off like a string of explosives, moving backward through the book and forward past its conclusion. I am totally serious when I ask/beg/tell you not to miss this one. You will never forgive yourself if you do.

Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub on March 2, 2021

We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker

• Publication Date: April 12, 2022
• Genres: Fiction , Mystery , Suspense , Thriller
• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Holt Paperbacks
• ISBN-10: 1250759684
• ISBN-13: 9781250759689

Review: We Begin At the End by Chris Whitaker

“She was Sissy Radley. Seven years old. Blond hair.”

“The shoe was small. Red and white leather. Gold-tone buckle… And then he saw her. He took a breath and raised his hand.”

Three decades on, Star Radley, Sissy’s sister, is still struggling with everything that has been thrown at her. Chief Walker, her old school friend, once again finds her on the couch, a bottle beside her not responding. It seems to have become a regular occurrence now, Walk turning up, finding Star in an unconscious state and rushing her to a hospital for treatment. He should phone social services, but he just can’t bring himself to do it. He does not want to be the one to take Duchess and Robin away from her after everything she has been through.

Vincent King, Walk’s best friend is doing time. Thirty years to be precise for the murder of Sissy Radley. He was just fifteen when he accidentally mowed the poor girl down after an evening out with Star. The problem is, rather than handing himself in, he runs away and for that reason, the judge decided to try and sentence him as an adult. He should have been out by now, living his life once again, however, he got into a fight inside, killed a man and refused to claim it was self-defense. Vincent, therefore, got a further sentence for that one.

It’s almost like he wants to stay in prison. Perhaps he feels like he doesn’t deserve any sort of life after what he did.

Chief Walker, or Walk to his friends, is no better off. It seems like he is living in the past, unable to move forward while his best friend rots in a prison cell and the love of his life left long ago. On top of that, the town is beginning to talk. People assume that Walk is addicted to something, alcohol probably, although some believe its pills.  Does he really have an addiction though, or is there something else really going on there?

 What is he hiding and why is he so fearful about confiding in someone?

Then with the release of Vincent, tragedy strikes the Radley house a second time when Star is murdered; a bullet to the heart and several broken ribs.  The problem is that Vincent King is there when Walk arrives, making him the most likely suspect. Surely he wouldn’t want to hurt the one person he once loved?

 The only hope Vincent has is his old friend, Walk.  Can he find the true murderer? Or would his friend be sent to death row for something he didn’t do?

“Guilt is decided long before the act is committed.”

It seems like it wasn’t just Vincent’s life that was stolen thirty years ago, Walk and Star clearly couldn’t move on either, and now just when Walk feels he could start living with his friend by his side again, it appears he is going to lose him for a second time.

Will justice and truth win out? Will Walk finally be able to move on with his life rather than remaining firmly in the past? Will the little town of Cape Haven ever be able to get past the devastation caused by the death of Sissy Radley? Will any of the Radley family survive?

My Thoughts on We Begin at the End

As a reader, you have to wonder what the Radley family could have possibly done wrong for so much destruction to hit one family. Not one, but two daughters killed surely no parent should have to experience something like that.

What starts off as an unfortunate event in a sleepy seaside town, turns into a gripping crime story of murder, revenge, and retaliation. We Begin at the End is a well-crafted tale that grabs your attention early on and holds you in its clutches until it spits you out at the end. It is a novel that seizes your attention so that you can focus on nothing else until it reaches a conclusion. This is a criminal masterpiece that leaves you reeling at its revelations long after you have read it.

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The main content creator at Travelling Book Junkie who loves all things book related. If lost, she can always be found in the nearest bookshop or library and is known for following in the footsteps of famous writers whether that be to a local cafe or to the top of a mountain. She loves to explore countries through the pages of a book before visiting anywhere to further understand their culture and traditions.

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Book Review: No Land to Light On by Yara Zgheib

This book is brilliant in many ways. It has an engaging story and complex characters and I couldn’t put it down. My only criticism is that I still don’t know who killed Sissy and it is driving me crazy. I’ve been over parts of the book twice, but either I missed it or we are being kept in the dark deliberately.

Chris Whitaker certainly seems to be a marvel at twists and cliff-hangers that’s for sure.

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What Every Bookworm Needs for a Relaxing Day at the Beach

Bookworms and the beach… yes you have read that correctly, even we need some much needed vitamin D sometimes. Granted, whilst it is fair to say that we normally tend to gravitate towards bookshops, libraries or cafes that house delightful little reading nooks, we have also been known to occasionally…

Novel Notions

Book review: we begin at the end by chris whitaker, february 26, 2020 emma comments 5 comments.

We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker

My rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Published: 2nd April 2020 (Bonnier Books UK)

Chris Whitaker is one of those authors whose every release makes me wonder just how much better he can get. He’s only on book 3 and I’m wondering if this time he might have created something unmatchable. Honestly, I’ve been sitting on this review for ages because I can’t seem to write anything that’s not offensively superlative. We Begin at the End is a triumph. Spectacularly plotted, gut-wrenchingly genuine, and memorable in that way that sits heavy on your heart.

One of the most challenging aspects of reviewing this book is how to talk about what it IS without accidentally negatively framing what it isn’t. As a genre, crime fiction gets about as much stick as science fiction and fantasy. It’s somehow considered lesser, like putting together intricate plots, unforgettable characters, and surprising denouements is easy as pie. And if you’re shopping for a copy of this, you’ll most likely find it in the crime fiction section. That’s how the author’s previous books were classed and this story does spiral out from a murder. The tag line on Amazon calls it ‘the most captivating crime read of 2020’. Now, I’m not going to deny that…

…if anything beats this as my favourite crime novel of the year I’ll be stunned.

But maybe that’s because We Begin at the End is nothing like you expect. And as much as I love the genre, this is something altogether different. This is crime fiction in the same way that To Kill a Mockingbird is a courtroom drama . It’s small town America authenticity rendered, a depiction of flawed humanity and messy relationships made all the more striking by the contrast of being written in such beautiful language. It’s hard not be awed by how perfect the blend of literary style and criminal investigation can be when it’s grounded in the baseness of human nature; how a spectacularly crafted sentence can illuminate the flashes of compassion in what seems like overwhelming hardship.

This isn’t crime fiction as you know it, this cuts far too close to the bone for that. It’s the kind of real you can lose yourself in. It’s storytelling that transcends genre.

The book’s greatest strength is in the voice and character of Duchess. This girl. What can I say about this girl? Well, she’s difficult. Challenging in that way fierce people can be. She is all fire, mesmerising and dangerous. Her every choice is determined by the desperate necessity of protecting herself and above all else, her brother. While her actions provide an essential part of the investigative momentum of the plot, it is the author’s exploration of her relationship with Robin that in turn uplifts and crushes the soul. Their precarious lives, their vulnerability, their search for safety in any and all its forms… it’s an emotionally bruising story that holds hope just out of reach.

In comparison, the adults in the book, with their bad decisions and repeated failures, fade into the background. Still effectively rendered, but nowhere near as vibrant. They are the ones that hold the answers to all the puzzles, but you doubt whether they have either the wherewithal or the will to find them. Of course, this is all part of the author’s plan . It means that everything is held close right until the final pages, a sublime finale for a narrative that hides as much as it reveals.

Whichever direction Chris Whitaker decides to got after this, know that I’ll read anything he writes. Whether it’s the physiological thrill of Tall Oaks , the intensely atmospheric All the Wicked Girls , or this masterpiece, there’s no doubt that his books represent unmissable fiction. We Begin At the End deserves to be on everyone’s reading list this year.

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5 thoughts on “ Book Review: We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker ”

Wonderful review! I just finished this yesterday and I am still feeling a bit bereft about it.

bereft without it!

I’m not surprised! It floored me. I still can’t quite describe what I thought about it.

Super review. Just wondering if you would consider including the book blurb with your reviews for those that haven’t read the book and don’t know what it’s about 🙂

Hi Lynne, thanks for commenting. I usually do a quick overview at the beginning of my reviews but you’re right, I failed to include anything this time. Largely because I found it too hard to do justice to the book, I just didn’t have the words to explain it!!

This is the blurb from the publisher:

‘Thirty years ago, Vincent King became a killer.

Now, he’s been released from prison and is back in his hometown of Cape Haven, California. Not everyone is pleased to see him. Like Star Radley, his ex-girlfriend, and sister of the girl he killed.

Duchess Radley, Star’s thirteen-year-old daughter, is part-carer, part-protector to her younger brother, Robin – and to her deeply troubled mother. But in trying to protect Star, Duchess inadvertently sets off a chain of events that will have tragic consequences not only for her family, but also the whole town.

Murder, revenge, retribution.

How far can we run from the past when the past seems doomed to repeat itself?’

I’ll try to make sure I include my own blurb or more info from now on…

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We Begin at the End : Book summary and reviews of We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker

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We Begin at the End

by Chris Whitaker

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Published Mar 2021 384 pages Genre: Thrillers Publication Information

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Book summary.

There are two kinds of families: the ones we are born into and the ones we create.

Walk has never left the coastal California town where he grew up. He may have become the chief of police, but he's still trying to heal the old wound of having given the testimony that sent his best friend, Vincent King, to prison decades before. Now, thirty years later, Vincent is being released. Duchess is a thirteen-year-old self-proclaimed outlaw. Her mother, Star, grew up with Walk and Vincent. Walk is in overdrive trying to protect them, but Vincent and Star seem bent on sliding deeper into self-destruction. Star always burned bright, but recently that light has dimmed, leaving Duchess to parent not only her mother but her five-year-old brother. At school the other kids make fun of Duchess―her clothes are torn, her hair a mess. But let them throw their sticks, because she'll throw stones. Rules are for other people. She's just trying to survive and keep her family together. A fortysomething-year-old sheriff and a thirteen-year-old girl may not seem to have a lot in common. But they both have come to expect that people will disappoint you, loved ones will leave you, and if you open your heart it will be broken. So when trouble arrives with Vincent King, Walk and Duchess find they will be unable to do anything but usher it in, arms wide closed. Chris Whitaker has written an extraordinary novel about people who deserve so much more than life serves them. At times devastating, with flashes of humor and hope throughout, it is ultimately an inspiring tale of how the human spirit prevails and how, in the end, love―in all its different guises―wins.

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Reader reviews.

"Powered by extraordinarily deep character development and an impressively intricate plot, this novel is simultaneously a murder mystery, a love story, and a heartbreaking tragedy. The existential agony is palpable throughout, but so, too, is the hope at the end. Whitaker has upped his game with this emotionally charged page-turner." - Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Whitaker crafts an absorbing plot around crimes in the present and secrets long buried, springing surprises to the very end. A fierce 13-year-old girl propels this dark, moving thriller." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "Ravishing, pulse-raising suspense…" - O, the Oprah Magazine "This is an epic drama and a profound masterpiece. I'll be amazed if I read a better novel this year." - Daily Mirror (UK) "Heartbreaking and profound, this is my thriller of the year." - The Mirror (UK) "Two damaged children―one timid and sweet, the other foul-mouthed and furious―will break readers' hearts in this well-plotted and perfectly-paced novel. If, like me, you love stories that kidnap your intended schedule because you can't not keep turning the pages, then I wholeheartedly recommend Chris Whitaker's We Begin at the End ." - Wally Lamb, New York Times bestselling author of I Know This Much Is True "I LOVED this book. From the riveting plot to the beautiful writing. But mostly what kept me longing to get back to it each day were the characters, especially young Duchess. Fierce, brave, vulnerable, she leaps off the page fully formed. As does Walk. How aptly named. A chief of police on his own inexorable journey. This is a book to be read and reread and an author to be celebrated." - Louise Penny, #1 New York Times bestselling author "It's an instant classic….Let's begin at the end. After you've turned the final page of Chris Whitaker's magnificent new novel, you'll struggle―I struggled, certainly―to describe the experience…it recalls the very best of Tana French and Dennis Lehane. Think of Duchess Day Radley as a twenty-first-century Scout Finch, tough and curious and good . In fact, think of We Begin at the End as a novel at the same time distinctly American and profoundly universal." - A.J. Finn, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller The Woman in the Window

Author Information

Chris whitaker.

Chris Whitaker lives in the United Kingdom with his wife and three young children. When not writing he works part-time at a local library, where he gets to surround himself with books. His own authored books include Tall Oaks and All the Wicked Girls .

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Wednesday, December 22, 2021

Book review | we begin at the end by chris whitaker.

Source: Preordered purchase. This is a review of my personal reading experience.

We Begin at the End is a mystery novel by Chris Whitaker.

There are two kinds of families: the ones we are born into and the ones we create. Walk has never left the coastal California town where he grew up. He may have become the chief of police, but he’s still trying to heal the old wound of having given the testimony that sent his best friend, Vincent King, to prison decades before. Now, thirty years later, Vincent is being released. Duchess is a thirteen-year-old self-proclaimed outlaw. Her mother, Star, grew up with Walk and Vincent. Walk is in overdrive trying to protect them, but Vincent and Star seem bent on sliding deeper into self-destruction. Star always burned bright, but recently that light has dimmed, leaving Duchess to parent not only her mother but her five-year-old brother. At school the other kids make fun of Duchess―her clothes are torn, her hair a mess. But let them throw their sticks, because she’ll throw stones. Rules are for other people. She’s just trying to survive and keep her family together. A fortysomething-year-old sheriff and a thirteen-year-old girl may not seem to have a lot in common. But they both have come to expect that people will disappoint you, loved ones will leave you, and if you open your heart it will be broken. So when trouble arrives with Vincent King, Walk and Duchess find they will be unable to do anything but usher it in, arms wide closed. Chris Whitaker has written an extraordinary novel about people who deserve so much more than life serves them. At times devastating, with flashes of humor and hope throughout, it is ultimately an inspiring tale of how the human spirit prevails and how, in the end, love―in all its different guises―wins

This was my first time to read Chris Whitaker. I look forward to reading more from him. We Begin at the End was beautifully written. The characters were so well developed, flawed, and unforgettable. As much as I loved the characters, I also loved that there was a balance between plot and character. It was so well done. I listened to the audio for much of this, and the prose and the narrator were a great fit. It did take time for me to get sucked in, but it was such a well developed novel I'm not sure that's a bad thing. If you love mysteries and crime novels, I highly recommend We Begin at the End, but I also recommend it for those wanting to explore other genres. 

5/5 stars ⭐⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

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2 comments:

This sounds like such an amazing book. I'm intrigued by both Walk and Duchess, and can't wait to read this one. :)

I bought a copy of this but still need to read it. I'm glad you loved it and also reminded me about it😁

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Book Review: We Begin at the End

Walk has never left the small coastal California town where he grew up. He may have become the chief of police, but he’s still trying to heal the old wound of having given the testimony that sent his best friend, Vincent King, to prison. Now, thirty years later, Vincent is being released.

Duchess is a thirteen-year-old self-proclaimed outlaw. Her mother, Star, grew up with Walk and Vincent. Star always burned bright, but recently that light has dimmed, leaving Duchess to parent not only her mother, but her five-year-old brother, Robin. At school the other kids make fun of Duchess — her clothes are torn, her hair is a mess, and she doesn’t conform. Just let them throw their sticks . . . she’ll throw stones. Rules are for other people. She’s just trying to survive and keep her family together.

Walk is in overdrive trying to protect them, but Vincent and Star seem bent on sliding deeper into self-destruction.

A fortysomething-year-old sheriff and a thirteen-year-old girl may not seem to have a lot in common. But they both have come to expect that people will disappoint you, loved ones will leave you. If you open your heart, it will be broken.

So when trouble arrives when Vincent King returns to live in his family home, Walk and Duchess find they will be unable to do anything but usher it in, arms wide closed.

We Begin at the End is the story of people who deserve so much more than life serves them.

We Begin at the End is a heartbreaking and compelling saga about friends who grew up together in the little town of Haven Cove on the California coast. They were just ordinary kids until one tragic night changed all of their lives. And the repercussions of it are also impacting the next generation — Star’s children. Thirteen-year-old Duchess has had to grow up too soon in order to take care of her mother, who drinks too much, gets involved with the wrong men, and is unable to competently mother Duchess’s little brother, five-year-old Robin. Duchess adores Robin and makes sure he is fed, clothed, and comforted when he is frightened, which is frequently. She walks him to school and intercedes when he is bullied. Neither child has any idea as to the identity of their father.

On that horrific night, Star’s sister, seven-year-old Sissy Radley, died, and Vincent went to prison for her death. Vincent and Star were then fifteen years old, and boyfriend and girlfriend. Walker (“Walk”) was Vincent’s best friend, but his unfailing sense of right and wrong demanded that he take the stand during Vincent’s trial and testify truthfully.

As the story opens, Duchess, clutching Robin’s hand, finds Walk, who knowingly says, simply, “Your mother.” They race to the house where Star is on the couch, an empty pill bottle next to her. At the hospital, Duchess tells Walk that Star wants to die. “I can’t decide if suicide is the most selfish or selfless act.” Star survives and they return to the house Star rents from Dickie Darke, who owns a bar where the locals hang out. Their next-door neighbor is Brandon Rock, who is employed at Tallow Construction but still works out constantly in his garage, dreaming of recovering from the knee injury that ended his football hopes. He drives his father’s classic Mustang and Walk tells the just-returned Vincent, “The hair, the clothes, the guy still lives in ’78. You see, he hasn’t changed, Vin. None of us have, not really.” Milton, the butcher who can never completely shed the smell of blood, lives across the street.

Duchess is deeply angry about the way in which they live, but she does love and is protective of Star. And when she believes that Star is being mistreated, she will not tolerate it. She will seek revenge. Her temper has gotten her in trouble all of her life, but this time is different. She never gets a chance to confess to her mother what she has done because she inadvertently sets in motion yet another series of tragic events that put her and Robin in danger.

As a result, she and Robin come to know Hal, the grandfather they had never previously met — Star’s widowed father who lives on a ranch in Montana. He is a man of quiet strength who lives with the pain of losing his family, and knows exactly how to handle Duchess’s anger, gradually breaking down her defenses. It is Hal who tells Duchess, “We begin at the end” when explaining about the choices he has made in his life. But catastrophe strikes again. Duchess and Robin are placed in a foster home where they are not permitted to interact as members of the family. The couple who are fostering them only want the money they receive for doing so. Eventually, they find themselves in a children’s home and Duchess, whose grief, anger, wisdom far beyond her years, and undiminished determination compel her to make an unspeakable decision about their future.

Whitaker has deftly found Duchess’s voice — her tone and vocabulary are believable, and Whitaker compassionately reveals the internal struggles that fuel her.

Back in Haven Cove, Walk is harboring a secret as he searches for answers. He must solve a crime for which Vincent has been — Walk is convinced — wrongly accused and prevent him from returning to prison. But Vincent won’t participate in his own defense. And he will only consent to being represented by one attorney: Martha May. She and Walk dated for three months back in high school, but things did not work out between them. Back then, she and Star were best friends. Unlike so many of their classmates, Martha left town and never looked back. Now she has a successful career as a family law attorney, focusing her practice on women who have been abused. She’s not a criminal attorney, which is what Vincent needs in order to avoid the death penalty. Eventually, Walk wears her down and she agrees to help. As Walk continues investigating, he and Martha have a chance to finally talk about what happened when they were teenagers.

Each of Whitaker’s characters is fully developed, complex, and compelling. Whitaker demonstrates the myriad ways in which the adults’ lives have been entwined since they were children and the ways their relationships have, in most instances, never changed. They’ve stayed in the same little town where everyone is acquainted and their personalities, formed so many years earlier, have also stayed the same, even though several of them have secrets that the others would never guess.

As the story progresses, Duchess and Robin find their circumstances getting worse and worse, and Whitaker heartbreakingly portrays their reactions to their plight. Robin, so young, naive, and hopeful, clings to and relies on Duchess for all of his needs, but wants and still believes that it is possible for them to find a loving, forever home and family. He has nightmares, though, and cannot recall what happened on one particularly horrifying night. No one is sure what, if anything, he witnessed because he cannot remember any of the details. Duchess, hardened by what she has endured, no longer believes in happy endings but will do anything necessary to ensure that Robin has the chance to realize his dream. Even if it is the hardest thing imaginable . . . and breaks her.

Whitaker convincingly illustrates life in a small town and the demons that haunt Walk, a man who is principled, committed to his career in law enforcement and the values undergirding it, but also unyieldingly loyal to his friends, especially Vincent. As boys, they were so close that they were like brothers. And he will work tirelessly, at the risk of his own health and well-being, to prove that he has not misjudged Vincent’s character. Even when Vincent, a man has spent the bulk of this life consumed with guilt about the mistake he made thirty years ago, refuses to make any effort to save himself.

We Begin at the End is an utterly consuming, absorbing story that will leave readers heartbroken, but hopeful, and richer for having gotten to know Walk, Duchess, Robin, and Whitaker’s whole impressive cast of supporting characters. Aside from being a masterfully constructed character study, We Begin at the End is also an engrossing mystery full of expertly-timed, surprising plot twists. Readers experiencing Whitaker’s evocative prose and emotionally resonant dialogue for the first time will want more after finishing the book. And hopefully, Whitaker, an extremely talented writer who resides in England and works in a library part-time, will publish another book for readers to enjoy soon.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one electronic copy of We Begin at the End free of charge from the author via Net Galley . I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own. This disclosure complies with 16 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 255, “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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We Begin at the End

49 pages • 1 hour read

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

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Chapters 31-40

Chapters 41-49

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Summary and Study Guide

Chris Whitaker’s We Begin at the End (2020) starts as a conventional small-town murder mystery with a conventional cast of possible suspects. Vincent King returns from prison, where he served 30 years for killing his girlfriend's younger sister when he was just 15 in a hit-and-run accident. His return to the small California coastal town of Cape Haven triggers events that lead to multiple murders.

Events in the present bring to light events from the past. With more than a dozen named characters, each of whom has a backstory, the novel evolves into a study of loss and the grieving process, the need for the comfort of family and friends, the struggle to understand a world that refuses to make sense, and ultimately the devastating emotional and psychological impact of secrets. The novel, an immediate best-seller, was optioned by Disney Studies for development into a television mini-series.

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In the narrative present, Vincent King returns to his hometown of Cape Haven, California, after serving 30 years in prison—initially for a hit-and-run accident when he was 15 in which he killed the younger sister of his girlfriend, Star Radley, and then for killing a man during a fight in prison. Shortly after Vincent returns, Star is found murdered. Walk, his closest friend in high school and now the town’s chief of police, investigates the murder, certain that Vincent is innocent.

The novel’s point of view divides between Walk and Duchess Ray Radley , Star’s feisty and independent 13-year-old daughter. Duchess is a tough kid who fancies herself an outlaw. Given her mother’s job as a stripper and her struggle with alcoholism, the responsibility for raising her little brother, Robin, has fallen largely to her. When her mother comes home with bruises from being slapped, Duchess is certain that the strip club’s owner, Dickie Darke , a wealthy and shady real estate developer, is responsible. Duchess torches the nightclub.

To protect herself, Duchess snatches the club’s surveillance videotape. Although certain that the girl burned down the club, Walk opts not to pursue any investigation. Days later, when Duchess returns home after running out to get her brother a birthday gift, she finds Star shot dead. Vincent is there and confesses to the crime.

Duchess and Robin are sent to distant Montana to live with Star’s father, Hal, a rancher who is more a stranger to the kids than a grandfather. Initially hostile to her grandfather, Duchess comes to love the ranch, particularly the horses and the sheer beauty of the mountains. She starts school and befriends Thomas Noble, a nerdy Black kid who has a withered hand. Duchess wonders why her grandfather never came to see them. Gradually, Hal reveals that when Vincent was sentenced to only five years for the death of Sissy, he had hired an ex-con to arrange the fight in the prison that added 20 years to Vincent’s sentence. When Star found out, she cut off all communication with her father.

Back in Cape Haven, Darke makes clear he needs the videotape that Duchess took the night she set fire to his club to collect the insurance and prevent the collapse of his ambitious project to build homes along the town’s coast. Darke uses his underworld network to locate Duchess in Montana. The night she and Thomas attend the school’s winter dance, Darke confronts Hal and shoots him. Hal dies just after Duchess returns from the school.

Now without family, Duchess and Robin are dispatched to a foster home. They see on tv that Vincent was found not guilty of killing their mother. Walk, struggling with the onset of Parkinson’s disease and facing the end of his career, is determined to spare his friend from returning to jail for a crime he did not commit, so he manufactures evidence to ensure the verdict. For his part, young Robin reacts to seeing Vincent’s photo on the television, certain Vincent is his mother’s murderer.

Duchess decides Vincent must pay. Regretfully, she leaves Robin with their foster family and bravely heads back to California alone. Meanwhile, Walk, battling his illness, has discovered the extent of Darke’s financial woes and his desperation to recoup the insurance money from the fire. Walk is surprised when the prison warden, another friend from high school, tells him that during Vincent’s incarceration, he had allowed Vincent conjugal visits with Star and that both Duchess and Robin are Vincent’s children. Only when Walk tails Vincent and recovers the gun involved in Star’s murder does fingerprint evidence reveal the killer was a child—Robin, not Vincent, killed Star.

Reluctantly Vincent admits that he is protecting Robin. He was in the house that night, but so was Darke, who came demanding the videotape. Robin, terrified when he saw Darke rummaging through the home, tried to shoot him with a gun he found in the closet, missed, and hit his mother instead.

Days later, Duchess finally arrives in town, and she finds Vincent at her mother’s grave, which overlooks the Pacific. She tells him she is there to settle the family’s score and to kill him. Telling her he doesn’t want her to sacrifice her life, Vincent hurls himself off a cliff overlooking the ocean. Walk later tells Duchess that Vincent was her father and that in committing suicide, he protected her from going to prison, most likely for life.

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Chris Whitaker on We Begin at the End with Amy Einhorn

Mysterious, heart-wrenching, frequently funny, and ultimately inspiring, Chris Whitaker’s We Begin at the End tells the story of a police chief whose childhood friend has returned from prison after 30 years. Whitaker discussed the novel with Amy Einhorn , President and Publisher at Henry Holt. Click here to order We Begin at the End (out March 2, 2021) from our bookstore and enjoy their illuminating conversation below.

Chris, one of the things I find fascinating about you is how you came to writing and being an author. How is it that someone who was a stock-trader (and lost $2 million on his first day of trading!) now works part-time as a librarian assistant and a writer?

Sometimes I forget how much money I lost, then I see it in print and think, damn, that was a bad day in my life. But probably not the worst day (damn, again).

My writing journey began with me being mugged at age nineteen. The mugger pulled a knife and stabbed me several times, and after that my life kind of imploded. I lost my way in every sense, but found it impossible to ask for help. I had this idealized version of myself, as someone brave, someone my parents could be proud of, and above all, someone who could cope. And realizing that I couldn’t was a terrifying feeling. It was like looking in a mirror and seeing a stranger staring back at you, and thinking ‘You’re not me. I don’t want to be you.’

I tried writing as therapy. I wrote about the incident, only I changed the characters involved. And it helped. The more I wrote, the better able I was to get through each day.

Fast forward through my ill-fated city career, my million-dollar debt and another brush with that stranger in the mirror, and I reached a crossroads at the age of thirty. I could go on working in the city (I had a pregnant wife to support), or I could gamble on writing.

My wife was hugely supportive, but overnight our lives changed. We sold our car and apartment and I began writing a novel.

I took a job in my local library to help pay the bills and because, well, the library is my second home. Ever since I was a child it has meant a great deal to me, a place I can go to leave my world behind and inhabit another.

And now here I am. Poorer, happier, and ironically far less fearful of a future far less certain.

You’ve spoken about your struggles with addiction. How does writing come into play for you with that?

It’s funny, I’ve never really used that word before, or thought of the struggle I had with drugs and alcohol as an addiction, but looking back now that’s exactly what it was. A crutch, the only way I could face and escape my problems. I suppose any form of addiction is at its heart a coping mechanism.

But then I turned to writing. It is the only, single constant in my life that keeps me grounded. And by grounded I mean able to function. To me, writing is as important as breathing. And yet at times it’s so maddeningly difficult I find it close to impossible to sit down and write. God, what a total mess I’m in!

My wife sometimes says that I replaced one addiction with another, and when I’m lying awake at 3am worrying a certain paragraph isn’t as good as it could be, I know that she’s right. When I look back now, at the problems I’ve overcome over the years, the overriding positive I draw from those experiences is that they led to the path I’m on now. I found writing when I needed it most.

Most people who read the novel are completely taken with Duchess.  How did she come into being? Why do you think readers respond to her as they do?

Duchess is the thirteen-year-old, wannabe outlaw, beating heart of the story. She is stoic and heroic, hot-headed and humorous and unflinchingly protective of her broken family.

I think we are, by our nature, good. And when we see someone struggling our instinct is to reach out. And throughout the story Duchess is a child struggling, and that can be a very powerful, emotive thing to witness. And whilst we, as readers, are forced to be passive observers, we can still hope and dream for a better future for the characters we care about. And Duchess needs that, she needs good people around her.

As for where she came from, we’re back to those difficult days. Duchess was created because I needed her. I needed a level of transference, my problems and struggles needed to be shared or…deflected. And when I first sat down, all those years ago, and began writing as therapy, it was Duchess that I wrote. I saw her so clearly. Outwardly small, in her large Stetson, with the name she has, she screamed victim. But she was also carrying a gun. Duchess is tough, unquestionably. She has to be so incredibly tough just to live through each day, to not give in and to keep the smile on her face (though it’s reserved solely for her younger brother).

And from there she just evolved. She became someone I checked in with off and on over nearly two decades. She’s so lost, not knowing her father, having no tangible roots. A drug-addict mother, a local police chief who watches her every move. She’s had no childhood to speak of, yet throughout the story we get glimpses of the girl she might have been, or might still be.

And those glimpses are what keep us rooting for her.

We Begin at the End takes place in California and Montana. I think many readers are surprised to learn you are British.  Why did you choose to set the novel in those places? Could the story just as easily been set in your own country?

To me there’s no greater compliment than the story feeling authentic. And I am eternally grateful to the team at Henry Holt for helping me create this world, and catching my endless mistakes.

I’ll admit it’s a challenge, setting a story in locations I have never visited, but I just felt in my heart there was no way the story could have taken place anywhere else. Duchess and Walk, Vincent and Star, they are entirely of their environment. America is sprawling, the kind of rich, endless landscape where I find my imagination has no constraints, where I have the room to tell the kind of big story I wanted to tell. I had such a strong vision of Cape Haven, this beautiful coastal town slowly eroding and being claimed by the ocean and property developers. And in many ways the town mirrors Walk, who had this idyllic childhood and has never really moved on from it. He wanted to press pause on his life back when he was fifteen, the last time he was truly happy. But life doesn’t work like that, and as the town is slowly stripped of this perceived charm, so too is Walk stripped of his ideals.

And then we move to Montana, where Duchess visits a grandfather she’s never met before. He went there to escape, and talks of the wide open plains bringing clarity to his thoughts. At first she doesn’t, or chooses not to, see this, and truly hates him, and the farm. But as she calms, and life settles, the change of pace brings out a different side to her. I loved writing those chapters. I’d have a tough day, then settle down at my desk and travel the four thousand miles to Montana, where I wrote the scenes as if I were living them myself.

What writers do you most admire and why? Perennial question: you’re going to a deserted island and you can only grab five books, which ones?!

I admire anyone that writes. Anyone that manages to finish a book, it’s a huge achievement and I salute them. I read everything, every genre. Working at the library helps with this. I love how subjective this industry is, how there’s a reader for every story.

I grew up reading Dennis Lehane, Tess Gerritsen, John Grisham. Stephen King! The master of characterization. I snuck a copy of It from the library when I was a kid and scared myself shitless. I love Maggie O’Farrell, Jane Harper, Kazuo Ishiguro. Cormac McCarthy! I’ve read The Road many times, it gets better and better. The Year of the Runaways by Sunjeev Sahota was sublime. I read some of The Book Thief to my kids recently, and it’s a wonderful story. I’m lucky enough to be sent lots of books, and I borrow tons. My TBR pile could insulate a small house. Have I successfully managed to avoid picking five? Can I write a few more then pick my own books without sounding narcissistic?

Chris Whitaker lives in the United Kingdom with his wife and three young children. When not writing he works part-time at a local library, where he gets to surround himself with books. His own authored books include Tall Oaks and All the Wicked Girls .

Amy Einhorn has been in publishing for 30 years. Before joining Henry Holt, she was EVP and publisher at Flatiron Books and headed an eponymous imprint, Amy Einhorn Books, at Penguin. Some of her bestselling fiction titles include the the #1 New York Times bestseller Big Little Lies and bestsellers Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty, The Postmistress and The Guest Book by Sarah Blake, This Is How It Always Is by Laurie Frankel, and Free Food for Millionaires by National Book Award Nominee Min Jin Lee. Her nonfiction bestsellers include the #1 New York Times bestsellers Let’s Pretend This Never Happened and Furiously Happy by Jenny Lawson and A Higher Loyalty by former FBI Director James Comey, as well as bestsellers such as Amy Sedaris’s I Like You and Isaac Mizrahi’s memoir, I.M. .

Featured Book

We Begin at the End

By Chris Whitaker

Published by Henry Holt and Co.

Duchess Day Radley is a thirteen-year-old self-proclaimed outlaw. Rules are for other people. She is the fierce protector of her five-year-old brother, Robin, and the parent to her mother, Star, a single mom incapable of taking care of herself, let alone her two kids.

Walk has never left the coastal California town where he and Star grew up. He may have become the chief of police, but he’s still trying to heal the old wound of having given the testimony that sent his best friend, Vincent King, to prison decades before. And he’s in overdrive protecting Duchess and her brother.

Now, thirty years later, Vincent is being released. And Duchess and Walk must face the trouble that comes with his return. We Begin at the End is an extraordinary novel about two kinds of families—the ones we are born into and the ones we create.

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We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker

• Publication Date: April 12, 2022
• Genres: Fiction , Mystery , Suspense , Thriller
• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Holt Paperbacks
• ISBN-10: 1250759684
• ISBN-13: 9781250759689
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An Impressive Heroine, All the More So Seeing As She Is Still in Middle School

We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker

June 13, 2024 by elderberrywine Leave a Comment

In a small town along the cliffs of northern California, a young girl has disappeared.  Walk and his best friend, Vincent, are both teens and join in the search.  Walk wants to join the police force, like his dad, and when the girl’s body is found along the roadside, he forces himself to give evidence that implicates Vincent.  Vincent ends up in prison and after killing a man in a prison fight, ends up there for thirty years.  Walk does what he can to stay in touch with Vincent, but the prisoner denies any contact.  The girl’s older sister, Star Radley, ends up an addict and drifting her way through life.  But she has two children, their father unknown.  The older is Duchess Day Radley, born outlaw, even if she is only still in middle school.  She has a much younger brother, who she protects fiercely.

But Vincent has been released from prison, and moves back to his family’s home.  The town is undergoing gentrification, and the property, as one of the few that has not slid off the cliffs, is suddenly much more valuable.  And Walk, who has been keeping a protective eye over the Radley siblings since their mother was murdered, now has some issues of his own.

This plot is as twisty and convoluted as all get out, but you can count on Duchess, as shitty as her life has become, to walk by her own North Star.  A compelling read, and there’s no telling what’s waiting around the bend.

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Jen Med's Book Reviews

Musings and Ramblings of a Disorganised Blogger

We Begin At The End by Chris Whitaker

Today it is my absolute pleasure to take part in the blog tour for We Begin At The End , the latest novel from Chris Whitaker. It’s been a while since we were treated to one of Mr Whitaker’s works of art and I have been looking forward to reading this one. Did it meet expectation? Well read on to find out …

About the Book

With the staggering intensity of James Lee Burke and the absorbing narrative of Jane Harper’s The Dry, We Begin at the End is a powerful novel about absolute love and the lengths we will go to keep our family safe. This is a story about good and evil and how life is lived somewhere in between. ‘You can’t save someone that doesn’t want to be saved . . .’ Thirty years ago, Vincent King became a killer. Now, he’s been released from prison and is back in his hometown of Cape Haven, California. Not everyone is pleased to see him. Like Star Radley, his ex-girlfriend, and sister of the girl he killed. Duchess Radley, Star’s thirteen-year-old daughter, is part-carer, part-protector to her younger brother, Robin – and to her deeply troubled mother. But in trying to protect Star, Duchess inadvertently sets off a chain of events that will have tragic consequences not only for her family, but also the whole town. Murder, revenge, retribution. How far can we run from the past when the past seems doomed to repeat itself? Available from: Amazon | Kobo | Waterstones | Googleplay | Apple Books

My Thoughts

This book has given me sleepless nights. Not because it is gruesome or scary. Not even because I was compelled to read into the small hours to finish it. If anything I took my time, reading it over several evenings in the end because I wanted to savour it. No. This book gave me sleepless nights because when I finally did finish it my mind was so awash with all the things I wanted to say about it, all the words that weren’t going to be enough, that I spent half of the night switching my lights back on so that I could make notes as soon as something came to mind. I am not a person who makes notes. I am a wing it and see kind of reviewer. This is quite the departure for me … This book, perhaps ironically, doesn’t begin at the end at all. Not really. It begins thirty years prior to the main story, focusing the reader on the event which is to prove to be the catalyst for all that is to come. It is a relatively unassuming opener, no quick action, no scenes to make the reader jump or unnecessarily anxious, and yet it still packs a punch, the final lines setting the tone for novel. It is a short but effective chapter which tells you all you need to know about the tone of the book, the pace, and that gives you just the hint of all you are about to experience. This is, when all is said and done, a murder mystery. One of the key characters is killed, the murderer seemingly apparent, but the circumstances clouded by all that has gone one before. In reality, whilst the investigators truly believe they have their man, a slam dunk case with a defendant who will neither confess to the deed, nor defend himself against the charge, as a reader you know that it is not as simple as it appears, a conviction held by town Sheriff , Walk, also best friend of the key suspect, Vincent King. But this book is so much more than just a murder investigation. It is a brilliant portrayal of life in a small American town. Of the residents who make up the community of Cape Haven and how the years have meant things staying the same for some and causing immeasurable damage to others. For a very English guy from Hertfordshire, Chris Whitaker has an amazing ability to create a truly authentic American voice, capturing the very essence of that style which put me very much in mind of authors such as John Hart. A kind of melancholic resignation about what is happening. His ability to put you in the heart of the action, to create such a sense of place, is perfect and as a reader it makes you feel you are there, alongside Walk as he tries his damnedest to get to the truth. If you are looking for a fast action murder mystery, this is absolutely not the book for you. That is not where this particular author excels. What you can expect when you pick this book up is a novel full of such deep emotion and pain that it seeps from every page. And, as I have come to expect from Mr Whitaker, he not only captures the voice, the sense of place, perfectly, he creates characters who are authentic. From Walk, to Star Radley, a young mother so broken by her past that it has devastating consequences for her present, to the neighbours who range from the nosy parker to the former jock to the creepy and dangerous landlord – you have them all. Skin crawling to sympathetic, struggling in many different ways, both mentally and physically. Now in every Chris Whitaker novel you get that one character who steals your heart. In We Begin At The End, that honour falls fairly and squarely at the feet of ‘The Outlaw’ Duchess Day Radley. Barely a teenager, she has more responsibility than any child should, acting as caregiver for her younger brother Robin, while also looking out for her mother, Star. Duchess has a tenacity and level of bravado that is way beyond her years, a spiky nature that is driven by circumstance. A defence mechanism, tinged with a cynicism that is sad to see in one so young. At times it is easy to forget that she is still only a child, making those moments when you remember all the more poignant. Duchess has been faced with a childhood far darker than she deserves, and with more disappointment than any child should have to go through. Her actions and reactions are understandable, gutsy and believable, able to make you smile and weep simultaneously. She is tough to a point of almost perfect isolation, but those moments when she lets someone else in, when she forgets herself and acts as any child should, are heartwarming and emotional. Walk is the other central character in the novel. A very staid man, he prefers the status quo trying to stave off the inevitable change that is all around him, affecting him on a far more personal level than he is willing to admit. Certain of his friend’s innocence, he guides the reader between past and present, investigating a case that the state believes is closed and looking out for Star, Duchess and Robin in a way that is totally endearing and believable. You can feel the regret that emanates from him, the blame he takes for how events pan out, making his need to set things right completely understandable. He is someone that I was happy to go on the journey with, whose dedication and determination was both tragic and commendable. This is a book about secrets and lies. About the lengths that people will go to to protect those that they love – about the ultimate sacrifices that they are willing to make for one another. About the unassailable bond between friends, family and lovers that spans decades and shapes a lifetime of hurt. Of how one single decision can change everything. Whilst I may have guessed in part how the story was going to play out, I still wasn’t prepared for the emotional impact I felt when the truth was finally revealed. It is an ending that is both full of sorrow and yet tinged with hope for the future, this is a very classy piece of fiction, with a stunning narrative packed with vivid description, that I am certain is going to be a huge success. And no – I haven’t even begun to do this book justice and, no, I haven’t said half of the things I really needed or wanted to say. But, yes. I’m giving it one of these …

About the Author

Chris Whitaker was born in London and spent ten years working as a financial trader in the city. His debut novel, Tall Oaks, won the CWA John Creasey New Blood Dagger. Chris’s second novel, All The Wicked Girls, was published in August 2017. He lives in Hertfordshire with his wife and two young sons.

Author Links: Twitter

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3 thoughts on “ we begin at the end by chris whitaker ”.

Wow Jen! It is great to learn that this novel made such an impact on you. My favourite kind of read is one that tells a profound human story with authenticity of character and place. This one sounds like it ‘ticks all the boxes’. Outstanding review!

Like Liked by 1 person

Thank you. I love Chris’s writing. He produces such depth of feeling through his words and every story pulls at the heart strings as the tragedy unfurls. This is kind of like a tragic love story but also of new beginnings. Very moving and going to be another absolute hit I’m sure.

• Pingback: Rewind, recap: Weekly update w/e 05/04/20 – Jen Med's Book Reviews

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Book Review: We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker

I’d not heard of We Begin at the End before I bought it. I bought it because it was £2 on Amazon. But wow – it blew me away and it may well be the best £2 I’ve ever spent on anything ever. Read on to find out why.

We Begin at the End tells the tale of Walk, Duchess, Vincent, Robin, Star and a whole cast of incredible characters from a backwater town in America. It tells two tales: that of a murder in the town and who the killer might be and that of Duchess and Robin, two children who deserve so much more from life.

Plot – 4.5/5

We Begin at the End tells the tale of Walk’s attempt to solve a murder in the town after Vincent King returns from 30 years in jail for a questionable crime. Duchess and Robin are scraping through life with their less than role-model mother too. It’s difficult to try and explain as it’s more of an incredible journey you have to experience.

The plot itself isn’t fast-paced but the way it is written and the incredible journey that these two young children go on, intertwined with the murder case and court proceedings make for a book that you simply cannot put down. The book also builds up a simply phenomenal finale

Chris Whitaker’s way of writing is utterly phenomenal – at times almost poetic. The way he describes scenery is often metaphorical and the bluntness with how he delivers emotions and interactions between characters is simply brilliant. To say I want to read more from Whitaker would be an understatement.

Characters – 5/5

Duchess Radley, possibly the main character throughout this novel is quite possibly one of my favourite characters I’ve ever read. She’s a thirteen-year-old girl who considers herself an outlaw – she’s had to learn to grow up by herself with a distant mother and this has made her harsh and cold towards others. But on the very same surface from which she expells hate and anger, she shows such devoting and undeniable love for her brother. She cares for her brother Robin and will care for Robin in such a stubborn and resilient way until the very large page with every decision she makes being for the bettering of his future. She will make you laugh and she will make you cry – Duchess Day Radley is an utterly brilliant young protagonist.

Alongside Duchess, we have Walk, arguably the other main character in the novel who’s a kind, genuine soul who Whitaker writes as the slightly broken paternal figure of the two children despite having no blood relation to them. He’s smart, determined and loyal to the core.

As well as these two brilliantly written characters, nearly everybody in this book is really believable, they take things into consideration differently, they react to situations differently and they all add to the story in a genuinely useful way.

Summary – 5/5

I loved We Begin at the End . I loved the story, I loved the characters and I loved the wave of emotions it made you feel. Chris Whitaker has written a simply stunning book here that incorporates the best of all ingredients of making a really good novel – it’s believable, enjoyable, emotional and written in a way that makes you truly appreciate the English language.

If you’ve not read We Begin at the End , I genuinely can’t think of any reason why you shouldn’t. If you like words, read this. I mean, even if you don’t like words, I implore you to pick this book up and read it.

• Pick up a copy of We Begin at the End here.

3 thoughts on “ Book Review: We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker ”

I totally agree 100% with your review. I read We Begin At the End early this year and it remains my favorite of 2021!

Can’t wait to read this one after your recommendation!

That’s great to hear!

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We Begin at the End

By: chris whitaker.

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How will Karen Read’s trial end? Here’s what legal experts had to say.

As jury deliberations begin in karen read’s murder trial, several legal experts offered their takeaways and predictions in the sensational case..

By Abby Patkin

It’s a key question in the case that has launched a thousand theories: Will Karen Read walk free, or will she end up behind bars? 

It’s all up to jurors now. 

Deliberations began Tuesday after the prosecution and defense offered up their closing arguments . And following more than eight weeks of witness testimony, jurors are left with heated voicemails , crude texts , a broken taillight, and two vastly different theories of what happened to Boston Police Officer John O’Keefe. 

On the one hand, there’s the state’s argument that Read drunkenly and intentionally backed her SUV into O’Keefe — her boyfriend of two years — one snowy morning in Canton. Prosecutors allege the couple’s deteriorating relationship and Read’s jealousy drove her to kill as she dropped O’Keefe off at a house party sometime after midnight on Jan. 29, 2022.

More on Karen Read:

Jury deliberations are coming up in Karen Read’s murder trial. These are the possible outcomes.

A ‘tall blue wall’ or a ‘three-card monte’ trick karen read’s case in jury’s hands after closing arguments., watch: closing arguments in karen read’s murder trial.

Read’s lawyers have another theory: That O’Keefe walked into 34 Fairview Road that morning and was viciously beaten, attacked by the homeowners’ dog, and left to die in a blizzard. They say Read was framed in a conspiracy meant to protect a well-connected local family, and that law enforcement officials were in on the coverup.

Though the jury’s verdict remains undecided, several legal experts who spoke with Boston.com ahead of closing arguments agreed: For better or for worse, Read’s trial has left a lasting impression. 

“The entire case is unusual from my perspective — John O’Keefe is not the typical victim and Karen Read is not the typical defendant,” attorney Katherine Loftus said in an email interview. She pointed specifically to Read’s unprecedented media campaign and accusations of a coverup and “lazy police work.” 

“It is truly a story that would not be believed if it was written as fiction,” Loftus added. “I expect that this trial will cause divisions and arguments amongst friends and families for many years to come.”

Legal experts’ takeaways on the trial

Daniel Medwed , a criminal law professor at Northeastern University, noted the growing public fascination in Read’s case. 

“It seems to have morphed from largely a local story to one with national reverberations,” he said in an email interview. “I think the unique ingredients of the case — the death of a police officer, claims of a vast law enforcement cover-up, the prospect of a woman on trial, and the ample forensic and technological evidence — has created an enticing stew that almost everyone wants to consume.”

Read’s lawyers, he added, were impressive in their effective cross-examination of prosecution witnesses. Loftus likewise praised the defense for their “excellent job of attacking each witness and each piece of evidence.” She pointed to an old law school adage, “a brick is not a wall,” and said prosecutors have an uphill battle to keep their proverbial “wall” from crumbling.

One notable example of this came during the testimony of the lead Massachusetts State Police investigator, Trooper Michael Proctor, who admitted he “dehumanized” Read in vulgar texts sent to friends, family, and colleagues.

Rosanna Cavallaro , a professor of criminal law and evidence at Suffolk University Law School, said those texts — where Proctor called Read a “wack job c**t” and made light of her Crohn’s disease — “really significantly compromised” his testimony.

While prosecutors attempted to cushion the blow by introducing Proctor’s texts before the defense could, “the nature of the comments was so stark and I think surprising to the average juror that an investigator at a murder scene or a possible murder scene would be behaving in that way, or making comments that had that tone to them,” Cavallaro noted. 

What evidence will matter most to jurors?

Cavallaro said she was also struck by the dispute over the timestamp for witness Jennifer McCabe’s “hos long to die in cold” Google search.

McCabe told jurors she made the search at Read’s insistence shortly after the women found O’Keefe’s body around 6 a.m. on Jan. 29, 2022. Two digital forensics experts, Jessica Hyde and Ian Whiffin, testified that McCabe’s phone data puts the “hos long” search at 6:24 a.m.

But a defense expert, Richard Green, testified that McCabe made the search “at or before” 2:27 a.m. that day. Hyde and Whiffin both said the earlier timestamp actually indicates when McCabe first opened the browser tab.

“The average juror doesn’t have any insight of their own,” Cavallaro said. “The whole basis for expert testimony is that it’s a subject matter that’s beyond the average juror. That the average juror has to say, ‘OK, which of these experts seems to me to know what they’re doing?’”

Medwed, meanwhile, speculated the crash data and geolocation evidence might weigh heavily on jury deliberations, “both in terms of the defendant’s location at precise times and the ability of the technology to place Officer O’Keefe in specific locations.”

And Martin G. Weinberg , a prominent Boston-based criminal defense attorney, pointed back to Proctor’s texts.

“Jurors mirror the public,” he noted in an email interview. Some, he said, will be so offended by the messages “that they will find it very hard to trust that the remainder of the case was insulated from the bias and disrespect shown by the State Police lead investigator.”

Weinberg drew similarities to the O.J. Simpson murder trial, where jurors balked at Los Angeles Police Det. Mark Fuhrman’s “highly offensive racial bias.” 

“Other jurors will instead predictably focus on the multiple forensic experts that ADA [Adam] Lally pivoted his case around with apparent skill and precision,” Weinberg predicted. “How each side presents its arguments, first the lawyers in court and then the jurors in the sacred secrecy of jury deliberations, will determine the outcome.”

How will Karen Read’s trial end? 

Either way, Weinberg noted, “I doubt a fast verdict.”

According to Loftus, the length of the trial plays into the decision-making process.

“In addition to that, the case has become a lightning rod in the greater community, and it is hard to imagine that the same is not happening in the jury room,” Loftus said. “I anticipate we will know rather quickly whether they are struggling to come to a unanimous verdict — either they return swiftly, or alternatively, if the verdict takes longer, it often is an indication that the jurors cannot agree.”

The upcoming Fourth of July holiday may also mean jurors are antsy to reach a decision sooner than later, she noted. 

Still, the jury’s ultimate decision is anyone’s guess. 

Medwed, who weighed in before the defense rested its case, said one possibility is a split or “compromise” verdict where Read is convicted on some charges but acquitted on others. Read has pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree murder, motor vehicle manslaughter while driving under the influence, and leaving the scene of a collision causing injury and death.

“I would be mildly surprised if she’s convicted on all charges given the holes in the case, but I may be wrong,” Medwed added. 

There’s no possibility that Read will be convicted of second-degree murder at this point, Loftus opined. While she acknowledged there’s a “small chance” Read could be found guilty of the manslaughter charge, she said this outcome is also unlikely. 

Given the circumstances, Cavallaro said it seems doubtful all 12 jurors will think the prosecution’s case is airtight.

“There’s been a bit of a side show with people outside of the criminal process taking a kind of extraordinary interest in it and drumming up controversy,” she said of Read’s case. “But at the end of the day, I think there’s a group of 12 people in there that are paying careful attention and that are going to be able to figure out whether or not … the state has met the very high burden that they’re required to meet.” 

Read’s next steps will depend on the verdict she receives. She could file an appeal in the event of a conviction, and Loftus noted that the defense team’s allegations of police misconduct may be key.

“Given that there have been no substantiated findings as of yet against any of the involved police witnesses, it would likely be an uphill battle,” she acknowledged. 

However, if any charges or findings result from the State Police internal affairs investigation into Proctor or the federal probe of the case, “it likely sparks at least an inquiry into the basis for an appeal at a later date,” Loftus said. 

A trickier question is whether prosecutors would retry Read’s case if a hung jury results in a mistrial. While Loftus suggested prosecutors would “most certainly take the ‘second bite at the apple,’” Medwed was more doubtful. 

“Retrials are notoriously difficult even in a run of the mill case because the passage of time makes the evidence less fresh and memories less reliable,” he said. “And this case is far from run of the mill. If new evidence emerges, though, that could change things.”

Regardless of the trial’s outcome, Weinberg said the “skilled lawyering” from Read’s attorneys “has hopefully had a positive effect even beyond this single trial.”

He pointed to law enforcement officers’ “solemn obligation” to follow best police practices and avoid stigmatizing a defendant, adding, “The burden of being accused as Ms. Read has of a profoundly serious offense requires no less.”

Loftus, meanwhile, described the trial as a “fascinating” window into the division pervasive in the U.S. today. 

“Similar to the desire to pick a ‘team’ in our current political environment, so is the desire to fight for Karen Read’s guilt or innocence, seemingly with no ability to waiver in between,” she said. “I expect that the fervor will eventually dissipate, but it is going to take some time before it completely subsides (if ever).”

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The End We Start From ending explained: What happens to Woman?

Jodie Comer's survival drama is now available on Netflix UK.

The End We Start From ending spoilers follow

It really is everything in the title — an ending means the start of something new, which builds from all the good and bad that came to pass.

Mahalia Belo's feature debut, based on Megan Hunter's novel of the same name, follows an unnamed, pregnant Woman (Comer), whose water breaks the same day that London gets flooded (talk about metaphors) and millions of people are forced to flee the city.

With her husband R (Joel Fry) and their newborn baby Zeb, the family finds refuge in R's parents' (Mark Strong and Nina Sosanya) countryside home. However, the lack of resources and the escalating tensions destroy their safe haven.

After R's parents' tragic deaths (the mother is accidentally killed while trying to help other refugees, the father takes his own life shortly afterwards), the couple is forced to travel by road, searching for a place to stay.

They find a secure community, but only Woman and Zeb are allowed in, so they decide to separate for the sake of their baby's safety.

There, Woman meets another lonely young mother, O (Katherine Waterston), who becomes her travel companion when they are pushed, once again, to find shelter elsewhere.

Here's what happens at the end of The End We Start From , and why it might divide viewers.

The End We Start From ending explained

After travelling through the UK countryside for a while, a journey that included a fun dancing night with a stranger (played by Benedict Cumberbatch), Woman and O find their way to a commune on a peaceful island.

The commune's leader, a woman named F (Gina McKee), encourages the group to start a new life there. She insists that forgetting about their former lives will help them move forward, as well as adopting a sustainable way of life in light of the environmental disaster the country just experienced.

However, as much as she tries, Woman cannot forget about her home in London, and the possibility of her husband being alive somewhere out there. We see some flashbacks of their relationship, and those memories seem to push the protagonist towards a difficult decision.

Woman decides to abandon the commune and head to London.

After stealing a car and navigating (quite literally) their way through the still-flooded city, mother and baby arrive home. Thankfully, their house is still standing, as the neighbourhood seems to be already recovering from the disaster.

While Woman explores the damaged rooms, she hears the front door — it's R!

The family is reunited right where everything started, at their home, after going through a horrific, life-changing experience. It's a hopeful ending, which is meant to encapsulate the idea of the movie's title — their lives have been destroyed, and now they have to build upon the rubble.

It's meant to be a happy ending, and it is, but it also feels somehow disappointing.

It was obvious Woman was going to make the decision to go back to London after her conversation with Cumberbatch's stranger. He tells her during a heartfelt conversation that it's no use to forget the past, to cut off ties with what came before — it's worth keeping the memories, however bad, and building from there.

It's a beautiful reflection, and yet, as a viewer, the ending of The End We Start From seems out of place with the rest of the movie.

Besides a resolution so improbable that we can call it a deus ex machina , the story's full-circle moment makes the past tragedies lose meaning and impact. Even if focusing on hope rather than destruction is a welcome change for disaster movies , there is something unsatisfactory in this middle-class couple moving through an apocalyptic nightmare unscathed just to fall back to their original life.

After suffering the effects of a climatic disaster, witnessing other people's dire situations and flirting with the idea of a sustainable lifestyle, these characters just end up back at the beginning. It's not really the characters' fault, but rather a sense of incongruity about how the movie prioritises the poetic journey over the portrayal of a true catastrophe.

The End We Start From is now available to watch on Netflix UK.

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Deputy Movies Editor, Digital Spy  Mireia (she/her) has been working as a movie and TV journalist for over seven years, mostly for the Spanish magazine Fotogramas . 

Her work has been published in other outlets such as Esquire and Elle in Spain, and WeLoveCinema in the UK. 

She is also a published author, having written the essay Biblioteca Studio Ghibli: Nicky, la aprendiz de bruja about Hayao Miyazaki's Kiki's Delivery Service .    During her years as a freelance journalist and film critic, Mireia has covered festivals around the world, and has interviewed high-profile talents such as Kristen Stewart, Ryan Gosling, Jake Gyllenhaal and many more. She's also taken part in juries such as the FIPRESCI jury at Venice Film Festival and the short film jury at Kingston International Film Festival in London.     Now based in the UK, Mireia joined Digital Spy in June 2023 as Deputy Movies Editor. 

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