We Begin at the End - by Chris Whitaker

About the Book

"Thirty years ago, a teenage Vincent King was sent to prison. But now, he's served his sentence and is returning to his hometown. The hometown where his childhood best friend, Walk, is now the chief of police. The town where his childhood sweetheart, Star Radley, still lives. The same Star Radley whose sister he killed. Duchess, Star's daughter, is a self-proclaimed outlaw. She needs to be. Who else is going to take care of her and her five-year-old brother? Star is still dazzling, still beautiful, but she hasn't shined as bright since Vincent was sent away. Too often it's Duchess and Walk who are the ones taking care of her. But when Duchess exacts her own vigilante revenge, she will set into motion a series of events that threatens not only her own family, but everyone she grows close to. A crime thriller that will break your heart and a literary novel with a mystery at its core, We Begin at the End unforgettably examines how the choices we make can nudge us into the dangerous ground between good and evil"--

Book Synopsis

An Instant New York Times Bestseller

"A vibrant, engrossing, unputdownable thriller that packs a serious emotional punch. One of those rare books that surprise you along the way and then linger in your mind long after you have finished it."
--Kristin Hannah, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Nightingale and The Four Winds

Right. Wrong. Life is lived somewhere in between.

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.

Review Quotes

An Instant New York Times Bestseller
A Good Morning America Buzz Pick
#1 Indie Next Pick

Praise for We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker

"Cape Haven, Calif., is a pretty town of broken souls. Its chief cop clings to the past as his body fails. A drunk former beauty can barely care for the kids she loves, and her fierce 13-year-old daughter Duchess Day Radley imagines herself an outlaw willing to do anything to defend her little brother.
--People (Book of the Week)

"A heartbreaking, page-turning, swashbuckling thriller."
--Good Morning America

"What is new is the protagonist's anguished, gorgeous voice, filled with rage and tenderness."
--The Washington Post

"Ravishing, pulse-raising suspense...."
--O, The Oprah Magazine

"A moving, propulsive story."
--The New York Times Book Review

"A vibrant, engrossing, unputdownable thriller that packs a serious emotional punch. One of those rare books that surprise you along the way and then linger in your mind long after you have finished it."
--Kristin Hannah, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Nightingale and The Four Winds

"A beautifully written mystery, packed with unforgettable characters. An intricately woven portrait of small-town intrigue where old and new sins collide."
--Jane Harper, New York Times bestselling author of The Dry and The Survivors

"Couldn't put it down. Incredible writing, characters so brilliantly drawn they jump off the page. Outstanding."
--B. A. Paris, bestselling author of Behind Closed Doors

"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

"With prose as eerily beautiful as its settings, you'll be left thinking about this novel long after the final page."
--Newsweek

"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

"Rich with character and story, conflict and tension, humor, tragedy, and raw, unadulterated guts, this one has it all. Throw in the most compelling young protagonist I've read in at least a decade, and you have a deep and meaningful story that is an absolute delight from first page to last."
--John Hart, author of six New York Times bestsellers

"We Begin at the End is a searing portrait of guilt and grief, strikingly written and full of characters you can't help but love."
--Charlotte McConaghy, author of Migrations

"Beautifully written, We Begin at the End really reminds me of To Kill a Mockingbird. And the spirit of Scout is very much alive in Duchess."
--Sarah Pinborough, New York Times bestselling author of Behind Her Eyes

"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)

"It's extraordinary."
--AARP

"[An] impressive, often lyrical thriller. 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)

"A superb thriller.... 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)

About The Author

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.