“THE PHOTOGRAPHER” by Mary Dixie Carter (Minotaur Books, 304 pages, $28).
Mary Dixie Carter’s suspense-filled debut novel, “The Photographer,” places us in the mind and world of a successful New York City photographer named Delta Dawn.
When we meet our protagonist, she’s on a job for a wealthy couple, Amelia and Fritz Straub, taking photos at their daughter Natalie’s birthday party. Delta, who tells her own story in this first-person narrative, clearly knows how to work the room, and, more than this, she knows how to get the photos she wants. She admits to learning how to face-paint and craft balloon animals just to get the perfect shots capturing blissful childhood joy. She proves herself, too, as she uses the latter skill to charm 11-year-old Natalie and her friends.
The party ends rather uneventfully, but as the guests leave, Amelia receives a text from her babysitter, notifying her that she won’t be able to watch Natalie while Amelia and Fritz go to dinner with a client. As the Straubs scramble to find a replacement, Delta steps up and volunteers herself. The couple eagerly – perhaps too eagerly – accept. It’s in this moment that Delta’s intentions begin to become known, and “The Photographer” takes off at blistering speed into a dark, twisted tale of obsession.
Delta quickly becomes intertwined with the Straubs, and she continues to pop up at any and all instances in which they might need help. Specifically, she becomes a frequent babysitter for Natalie. Serving in this role allows her inside the couple’s home. She wants to get in their bathtub and touch their sheets. At one point, Delta admits, “I didn’t want Fritz or Amelia to have a personal life separate from me.”