The Good Son

“The Good Son” by Jacquelyn Mitchard 352 pages

When Stefan Demetriou was seventeen years old, he got hooked on drugs. For each new drug he tried, he became addicted to it. One night, the drugs fueled a deeply hidden rage in Stefan that caused him to brutally murder his girlfriend, Belinda. However, Stefan has no memory of his actions. 

Sentenced to prison as an adult, the novel opens, three years later, when Stefan is released. To quote the back cover, “he’s released to a world that refuses to let him move on” and a world he does not recognize. Life on the outside is hard for Stefan. He wants to make amends for what he’s done, but the community doesn’t seem to want to help him. 

I have never read a novel that focused on the hardships convicted felons endure after their release. Stefan fails at first in his new venture, but I thought he succeeded too quickly. It was almost too easy. I don’t think it would be easy to do what he wanted to, even if he hadn’t been an ex-con. 

His mother, Thea, is also struggling. For the last three years, Belinda’s mother continues to lead a group who protests in front of Thea’s home who won’t let Belinda’s death be forgotten. It’s a daily reminder of what happened to her son. Thea isn’t so sure that what happened the night Belinda died is the truth. She teams up with the detective who initially investigated the murder in order to learn the facts.

 “The Good Son” receives 4 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.