A review of Black-Eyed Susans by Julia Heaberlin. Post may contain affiliate links.
I discovered a new favorite suspense writer in Julia Heaberlin. I devoured Black-Eyed Susans: A Novel of Suspense whenever I could find a spare moment. The book gripped me from the first page and didn’t let go.
The novel is structured with alternating chapters that shift between the present day and 1995. In the first section, chapters alternate between Tessie at age 16 in 1995 and Tessa—the grown Tessie—years later. The second section continues the alternation between 1995 and a present-day countdown to an execution. The final section alternates between Tessa in the present and her best friend Lydia in the past. This layered timeline is an effective way to reveal the story, and it keeps tension and mystery alive throughout.
At sixteen, Tessie is discovered in a shallow grave in a field of black-eyed Susans. She is alive but badly wounded, found alongside another murdered teenager and other skeletal remains. Tessie has no memory of how she ended up there, only the traumatic impressions of lying in the dirt—staring at dead, open eyes and feeling insects on her skin. The girls connected to that night become known as the Black-Eyed Susans.
In the present day, Tessa remains haunted by the events of her youth as she prepares for the execution of the man convicted in the case. Yet she is working with lawyers who suspect a wrongful conviction. Tessa never formally identified the man as the killer, and as new details surface she begins to doubt whether the right person was ever held accountable.
The novel follows Tessie’s struggle to survive the aftermath of the crime and Tessa’s attempt as an adult to uncover the truth. Heaberlin balances trauma, memory, and the mechanics of an investigation, showing how the same events are experienced differently across time and perspective.
The characters feel authentic and well-drawn, and the plot delivers steady twists that kept me turning pages. Heaberlin handles the alternating timelines with skill, revealing clues and emotional beats at just the right moments. The writing is vivid when describing Tessie’s memories and careful when exploring the long-term effects of trauma.
If you enjoy atmospheric suspense with complex characters and a slowly unfolding mystery, Black-Eyed Susans is a compelling read. It blends psychological depth with procedural elements and never loses momentum. I found it hard to put down.