Moment in time A novel

Redfearn revisits Mo Kaminski and Chloe Miller from In an Instant (2020), eight years after the accident that changed their lives. Both women are in their twenties and living in San Francisco, where Mo is starting to make waves with her media startup and Chloe is a veterinarian with a soft spot for strays. When their roommate, Hazel, is drugged and raped by an acquaintance of Mo's, the women want justice for their friend. Mo makes a spur-of-the-moment, angry social-media post that goes viral, leading to the disturbing discovery that Hazel's assailant is a serial rapist. And when he's found drugged and beaten, Mo is the prime suspect. Hazel's sudden disappearance has both women concerned for her safety, and Chloe pursues her to Oregon in an attempt to reach her before she harms herself, while Mo stays behind in San Francisco in an attempt to prove her innocence. Mo and Chloe's search for justice makes for a compelling, plot-heavy story, full of twists and turns, some more plausible than others. Both women are sympathetic characters but are far from perfect, making some morally ambiguous choices along the way. Moment in Time works well as a standalone novel, but knowledge of the events from In an Instant will provide helpful context and background that explains Mo's and Chloe's motivations. Readers who enjoy fast-paced novels about perseverance, survival, and friendship will be drawn into Redfearn's latest.