I’m often asked about my inspirations for writing Obedience. One of them — and it’s a recent novel, but a gem nonetheless — is Peter Abraham’s fiercely brilliant novel Oblivion.

Oblivion is unlike anything I’ve ever read. Abrahams takes a tired genre — the private detective story — and rips the seams completely out of it. The book is about a man searching for a missing girl, yet his search is complicated when he has an anuerysm. The second half of the novel essentially folds back on the first, as Nick tries to piece together things we as the audience know to be true but he has forgotten due to his brain trauma.

A truly original, fascinating story, any fan of the mystery genre would do well to pick this one up.