Christina McDonald
Mystery Thriller
A missing family. A traumatized detective. The past and present collide in a riveting novel of suspense by the USA Today bestselling author of These Still Black Waters, Do No Harm, Behind Every Lie, and The Night Olivia Fell.
Late Christmas Eve, the Harper family’s car crashed on a desolate stretch outside Black Lake. Sixteen-year-old Alice was found injured by the side of the road—alone. It was as if her parents and younger sister, Ella, had simply disappeared.
One year later, Alice is still dealing with nightmares and unanswered questions when she and her friends find Ella’s bloodstained backpack in the basement of an abandoned home. As Detective Jess Lambert investigates, she uncovers dark secrets that put her on a collision course with her past. Jess’s only witness is haunted by her own ghosts—ghosts that might ultimately be connected to Jess.
Jess will do anything to find out what happened to the Harpers—no matter how deep she has to dig. Because neither the living nor the dead are giving up their secrets easily.
-Excerpt taken from Goodreads.
Check Goodreads to see the book’s ratings.
My Opinion
(4 / 5) On Christmas Eve, teenager Alice is found after a family car accident, but her parents and sister have vanished.
The mystery was high with this one. It hung heavily over the story, making me need answers and reading late into the night. Jess, the cop who is investigating, became a favorite for me. She is deeply broken after a car accident that took her young child. But she takes that grief and puts it towards helping others. And right now, Alice and her family are the mystery she needs to solve.
Alice is devastated and will never be the same. Where are her family? Are they dead? Why is she here and they’re not? She has to figure it out. Through many events, Alice and Jess are brought together and find themselves leaning on each other.
The build-up to the end was great, and that end was even better. I highly recommend this to those that love a deep-rooted mystery.
General content summary: F words= 32
Some language
Alcohol and drugs (some underage, stolen sedatives, multiple, alcoholism, previous overdose)
Multiple pills forced on someone to kill
Car accident (details inside the car, injuries, 2x, finding a child and adult dead, details of an adult being hit by a car)
Grief (intense, multiple)
Missing people, child (previous)
Seeing family who have died (multiple)
Anxiety disorder, PTSD flashbacks, panic attacks (multiple)
Self harm (previous, blood, scar)
Grief (multiple, intense)
Body found (skeletal remains)
Body found in lake (previous, no details)
Schizophrenia and suicide (plus murder, previous)
Stories of previous deaths and their ghosts
M/F kisses (implied intimacy/“closed door” then waking up together)
Infidelity (emotional, kisses)
Murder (previous, no details, few gun deaths)
Hallucinations (multiple, one of a man with part of his face shot off)
Injuries (pictures of deep bruises, possible physical abuse)
Physical violence (knife, injury, blood, fight, head injuries, gun shot)
**Any quotes have been taken from the advance readers copy and may or may not be in the final, published copy.
Thank you to Thomas and Mercer and NetGalley for the copy!
The book releases July 16, 2024.
**As an Amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
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