I spent two weeks reading the first ten chapters, and then binged the rest in one day 🤯 what started off as a slow burn mystery quickly turned into an enthralling family drama (aka among my fave tropes!!)

liz moore’s writing is so enchanting and haunting, especially on the subject of two disappearances in the same family, fifteen years apart from one another. the setting of a summer camp was eerily spooky, perfect for this time of year, and gave all of the nostalgia for youth and nativity.

what didn’t work for me was the ultimate conclusion. for a multi-layered, dual timeline, family crossed mystery, the way that it wrapped up was very anticlimactic. I wanted a larger reveal that had complications throughout the entire family and surroundings, rather than a coverup that was much smaller than anticipated. and while I loved the conversation of gender roles during the time period of the 1970s, it didn’t contribute much to the mystery at hand. 

I feel that this story falls victim once again to the mismarketing of genres (this is a publisher not an author critique!)… this is most certainly NOT a thriller and instead leans more into the family drama aspects rather than a mystery at all… 

for a 500 page book though, it certainly read very quickly with short chapters (which is my weakness)! loved buddy reading this one with my pal ashley!

rating: 3.5 stars
wine pairing: sonoma coast chardonnay