Y’all. I have been putting off reading this novel for SO LONG. I have no idea why (probably because other books stole my attention like they always do), but there’s a reason why this won a Goodreads award. It was amazing and I legit loved it so much. I don’t think I have a single complaint about it. The writing, plot, characters, everything was just *chef’s kiss*. 

So, here we have present day where Barbara Van Laar has gone missing from the summer camp that her family owns. Everyone is frantic, but especially because her brother, Bear, went missing nearly a decade ago and still hasn’t been found. So, of course, everyone wants Barbara to be found and brought home safely. You get alternating timelines between present and past with Barbara’s case and Bear’s case and how they inexplicably intertwine. You have many many different point of views, but I didn’t have an issue with it at all because everything was written so cohesively that it was easy to follow no matter who was telling the story. 

With the plot, I found everything tied together really well even though I didn’t guess what was going to happen literally at all. This hasn’t happened in a long time for me, but this novel was entertaining as heck with its plot WITHOUT being predictable. I can’t remember the last time this has happened for me and boy did I enjoy it. 

All of our characters were nuanced and felt so real. I honestly felt bad for so many of the characters and wanted to just yell at some others (like dude, why do you have to be a douchebag??). A lot of the tragedy could have been avoided had some characters just expressed emotions or literally shown care to others. Weird how being nice can solve your problems…

Anyway, the writing style was probably one of my favorite parts of the novel. It really draws you in and makes you feel like you’re a part of the story without being too descriptive. You knew what every character looked like, what the wind felt like as it blew against their necks, and what you’d see if you looked out at the horizon and it never felt overly explained or described. 

Spoilers ahead.

Okay, so you all know I just HAVE to talk about what happened when I really like a novel. So, this ending? My goodness was I caught off guard. Bear accidentally drowned because his mother took him out for a boat ride while she was drunk and a storm was coming (so dumb, but she had so many repressed emotions and trauma because of her husband and the rest of her family that I can’t blame her for going off the deep end – literally). Alice is probably the most tragic character in the whole novel and everything could have been avoided had they just cared for her and been kind to her… 

Anyway, so we learn that Bear is dead (I felt so bad and honestly wanted to wrap some of these people up in a hug). The ending with Barbara? I loved it. TJ basically saves Barbara from her family by letting her stay on an island and making it look like Barbara had been kidnapped and murdered. When Judyta finds out where Barbara actually is and lets her stay? Wow. Loved it. Poetic and kind and definitely a satisfying ending for a girl who had been neglected her whole entire life. 

Overall, you will not find me complaining about this book. I devoured every minute of it and would recommend it to anyone who asks me. My favorite read so far of the year (even though it’s only January). A highly developed mystery with an unpredictable ending that’s still satisfying and makes sense. You don’t find one of those novels every day, that’s for sure. 5/5 well deserved stars. Bravo.

Source: Book of the Month

(P.S. You can read this book for free by signing up for a free trial of Audible, which gives you two free audiobooks of your choice!)