Need a book to fly through in the next 24 hours? This book is for you! I absolutely BLEW through this thriller and may have ignored my family, pets, sleep and housework repeatedly until reaching the satisfying conclusion.
Summary: Before Owen Michaels disappears, he manages to smuggle a note to his beloved wife of one year: Protect her. Despite her confusion and fear, Hannah Hall knows exactly whom the note refers - Owen’s sixteen-year-old daughter Bailey, who lost her mother tragically as a child and who wants nothing to do with her new stepmother. At Hannah’s increasingly desperate calls to Owen go unanswered, as the FBI arrests Owen’s boss, as a U.S. Marshal and federal agents arrive at her Sausalito home unannounced, Hannah quickly realizes her husband isn’t who he said he was. And that Bailey just may hold the key to figuring out Owen’s true identity - and why he really disappeared.
Review: The short chapters, frenetic pacing and unraveling mystery of just WHO Owen Michaels really is kept me turning pages late into the night (and day). A word of caution, once you start this book...... clear your schedule! :)
On a personal level, I enjoyed the many local mentions of Austin and the Texas Hill Country throughout as much of the book’s action takes place there. I also found the relationship of Hannah and her teen stepdaughter Bailey very intriguing and authentic. Ultimately though, the novel is a lovely meditation on the importance of family and how much you’re willing to sacrifice for your children as it asks readers, “what would you ultimately be willing to do to keep your children safe?”
Many thanks for #Netgalley and the publisher (Simon & Schuster) for an advance digital copy in exchange for an honest review. I loved it so much that I purchased my own hardcover copy through Book of Month as well.
I just got it yesterday!!! I can’t wait to read it!