Character rich.

I can always tell how much I love a book. I find myself thinking about the characters throughout my day. This was such a great story. Narration was 10/10

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A mystery worth getting lost in the woods for

When a girl goes missing from camp in 1975, it sets in motion a search and investigation that uncovers far more questions than answers, and opens up old wounds and histories for the families who live in the area, as dark secrets are revealed. This mystery novel is told through the lenses of several characters from Tracy the teenage friend of the missing girl, to Alice, her troubled mother, Louise the counsellor in charge on the night in question and later on Judyta,.a new investigating police officer amongst others. The story travels in time and slowly unravels truths and lies. The twists are intriguing, surprising and although ominous and full of pain, this novel offers rich characters and stories, as it opens up lines of inquiry with care and attention . A brilliantly written book with a heart and something to say about consequences, reputation and class.

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Riviting

Listened to this on under a week. Great story a mystery tragedy unputdownable book. Good narration

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interesting story and good ending

i was pleased with the ending as it could so easily have gone a different way, so I'm pleased the author didn't take that route.

there were a lot of characters and jumping from one decade to the other, which made it a little conconfusing at times. But it was a good 'whodunit' without gratuitous violence

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Compelling

This novel deserves the praise its received. Liz Moore makes managing multiple perspectives and timelines seem easy, when it almost certainly is not. The characters and settings are incredibly well drawn and I love the atmosphere created throughout. There are also two central mysteries that pulled me in and sustained my attention right to the end. I highly recommend this novel, and the audio book performance is excellent.

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The timing of the chapters

I’m going to do a proper review once I’m done but could you fix the timings of the chapters; the introduction of the next is at the end of the last…it’s confusing

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a great read

I loved this book. Great story and characters plus excellent narrator. Couldn't wait to continue listening every evening.

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Excellent literary thriller

Compelling narration and plot structure. Well read in this audio version. A superb literary thriller that makes you think about power structures that intersect with the hallowed American value of self-reliance

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From First Minute To Last This Had Me Gripped.

The year is 1975. A last-minute arrival to a summer camp goes missing from the site two months later. However, she is not just any camp mate. She's thirteen year old Barbara Venlar, goth daughter of the camp owners. Barbara's older brother Bear also went missing in mysterious circumstances fourteen years earlier at the age of eight.

We follow four main perspectives over multiple timelines. Alice Bear and Barbara's mother, who is trapped in a toxic marriage to their father, Louise, the camp counsellor who is responsible for Barbara and who first finds her missing. Along with Barbara's new best bunk mate Tracy and Judy, a character based on the first cohort of female investigators employed in the US.

What follows is a cracking mystery with plenty of social commentary, particularly around welth, or lack thereof, and gender. It is also beautifully plotted throughout.

I am a person who doesn't like their crime to dark and this is dark grey rather than black, for want of a better way of putting it. I loved it.

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Good book and read well - slightly abrupt ending

I really loved this book, until the end which I felt was abrupt. It may have been different reading it, rather than hearing it - before I knew it, it was “Acknowledgements”

The structure is clever, the narrator was really good and the characters are written so well, so you understand all the key people in depth. I really liked it, and think Liz is a great writer.

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