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Started: July 28, 2024
Finished: July 30, 2024
Format: Print
Genre: Thriller
Babara Van Laar is missing. As the county searches for her, they are reminded of another child who went missing yours earlier - her brother Bear Van Laar. As people of interest are questioned and detained, the police take another look into Bear's disappearance and realize the truth was never told and that solving one crime may help solve the other.
This book was a lot to take in. There were a lot of characters and at least 4 main timelines being used. It took some time, but once i was able to wrap my head around that, is when I was able to truly start enjoying the book. There was a lot of quiet family drama in this book that I was not expecting, but it added so much to the story. This was a large book, almost 500 pages, and it looks daunting when first picked up, but the pages fly when you get into the heart of the story.
Minor: Animal death, Body shaming, Child death, Homophobia, Mental illness, Lesbophobia
Graphic: Child death, Grief
Moderate: Addiction, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Dementia
It flows, expertly. And it's so hard not to keep the pages flipping when life gets in the way of reading!
The wealthy Van Laar family founded Camp Emerson in the 1950s, the camp being the setting of much of the book.
The beloved Van Laar son, Bear, went missing in 1961.
Fourteen years later, their daughter Barbara also disappeared.
While it is these mysteries forming the basis of the plot, don't go into this one expecting a thriller. I would call it a literary mystery, and Liz Moore's newest has easily joined my list of top reads of the year.
Definitely recommended!
Moderate: Body shaming, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Grief, Alcohol
Graphic: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Blood, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body shaming, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Dementia, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment
SYNOPSIS- Barbara Van Laar has vanished from her family’s summer camp in the Adirondacks in 1975. Barbara is seventeen, edgy, rebellious, and the black sheep of her wealthy family.
- Oddly enough, Barbara is the only remaining child in her family. Her older brother, Bear, went missing before she was born. Needless to say, Barbara’s parents were already not doing so great. Her mother, Alice, is battling many addictions & dealing with lots of psychological issues, and her father, Peter, is a piece of work & truly awful. As you see more of both of their bloodlines, it’s easy to see the generational trauma here.
- As investigators dig into Barbara’s disappearance, lots of secrets are unraveled.
MY THOUGHTS- This is my second Liz Moore read, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Moore is a fantastic writer.
- Loved all the layers.
- Lots of different points of views
- Explored some really great themes — dysfunctional families & generational trauma.
- Features several strong, likable women characters.
- Ending was satisfying.
- Well-plotted.
- Excellent character development
TL;DR: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️really well done. highly recommend this one.
Graphic: Child death, Death, Grief
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Alcohol
Minor: Infidelity, Pregnancy
Graphic: Alcoholism, Child death, Domestic abuse
Moderate: Body shaming
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Dementia, Grief, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Classism
My biggest complaint was Alice’s perspectives, but that’s more of an opinion. She’s the one character I really could not stand how she seemed to pretend she was not part of the problem. However, this obviously adds to the story and the occasional plot lines following her really flesh her out to be a very complicated character. The only reason I bring it up is because I want people to know they might feel as frustrated as me reading her chapters!
I’d recommend this book to anyone interested in crime fiction, especially in that True Detective vein of solving dead cases and working against a classist system. It’s also a great story if you, like me, love the Adirondacks, as the park itself is a character as well.
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Classism