A review by hardlyworking
We Now Return to Regular Life by Martin Wilson

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

A powerful tale of the aftermath of the kidnapping of a young boy and his return after three years, told by the last two people to see him before he disappeared: his older sister, Beth, and his childhood friend, Josh. The story proceeds as they try to reconnect with the missing boy, Sam, cope with changing relationships with family and friends, and resolve their feelings of guilt over things they kept secret on the day of the disappearance, information that might have made a difference. Details about what happened to Sam during his captivity are told by him to Josh over time so the reader is spared experiencing them directly. Nevertheless, Sam's descriptions of the violence and abuse he endured, including oblique references to child sexual abuse, as well as his perverse and confusing feelings of attachment to his captor are quite challenging. The reward for reading about such horror is in experiencing the start of the three characters' journeys to healing and the power and necessity of friendship and connection along the way.