Lucy lives in Henbane, nestled in
the Ozark Mountains. Her mother
disappeared when she was young and was never heard from again. Now a teenager, Lucy lives with her father
and is watched over by her neighbor when he is away from town. Lucy’s falling in love, getting her first job
and missing her friend Cheri who disappeared a year ago. But now Cheri’s body has been found and there
is no question that someone killed her.
Where has Cheri been? And did
Lucy just find evidence to tie someone she loves to the crime?
This book keeps you guessing. You wonder if the disappearances of Lucy’s
mother and Cheri are connected and how they could be after such a long period
of time between them. And you also
wonder if Lucy is safe since her story seems to parallel her mother’s in so
many subtle ways.
The storytelling is engrossing. It is told in alternating points of view
between Lucy and her mother at Lucy’s age, so you get two time periods and two
perspectives of Henbane. Then, after the
second part of the story starts, you begin to get other points of view. This gradual introduction of other voices
works well because you have already “met” these characters and want to know
what they have to say. More than a
murder mystery, and more than a thriller, this is also the story of a town and
how small towns can hide huge secrets.
I know it is only February, but I’m
pretty confident that this book, along with the book I blogged recently, The
Winter People, will be on my best of 2014 list at the end of the year. Reserve your copy now -- it is released on March 11th.
