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A review by katykelly
Just What Kind of Mother Are You? by Paula Daly
5.0
It is every parent’s worst nightmare to imagine their child going missing. But what if your friend’s child went missing, while you were supposed to be watching her? This horrifying premise is the basis for this debut novel by Paula Daly.
Lisa Kallisto loves her family. She’s pulled a hundred different ways by her kids and her own job working in an animal shelter, and she’s exhausted. She blames herself entirely when her daughter’s friend Lucinda goes missing when she’s meant to be at their house having a sleepover. How will Lucinda’s parents treat her? Can she do anything? Was it her fault?
Lisa is an empathetic character. You feel for her, can see how it happened. Her efforts to face up to her perceived guilt are brave, she and her husband a likeable couple. It’s a tense story. Not only do we follow Lisa, but the police investigation through the female detective in charge, and we see insights into the mind of the abducter of the girls. The tension mounts as we hope Lucinda is going to survive and be brought back home.
On top of this plot though, are other secrets that are gradually revealed, with twists and revelations right up until the last few pages. Hard to put down, it feels very real and threatening.
Not a light summer read, but it’s quick and thrilling, twisty and captivating
Lisa Kallisto loves her family. She’s pulled a hundred different ways by her kids and her own job working in an animal shelter, and she’s exhausted. She blames herself entirely when her daughter’s friend Lucinda goes missing when she’s meant to be at their house having a sleepover. How will Lucinda’s parents treat her? Can she do anything? Was it her fault?
Lisa is an empathetic character. You feel for her, can see how it happened. Her efforts to face up to her perceived guilt are brave, she and her husband a likeable couple. It’s a tense story. Not only do we follow Lisa, but the police investigation through the female detective in charge, and we see insights into the mind of the abducter of the girls. The tension mounts as we hope Lucinda is going to survive and be brought back home.
On top of this plot though, are other secrets that are gradually revealed, with twists and revelations right up until the last few pages. Hard to put down, it feels very real and threatening.
Not a light summer read, but it’s quick and thrilling, twisty and captivating