New mom Shelby Tebow knows her husband Jason is a philanderer, but she's no angel herself. On her evening runs Shelby hooks up with men she's met, to get some excitement into her life.
When Shelby doesn't return from one of her nocturnal jaunts, the town is in an uproar. Things escalate two weeks later when pregnancy doula Meredith Dickey and her six-year-old daughter Delilah also disappear.
Eleven years later, Delilah resurfaces and tells a story of being held in a cold dark basement by a couple who kept her filthy and hungry. Delilah can't provide information about her abduction, however, and has no idea what happened to her mother.
The book alternates back and forth between the present - when Delilah is reunited with her father Josh and her teenage brother Leo, and eleven years ago - when the disappearances occurred.
Scenes in the present are narrated by Leo, who's conflicted about Delilah's return. Leo had become comfortable being alone with his father, and feels displaced by his sister - who's damaged and needy. Moreover, Leo's schoolmates harass him about Delilah, and bully him when he refuses to talk about her.
Scenes set eleven years ago are recounted by Meredith (before she vanishes) and her friend Kate. We learn that Meredith had been getting menacing texts before she disappeared, saying things like 'I know what you did. I hope you die.'
Meredith can't fathom who's sending the threats, but thinks they might be connected to her work as a pregnancy doula. Meredith is adamant about the rights of her expectant mothers, and sometimes annoys the women's husbands and/or doctors.
Meredith's neighbor Kate is very concerned about what's going on. Kate is suspicious of Shelby and Meredith's husbands, and also of the ob/gyns used by Meredith's clients. Kate convinces her wife Bea to help her make inquiries about the missing women, and the duo even concoct a scheme to investigate an ob/gyn Meredith disagreed with.
The story provides a vivid picture of Delilah's PTSD, and of her family's uncertainty about how to help her. We also get a realistic portrait of the police investigations, and the distress of family members thrust into the limelight when a tragedy befalls them.
The novel is a suspenseful page turner, and I was on board until the 'big reveals', which are not credible. Surprise twists, even shocking ones, should be within the bounds of believability.
Nevertheless, this is a story that many thriller fans would probably enjoy.
Rating: 3.5 stars
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