When Courtney sees her niece running from her family’s cabin to Courtney’s she is concerned. But that quickly turns to fear when she finds the little girl covered in blood. Soon, a horrific crime scene is revealed in which Courtney’s brother and sister-in-law are the victims. Worse still, while the couple’s two youngest children are unhurt, the eldest, Reese, is missing. As the story switches from Courtney’s perspective in the present to Reese’s in the past, a tangled web of secrets and lies are revealed with the killer coming from the most unlikely of places.

First and foremost I have to say that I loved that Ms. Kubica had this story take place in Wisconsin. As a native of the state I just loved that touch and found myself easily picturing the area where Courtney and her family are staying. So, star for that right off the bat.

Moving on the actual story…I loved it! Unlike many, I was not a fan of Ms. Kubica’s mega popular Local Woman Missing. But this one was fantastic. Almost from page one I was hooked and the shifting POV’s kept me entranced in the story. I was soon flying through it, eager to read the next revelation or twist. While I suspected I would enjoy Courtney’s POV, I was surprised by how much I appreciated Reese’s. Sometimes teenage characters can come off as a bit irritating and while Reese certainly falls into that category it was done in a way that didn’t drive me crazy.

I also loved how Ms. Kubica played with the idea how sometimes innocent mix-ups and misunderstandings can be terribly misconstrued when viewed by the wrong person without all the background knowledge. This led to some very good twists that, when you think about it, anyone could believe.

When it comes to weaknesses, I honestly can’t think of any. The ending and the revelation of the killer could be not as well received but I thought it worked well within the story and I found it to believable. Though, honest question to the readers who not only read the book but also got their hands on the Target special edition copy, which ending did you prefer? Honestly, I think I prefer the alternative ending and almost wished Ms. Kubica had gone with that one instead for the actual story.

Either way, this was a fantastic thriller that deserves to be read during the summertime.

5 out of 5 stars