Safe and Sound

Solid Slow Burn Mystery Will Be Jarring For Some. While never a fan of content/ trigger warnings printed in books (I prefer them on the author's website or in reviews like this, either way separate from the book at hand and easily findable with a modicum of research), let me say up front that if you have severe issues with child sexual abuse or child neglect... this may not be the best book for you. Same with violence against women generally, addiction, stripping, etc.

That dispensed with, this was a remarkable tale of generations of women trying to leave a dying small rural town... and failing miserably, only for the cycle to repeat with their own daughters ad nauseum. It is a slow burn missing woman tale where we do get both the current timeline of one of the women being missing and the older timeline of what her life was up to the very moment she became missing. Both parts of the tale carry the same dull, dismal, depressing stylings throughout, even as both sets of women actively rebel against their situations and try their damnedest to be the women that break the cycle.

For anyone who has ever spent time in a run down house or trailer, you know this life quite well. You've probably lived a version of it - hopefully *without* the abuse, though this is admittedly far more common than it should be in such situations. Which makes the story that much more "real"... and yet also that much more depressing, to a point, as many read fiction as a way to *escape* their current "real" world bonds.

The time switches could be a bit jarring - they are labeled, but the label is somewhat easily missed - and the inconclusive ending, with several questions still lingering, could put some off. Personally, I felt this particular ending made the tale that much more "real" and worked for the story told to that point, particularly in the final build up to the reveal. So it is absolutely a "your mileage may vary", and unless you are just 100% opposed to such endings... do yourself a favor and read this book and see what you think of it yourself.

Overall truly a great and all-too-real (sadly) story, and very well told. Very much recommended. With the warnings noted in this review.

I reallyyyy liked this book. It was gripping, exhilarating and even had some meaningful commentary on certain aspects of life. It wasn't the most twisty thriller I've ever read and it took a while to get to the exciting parts but the ending definitely made up for that. The only reason I took a star off is because I had a feeling who the bad guy was from very early on and that NEVER happens to me. Even with that though, this book was truly special and I would recommend to people who don't mind a bit of a slower pace in the middle.

A well-written book that has lots of atmosphere and an in-depth view at the hard life and challenges facing young women who want more from life than staying in the small rural town they were born in but feel pulled in all directions, both by family members and the men in their lives. A dual time-line as two female cousins around 18 look into the disappearance of their beloved female cousin six years ago from their home while she was babysitting them.

The author accurately depicts small town Missouri working-class life and the characters are fleshed out and interesting. However, the ending felt a bit rushed and also came out of left field - a bit bonkers in my opinion so, while that didn't take away from the overall positive review, it did leave me a bit shaking my head.