Where The Truth Lies
By Anna Bailey
Atria Books, 9781982157166, August 3, 2021, 384pp.

The Short of It:

This story keeps you guessing.

The Rest of It:

At a party in the woods, seventeen-year-old Abigail leaves her friend Emma to hang out with a boy. The next day, she turns up missing. Emma keeps revisiting the last moments she had with her. The moment where she pleaded for Abigail not to go but Abigail always had a mind of her own and now, she’s gone. Emma’s only friend.

The community is rocked by her disappearance but small communities, ones that know everyone, also know their business and Abigail’s family left a lot to be desired. A father who drinks too much, beats his wife and children, a mother who is powerless to protect them, it’s no wonder the girl went missing. She probably ran away the first chance she got.

Emma knows better though. And as the police come up short again and again and don’t seem to care whether she is found or not, Emma begins to investigate on her own and secrets begin to reveal themselves. Did she even know Abigail? Can you ever really know a person?

There are a lot of stories out there about missing people. Especially, young girls. What I liked about Where The Truth Lies is that it’s more than just a missing person story. The level of abuse that Abigail’s family is forced to endure and the relationships they seek as a means to survive, really carried this story for me. You will care about these characters even though they don’t always make the best choices. They are flawed and damaged but I felt that the story came together beautifully given how many characters the author chose to focus on.

Well done. Recommend. Trigger warning for sexual abuse.

Source: Review copy provided by the publisher.
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