Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica
Publisher: Park Row
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 5 stars
Reviewed by ChollaPeople don’t just disappear without a trace…
Shelby Tebow is the first to go missing. Not long after, Meredith Dickey and her six-year-old daughter, Delilah, vanish just blocks away from where Shelby was last seen, striking fear into their once-peaceful community. Are these incidents connected? After an elusive search that yields more questions than answers, the case eventually goes cold.
Now, eleven years later, Delilah shockingly returns. Everyone wants to know what happened to her, but no one is prepared for what they’ll find…
When one woman goes missing, it’s an awful event. But when two women and a six-year-old go missing close together? It becomes a local tragedy. Just when the town thinks it’s starting to move past it all, to heal and grow, the missing child shows up out of nowhere, throwing everything and everyone into turmoil again. However, not everything is as it seems.
Leo, Delilah’s younger brother, is probably my favorite character. He was very young when Delilah and their mother disappeared – he was four, I think – so he has no memories of his sister at all. There are times when he doubts her, thinks she’s making things up, and yet, he still finds ways to make her feel at home. He’s probably the most honest of them all, even when he’s being awful about the situation at hand.
Kate is the kind of neighbor you want to have. She’s smart, friendly, and goes above and beyond to help when you need her. When Delilah and Meredith go missing, she’s on the front line searching and helping care for Josh and Leo, the father and son that are left behind to deal with the fallout. Her partner, Bea, is a musician and more of a free spirit than Kate, but she’s generous with her time and makes the perfect partner for Kate.
Meredith’s point of view is one of the more intense since she’s got a lot going on in her life, even before she goes missing. She’s caring for the two kids she has with her husband, Josh, running her business as a doula, and everything else that comes with motherhood. Plus, she had a few unpleasant things she was dealing with as well – an arrogant doctor and mysterious bruises that keep showing up on her son, Leo. I felt her struggle in my soul. Despite not being a single mom – she was very happily married – so much of her kids’ care fell on her and it was wearing her out. Something I could easily relate to. Still, she somehow managed to find a way to get it all done.
I’ve read several books by the author and she has a great way of making you want to believe everyone while not trusting anyone. I thought I knew who was responsible at least six times and each time, I was so wrong. The twist at the end threw me completely and was not something I was expecting at all. Sometimes, her twists aggravate me, but this one left me with my mouth hanging open. I can’t see where she goes next since each book seems to get better and crazier.
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