April Books from Bookouture

They should have been watching. But my little girl is gone… On this crisp October day, the class of six-year-old children are wrapped up warm in gloves and coats for their trip to a local farm. They giggle as they stroke the animals and search for the perfect Halloween pumpkin, and as I watch my daughter Claire race off with her friends, the pink ribbon in her hair bouncing, I breathe a sigh of relief. It’s been so hard since my husband died and my sweet little girl deserves to be happy. But as the sun sets and the teachers gather the children, Claire is nowhere to be seen. We call the police and frantically scour the fields and playgrounds, my heart breaking as I cry out Claire’s name. And then a detective shows me a video: my daughter, skipping away from the farm, holding hands with an adult in a bulky coat, their cap pulled down low. My blood turns to ice. Claire would never leave with a stranger. Whoever took her must be someone I know. But who could want to punish me this badly? Is it linked to the night I refuse to think about—the terrible night my husband died? Did my mistakes put my baby girl in danger? Can I save her by finally facing the past? Or will I lose her forever when the truth comes out? The School Trip is by Miranda Smith.

In the seaside town of Whitecliff, everyone looks out for each other. Everyone knows your name. And everyone knows your secrets… Moonlight falls on the figure of the girl standing on the red-tiled roof. Her white dress and blonde hair flutter in the freezing night wind. And suddenly – she is gone. Volunteering at the local nursing home is Millie Westlake’s one escape from the rumours that swirl around Whitecliff about her past. But speaking with elderly resident, Ingrid, as they play board games, Millie gets chills at her strange story about a young girl being pushed from a roof, somewhere across the valley… Everybody thinks Ingrid is confused: but Millie knows how it feels to not be believed. Her parents died a year ago, and the residents of Whitecliff – such a quiet place, other than crashing waves and cawing seagulls – are convinced Millie killed them. Desperately searching for evidence to find the girl Ingrid saw, a broken roof tile could prove Ingrid was telling the truth. But when strange footprints appear in Millie’s garden, she’s certain someone out there is watching. Have Ingrid and Millie stumbled across something terribly dangerous? And with the town against her, will Millie have to face up to her own secrets to solve the mystery before it becomes deadly?

In the darkness, the girl slumps against the rough tree bark. Her eyes are closed, her wrists tied. As consciousness fades, her last thought is of her best friend, and how much she regrets what she did… Seventeen-year-old best friends Nicola and Millie were supposed to have a summer night of fun and freedom in the local park. But when dawn comes Millie realises Nicola is missing. Distraught, she searches for her alone: and finds Nicola tied to a tree, her purple Converse shoes missing, her long hair cut and scattered on the ground. With no memory of what happened, terrified Nicola begs Millie never to speak of this again… Fifteen years later. With countless secrets and hurt between them, Millie and Nicola have not spoken in over a decade. But now Nicola has found her old purple Converse strung up in her garden. Is her attacker sending a message? Why now, after all this time? In the small town of Whitecliff, people have long memories – but Millie is the only one who can help get answers. And, as she asks questions of their school friends, she realises one of them knows more than they should about her own family secrets… Not knowing who to trust, and knowing Nicola’s kidnapper is still out there, Millie must ask: how far will they go to keep the truth buried forever?

Up on the desolate moor, she tightens her coat against the bitter wind. The man she followed here points to a rock embedded in the mossy earth. ‘This is the place.’ But when they dig, what will they find? Everyone in the small seaside town of Whitecliff knows the name Kevin Ashworth. Two boys disappeared thirty years ago – and although local teacher Kevin never admitted to knowing where their bodies are, he’s been in prison ever since. Now, Kevin is finally ready to talk: but only to amateur sleuth Millie Westlake and journalist Guy Rushden. With the families of the boys desperate for answers, Guy and Millie are led to a lonely spot on the moors above Whitecliff. They’re on the moors expecting to find bodies… but what if they find something even more terrifying? Reeling from their discovery, as Millie scours the local countryside and speaks to heartbroken families what she discovers changes everything she believes about Whitecliff and the people who live here. With rumours about her own dark past still haunting Millie, can she ever get justice for a decades-old wrong? Or as she gets closer to finding out who else Kevin has hurt, will she learn that some secrets are destined to stay buried?

The One Who Fell, The One Who Was Taken and The Ones Who Are Buried are by Keyy Wilkinson.

The Birthday Reunion is by Claire Seeber. Four friends. One dream getaway. But who will make it out alive? When the gold-rimmed invitations arrive through the doors of best friends Simone, Hannah and Vicky they’re instantly taken aback. Their ex-friend Jodie is inviting them to a lavish Mediterranean villa to celebrate her birthday. They haven’t spoken in years since she betrayed them in the worst way. So how did they make the guest list? They all have their reasons for saying yes. Stay-at-home mum Simone had her dream job snatched away. Hannah lost the love of her life. Café-owner Vicky wants the chance to help a wronged friend. Is the reunion a chance to confront Jodie and the past once and for all? Arriving at a villa that looks straight out of a movie set, the friends relax by the sumptuous pool as they wait for the other guests to arrive. But as the chilled wine is poured and the three friends reminisce, they see Jodie walking towards them with a look of shock on her face. Because Jodie didn’t invite them here. But by the end of the weekend it will become clear who did. Someone else has a reason for revenge. Who will make it out alive?

She shuts the door behind her, relieved to be in the safety of her own home. But tonight her house is the most dangerous place she could be. Someone has been waiting for her, and they know she’s home alone… Sasha loves her job finding accommodation for homeless people, and she’s proud of the small but cosy apartment she rents on the good side of town. She’s worked hard to leave her dark past behind her and make amends for the accident that still haunts her memories. She knows she was innocent, though she’s still careful about who and what she tells of her old life. But not all secrets stay hidden forever… When her phone rings loudly in the middle of the night, Sasha fears what she’ll hear when she picks up – a deathly silence. It’s happened every night for weeks. Is it a childish prank, or a chilling warning that someone has uncovered her secret? But the news of a body found at a local shelter means her worst nightmare has come true. It can’t be a coincidence that evidence related to the victim has been found at the same location where the most devastating moment of Sasha’s life took place. Days later, a second body is found and Sasha’s heart pounds wildly as she takes in the victim’s unforgettable green eyes. She hasn’t seen her in a long time, but she’d know her old friend anywhere. She was the only other person who knew Sasha’s secret, so how can Sasha prove her innocence now? Sasha doesn’t know who’s coming for her, but she’s certain of one thing: she’s next on the list… Their Cold Hearts is by Carla Kovach. 

My son said he walked his girlfriend home. But now she is missing… Our new home was meant to be a chance for us to start again, to make new friends and forget the past. And as I look around the barbeque we’ve thrown for our neighbours, I dare to dream that things will be all right. I watch my husband joking as he flips burgers and my daughter turning cartwheels on our sun-bleached lawn. And then my gaze falls on my son Jacob, and his new girlfriend Rose, in her light blue jeans and her green crop top. There is a worried expression clouding her beautiful eyes… The next day I get a call from Rose’s mother that chills me to the bone. Rose never returned after our party. I wake my still-sleeping son, who walked Rose home the night before, and beg him for answers. Jacob promises he saw Rose to her front door, and I know he would never lie. But when the police find Rose’s house keys hidden in our garden and a witness claims to have seen them arguing in the street, everyone insists I can’t believe what Jacob is telling me. I will do anything to protect my boy. But I need to find a way to make the questions stop. Because there’s something about our family that nobody can ever know. And as the search for Rose closes in, how can I keep him safe and keep our secrets hidden? The Lie is by Kathryn Croft.

The Marriage Counselor is by Dea Poirier. “Adele, we believe your husband is missing.” As everything around me starts to blur, I go over the words once more: “your husband is missing.” Four simple words with the power to shatter my whole world in an instant. Working as a marriage counselor I’m used to the tragedies that come out of nowhere. People trust me to help them through life’s big moments. The things that leave you questioning everything you thought you knew about the person you love the most. But I never thought trouble would land on my own doorstep. As I start to piece together our last conversation desperate for any clues I can find, the cop standing in front of me reveals that my husband never told his co-workers he was married. He was seemingly living a double life right in front of me. Days later, as I search through our home, I discover a hidden box of baby clothes that suggest my husband was starting to build the perfect life without me. My entire career has been built on separating the truth from the lies. My husband may think he has pulled off the greatest lie of all but he is not the only one keeping a secret in this marriage. All I know for certain is that when the truth comes out, only one of us will make it out alive.

A loyal wife. A handsome husband. Which one of them will kill to keep their secret? When I first met Malcolm, I knew that he was everything I had ever wanted. When we had our beautiful, blue-eyed son Finn I felt like my life was finally complete. The past eight years have been the happiest of my life. Until now. Because Malcolm’s been lying to me. I’ve been following him. I finally saw him with her. How could he betray me and my darling boy? Of course, we all have our secrets. But everything I’ve done, I did for my son. So I have a plan. When the police knock on our door tomorrow morning, Malcolm will have no clue what’s in store. All I need to do is pick up Finn and we can start our new life together. But I don’t notice the car tailing me. The sudden crushing impact takes my breath away. As my heart pounds and my car is forced towards the rushing river below, my only thought is for my precious Finn. Because I know with certainty that if this is happening to me, then he’s in grave danger too… Did Malcolm know what I was planning after all? Is this his revenge? Or worse, have my own secrets and lies finally caught up with me—and has my time finally run out? The Marriage Break-Up is by Mathew Farrell.

When Maud McIntyre sets up her own private detective agency, she never imagines her first case will involve murder… A mystery in the Highlands? The Scottish Ladies’ Detective Agency is on the case! Edinburgh, 1911: When Maud McIntyre and her lady’s maid, Daisy, form a detective agency, they never dream their first case will take place at a glamorous house in the Scottish Highlands. But when the Duchess of Duddingston, concerned that a notorious jewellery thief will target her lavish weekend party, employs Maud to go undercover as a guest to find the culprit, the agency has its first case to solve… Undercover with Daisy as her maid, Maud follows a trail of clues across the Duddingston House estate. And as she meets the weekend guests, she hopes one of them will reveal themselves as the jewellery thief. But when one of the house guests is discovered dead, Maud and Daisy realise they’re not only hunting precious gems, but a murderer… As Maud and Daisy investigate, they realise that a connection in Edinburgh might hold a vital clue that will help them solve the case. Travelling back to the city, Maud hopes that what she and Daisy uncover will help them piece together the murder mystery at Duddingston House… But when Maud receives a telephone call from the Duchess requesting urgent assistance, she realises that the murderer didn’t have just one victim in mind. Speeding down the drive to Duddingston House, Maud and Daisy hear gunshots ring out across the estate. Will they reach the Duchess in time to save her? And will they catch the murderer in the act? The Scottish Detective Agency is by Lydia Travers.

March Books from Bookouture

 

The Baby Shower is by S E Lynes. She doesn’t know I’m there, watching her in the mirror. She slides her hand under her blouse. And then I see something impossible. She isn’t pregnant… She bursts into my life like a storm, and nothing is the same again. She seems so perfect, with her lilting laugh and her beautiful face. One by one, I watch as my friends fall under her spell. Only I seem to suspect something. Only I see that her smiles don’t reach her cold, furious eyes. And when I’m accused of things I didn’t do, when my home is vandalized, I know she’s behind it. But she only lets her mask slip when no one is looking, so if I say anything, I’ll look crazy.So when the baby shower comes around I’m there, sitting on a velvet sofa in a posh hotel room, surrounded by balloons. We share gifts, we pour small glasses of champagne, and she beams, her bump just visible under her bright red shirt But that afternoon, I finally learn the unbelievable truth.There is no baby…

Harlow looked down at a photo of her victim and couldn’t reconcile it with the body found by the lake. Here was a young and carefree woman, gazing at the camera with her striking emerald green eyes, her long black hair waving in the breeze. But within an instant her future had been extinguished. Harlow had to find out why. When the remains of a young woman are discovered on the edge of Saranac Lake in upstate New York, local law enforcement immediately call Detective Harlow Durant. When she arrives at the scene, she instantly knows this case will get under her skin. Lying just beyond the picturesque lake popular with families are the remains of a victim who has seemingly been burned to death. With very little evidence remaining, Harlow begins scouring missing persons reports. The victim is identified as twenty-six-year-old Ellie Gordon—a fun-loving young woman who worked in the bookstore and enjoyed going out with friends. When her mother comes to ID the body, she reports her daughter’s gold crucifix missing and the hunt begins to locate it and any potential DNA evidence. But as Harlow starts to piece Ellie’s last movements together, another body is found. The victim was killed in exactly the same way and worked with Ellie. Witness statements identify a local man who was obsessed with both women and when Harlow sees video evidence of him pawning the gold necklace, she thinks she has her man. But when he too winds up dead, Harlow has to start over. The only other link to the women is Gavin Croswell, one of the most powerful men in the town. But with a whole host of alibis, pinning the murders on him is almost impossible. With time running out to find the killer before another woman loses her life, the case soon becomes personal when Harlow’s car is violently run off the road. Someone wants to warn her off the case and they will use anything they can to threaten her. Even if it means exposing her own dark secret. Can Harlow confront her demons to save another innocent life from being lost? And just how much is she prepared to sacrifice? The Girls in the Fire is by Dea Poirier.

Pray for Mercy is by D K Hood. Her heart races as a noise from downstairs wakes her. She checks every room in her small home, but it’s not until she returns to the safety of her bedroom does she see movement. She’s not alone. And nobody can help her now. Writing scrawled on the wall of Sheriff Jenna Alton’s office overnight leads her and her deputy David Kane to a secluded house on the outskirts of town. Inside, Jenna is devastated to find a much-loved local resident lying in a pool of blood, stab wounds covering her lifeless body. What monster would attack a defenceless woman living alone? With no trace of the killer at the scene, the deadly message written on Jenna’s door is her only clue. But as the small town grieves, it leads her to a contractor who recently had access to the woman’s home. She races to interview him, only to discover the wreck of a car on a steep mountain road with another dead woman inside. Jenna knows the victims were friends and regularly went to church together. She thinks a twisted killer has been watching them, waiting for the perfect time to strike. But before she can make her next move, one of her own team is found unconscious and covered in the blood of a third female victim—a knife inches away from his hand. Pulse racing, Jenna questions her shaken deputy, who can’t explain why he was in the woman’s house. Could he really be a killer, or is someone playing an evil game? The clock ticks to uncover a dark secret that connects all three victims, but can she work it out before another innocent life is taken?

One Girl Missing is by Carla Kovach. Five-year-old Cally waits in her pretty pink bedroom for the sound of the front door opening and her mother’s sweet voice in the hall. But when the doorbell finally rings, and Cally creeps out of bed to peer through the banister, a large man in uniform is all she sees. Her mother is missing... Teacher Annabel Braddock was last seen drinking at the local pub with her best friend, Jennifer. Witnesses saw tears running down her cheeks, and friends say she was having problems with a colleague at work, and that her marriage had broken down. But as the two women hugged goodbye, neither noticed the car speeding towards them. As the dust settled, Jennifer lay unconscious on the ground and Annabel was nowhere to be seen. She’d never abandon her little girl, so did someone snatch her? As family crowd around Jennifer’s hospital bed, hoping she’ll wake up, police visit Annabel’s home and her inconsolable daughter, Cally, tells them she had seen a man outside staring into her room as she climbed into bed that evening. Was it her childish imagination, or had someone been watching Annabel’s home? When Jennifer finally opens her eyes and tells the police what happened that night, it’s clear there are plenty of people with a reason to harm Annabel. With an unpredictable husband, a colleague who denies harassing her and a neighbour who seems to know her every move, could she be in imminent danger? As the hours turn to days, will little Cally ever see her precious mother again? Or will she be next?

The Party At No.12 is by Kerry Wilkinson. Everyone’s invited. Someone will never leave. In a grand townhouse rented specially for the evening, Hannah beams at her guests under the sparkling chandelier. Her sisters, her mother and aunt, her best friends… although she’ll miss them all so much when she moves away, tonight is about celebrating the happy times and raising a toast to the future. But the next morning, one of the guests is found cold and lifeless in their pristine white bed. Hannah is desperate to call the police. After all, it must have been an accident. Perhaps too much wine, on a night where emotions were running high. But it soon becomes clear that every single person at the party has something to hide. A mother who’ll do anything for her daughters. Best friends with dark secrets between them. A sister with a jealous streak. What if one of them is a killer? And what if this is just the first victim?

The Step Child is by Nicole Trope. Three-year-old Millie Everleigh disappears on a crisp winter’s day, and nothing is as it seems… It’s the phone call every mother dreads. I’m climbing into the car after a trip to the grocery store. As the engine starts, my phone rings. It’s my stepdaughter, Shelby, who is babysitting my three-year-old little girl Millie. ‘I only went upstairs for a second,’ she says through her sobs. ‘She’s gone.’ I race home to find my blue-eyed baby girl missing, and my heart ripped out of my chest. When the police turn up, Shelby’s story starts to unravel. What is she hiding? Then I get a message saying, ‘Your husband is not who you think he is.’ Could he be lying? Suddenly, my family feel like strangers. Everyone has a secret – even me. No one knows why I was late coming back from the store, and the guilt I’ve been feeling ever since… Once the truth comes out, all of our lies exposed, will it be too late to save my precious child?

The Villa is by Clare Boyd. Nora thought two weeks in a stunning villa in the south of France would be the perfect treat for the family she adores. She pictured them tucking into buttery croissants every morning before long days lounging by the sparkling pool. It’s probably too much to hope that it might heal the rifts growing between them, but she can’t wait to count the freckles collecting on the kids’ innocent smiling faces and feel the warm Mediterranean Sea wash all her fears away. But Nora is nervous as she gathers everyone around the large oak table on the villa’s vine-covered terrace. Her daughters eye her suspiciously as she tops up her wine with a shaking hand and clears her throat to speak. The secret she’s about to tell will shatter their lives forever…

Join Flora Steele – bookshop owner, bicycle-rider, daydreamer and amateur detective – in her quest to solve a brand-new murder mystery! Cornwall, 1956: When Flora Steele sets off for a peaceful vacation with crime writer Jack Carrington in his little red Austin, the last thing she expects to find is a body at their pretty rental cottage! Shocked by the discovery, inquisitive Flora joins forces with handsome Jack to find out how the poor man came to such an untimely end in the overgrown orchard of Primrose Cottage. They discover Roger Gifford was a man with plenty of friends and the villagers seem devastated by his sudden death… So why was he murdered? And who has blood on their hands – his estranged wife Beatrice, his wayward younger brother Lionel, or the suspicious newcomer Mercy Dearlove? The baffling case gets even more complicated when a second man is found dead and a set of puzzling clues lead them to an intriguing wartime mystery connected to Jack’s estranged father. As old secrets emerge and Jack receives an unsettling letter, it seems the crime writer is in danger of a fate befitting his fictional characters. Will Flora be able to crack the case and save Jack? Or will this be one murder too many for Flora Steele? Murder at Primrose Cottage is by Merryn Allingham. 

After the Wedding is by Laura Elliot. Everyone said she was the prettiest flower girl. But now her dress lies on the floor. It’s wet and torn, her shoes are lost. ‘Tell us what happened to you?’ her daddy sobs. Christine shakes her head. All she can remember are the red rose petals scattering like drops of blood spilling to the ground. When Christine Lewis was a little girl, she witnessed something terrible at a wedding and buried it so deep in her memory, she managed to forget it ever happened. Years later, Jessica Newman walks into the successful advertising agency Christine runs with her husband. Jessica is beautiful and excellent at her job but her presence triggers disturbing memories for Christine. Fragments of the wedding are starting to flicker in her mind and an unexplainable ball of dread begins to form in Christine’s stomach. Jessica is slowly beginning to destroy Christine’s marriage and her business. Why can’t anyone else see it? Christine and Jessica’s lives were connected long before they set eyes on one another. But in unlocking the mystery of what happened at the wedding all those years ago, is Christine prepared for the truth she’s about to find?

The Family Holiday is by Shalini Boland. Two families. One house swap. A vacation to die for. The white-washed Italian villa is perfect. I thought it might feel odd, living in a stranger’s house for the summer, but as my husband and children swim in the infinity pool, I start to relax. And then, in the back of a wardrobe, I find something that shatters everything… Sparkling green eyes, square jaw, lopsided smile. A young man with his arm around a beautiful woman. The picture is old and faded but I’d recognise him anywhere. The man is my husband. But we’ve never met the family we’ve swapped homes with and my husband swears it isn’t him in the photo. He’s lying. We argue on the balcony with the sun setting behind us and I storm out. When I finally calm down enough to go back to the villa to confront him, I find his dead body sprawled across the veranda. Who killed my husband? Was our marriage a lie? And are my children now in terrible danger?

We should never have kept our father’s secret. Before, my sisters and I were close. Now, a year after our father’s funeral, we barely speak to each other. Molly won’t accept the truth. Rachel can’t forgive him. And I spend all my time digging through his life, trying to understand. Then we hear the news. A woman has been found by the docks, her wedding ring stolen. The reporter says it appears the local serial killer has returned… But I know that can’t be right, because I know who the killer was. Henry Martin. Our father. Someone is sending us a message. Someone knows we lied. Now my sisters and I must work together to find out who is targeting us. How do they know what we’ve hidden? What do they want? And what other secrets lie buried in the past, putting us all in danger? The Killer's Family is by Miranda Smith. 

Mothers and Daughters in Crime Fiction by Miranda Smith

 

Being one of four girls, I’ve always been fascinated by the relationships between mothers, daughters and sisters. My latest psychological suspense novel, Not My Mother, gives these relationships a true crime spin.

Marion is celebrating her own daughter’s first birthday, an event she has spent several months planning. The party is interrupted when Marion’s mother, Eileen, is arrested. The police claim Eileen is not her real name. They allege Marion isn’t even her real daughter. Everyone suspects Eileen abducted Marion from her actual family when she was only an infant—the case has been referenced in the media for years as the Baby Caroline case. If Eileen has lied to Marion for her entire life, how can their relationship ever recover?

The idea for this story sparked when I envisioned a grandmother being arrested at her granddaughter’s birthday party. I wanted to explore what possible crimes this woman could have committed, and how her arrest would impact her relationship with everyone around her. 

I’m a big admirer of crime novels that explore this same theme. Here are some other great crime reads that focus on sinister mother and daughter relationships.

What Lies Between Us by John Marrs

At first glance, the relationship between Maggie and her daughter, Nina, appears normal. They have conversations, listen to music and eat dinner every night. However, we quickly learn Nina is holding her mother prisoner. Each night, Maggie returns upstairs and is restrained with heavy chains. This is Nina’s way of punishing her mother for everything she has done wrong.

What could Maggie have possibly done to deserve such treatment? And does Nina have secrets of her own? This is a brilliant and twisted read you won’t forget. You’ll question which character to root for throughout, and the ending is one you will not see coming.

The Half Sister by Sandie Jones

Still mourning the death of their father, sisters Kate and Lauren don’t always see eye to eye. Their relationship worsens when their Sunday lunch is interrupted by a knock at the door. The woman standing outside is named Jess, and she claims to be their sister. Each character has to process this news, while trying to understand how the revelation impacts their relationships with each other.

This is a tense thriller that brings into focus how siblings can grow up in the same household yet have completely different understandings of their childhood. We get to see how Kate and Lauren’s memories differ, all while trying to find out the truth about their parents.

Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

Gillian Flynn is famous for her best-seller Gone Girl, but her debut novel, Sharp Objects, is equally engrossing. The story follows journalist Camille as she returns to her hometown of Wind Gap. She has been tasked with writing an article about the young girls there who have gone missing, but instead she finds herself trying to solve the mysteries of her own past. She reconnects with her affluent mother, Adora, in hopes of solving past and present crimes.

This book is dark, atmospheric and begging to be read in one sitting. I loved reading as Camille processed events from her childhood through an adult lens, although some of the descriptions can be graphic and triggering. Still, this book serves up two great mysteries at once and has a last-page reveal guaranteed to make your jaw drop.

Baby Teeth (titled Bad Apple in the UK) by Zoje Stage

Is there anything more unsettling than a disturbed child? Now imagine if that was your child. That’s the premise of Zoje Stage’s debut, and it’s a chilling read from the very beginning. Suzette and her seven-year-old daughter, Hanna, have a strange relationship. Although Hanna is the perfect child in the eyes of her father, she has had numerous difficulties with teachers and babysitters. Add to this, Hanna is mute, and when she does finally speak to Suzette, what she says is frightening.

Witnessing the building tension between Suzette and Hanna is horrifying, and there are multiple twists that make you question what is really going on behind the scenes of this picture-perfect family.

If you’re looking for twisted family drama and shocking reveals, add these crime thrillers about mothers and daughters to your TBR!

Not My Mother by Miranda Smith, Published by Bookouture (Out Now)

What if the person you trust most in the world is lying to you? I’d heard of the Baby Caroline case, of course. When a baby is snatched from her mother’s arms, the whole country knows about it. I knew about the parents left lying by the swimming pool, the open window in the nursery. But I never dreamed it had anything to do with me. Today, my beautiful daughter turned one. We were unwrapping gifts and blowing out candles when the knock came at the door, and they took my mother away. The police say she’s not really my mother. That she stole me, thirty years ago. When I visit her, desperate for answers, she looks me in the eye, and says nothing. I can barely breathe. Is my whole life a lie? I have to find out, but the more I learn, the more scared I become. And soon I start to wonder, am I losing my grip on reality or is my own daughter in terrible danger?