Review: Where I Left Her by Amber Garza

Title: Where I Left Her

Author: Amber Garza

Year Published: 2021

Category: Adult fiction

Pages: 304

Rating: 4 out of 5

Location (my 2021 Google Reading map): USA (CA)

Summary (from Amazon): Whitney had some misgivings when she dropped her increasingly moody teenage daughter, Amelia, off at Lauren’s house. She’d never met the parents, and usually she’d go in, but Amelia clearly wasn’t going to let something so humiliating happen, so instead Whitney waved to her daughter before pulling away from the little house with the roses in front.

But when she goes back the next day, an elderly couple answers the door—Amelia and Lauren aren’t there, and this couple swears they never were, that she’s at the wrong house. As Whitney searches for Amelia, she uncovers a trail of lies her daughter has told her—from the Finsta account to rumors of a secret relationship. Does she really even know this girl she’s raised? And Amelia’s not the only one with secrets. Could Whitney’s own demons have something to do with her daughter’s disappearance, and can Whitney find her before it’s too late?

Review: It's RIP Challenge time and this is my third thriller.

As I read this novel, I felt like I couldn't really trust any of the characters even though I sympathized with them. Whitney is a mother who is desperate to find her missing daughter. This is every parent's nightmare! And just because Amelia is a rebellious teen, it isn't any easier. Rebellious teens can make some really bad decisions. Even the people trying to help Whitney (her ex husband, her best friend, the police) don't seem to be rushing to figure out what's going on.

I like that the past, both Amelia's on her own when she was a teen and the past she shares with Amelia leading up to the disappearance, are told in their own chapters, making it clear which and whose story we are hearing. And, as with any well written book, the stories converge at the end in a very satisfying way.

 

Challenges for which this counts: 

• RIP