Don't Try to Find Me

Don't Try to Find Me

by Holly Brown

Genre; Fiction

Synopsis:  Don't try to find me. 

Though the message on the kitchen whiteboard is in fourteen-year-old Marley's handwriting, her mother, Rachel, knows there has to be some other explanation. Marley would never run away.

I'll be okay. 

Marley's quiet. Innocent. Sheltered. Growing up in Northern California with all the privilege Rachel never had, what does Marley know about taking care of herself? About being okay? Rachel might not know her daughter at all. But she does know that she needs to find Marley before someone else does. Someone dangerous.

I'll be better. 

The police have limited resources devoted to runaways. Paul turns to Facebook and Twitter and launches FindMarley.com. But Marley isn't the only one with something to hide. Paul's social media campaign generates national attention, and the public scrutiny could expose Rachel's darkest secrets.

I love you. 

The blogosphere is convinced Rachel is hiding something. But Rachel would never hurt Marley. Not intentionally, anyway. When it's discovered that Rachel lied to the police, the devoted mother becomes the prime suspect in Marley's disappearance. Is Marley out there, somewhere, watching it all happen . . . or is the truth something far worse?

from GoodReads

Review: This book was a fast paced highly engaging read told from the perspectives of Rachel, the mother who has something to hide, and Marley, the fourteen-year-old run away.  I found Marley's character to be honest about her feelings towards her parents, friends, life and love but also full of teenage angst.  Rachel was too wrapped up in things going on in her life to realize that Marley needed someone to talk to and pay attention to her.  I also found Rachel's character sympathetic as we learn more about her life and people manipulating her throughout her life.  There were times that I didn't like Rachel but I felt like most of her actions were justifiable.  I like where the story went with the relationships between Rachel and Paul, the husband and father, as well as Rachel's relationship with Marley.  There are other relationships in the book that are dysfunctional and I didn't feel that the vilification of one of the characters was necessary nor well developed.  I can't tell you which character I'm talking about because I don't want to spoil anything but I did feel like his character development was not the best and that he seemed not to be quite right.  I know that is vague but the synopsis does not even mention this character.  I did think that part of this book was quite unrealistic but for the sake of fiction, I suspended reality while reading.

Rating: 4 stars