Bring Her Home

by David Bell

“Bell imagines a suburban world where no one really knows what’s happening behind all those drawn blinds. In Bell’s take, though, even the people inside don’t really know what’s happening. That’s where his brilliance, and the brilliance of Bring Her Home, rests.”—Providence Journal

In the breathtaking new thriller from David Bell, bestselling author of Since She Went Away and Somebody I Used to Know, the fate of two missing teenage girls becomes a father’s worst nightmare....
 
Just a year and a half after the tragic death of his wife, Bill Price’s fifteen-year-old daughter, Summer, and her best friend, Haley, disappear. Days later, the girls are found in a city park. Haley is dead at the scene, while Summer is left beaten beyond recognition and clinging to life.
 
As Bill holds vigil over Summer’s bandaged body, the only sound the unconscious girl can make is one cryptic and chilling word: No. And the more time Bill spends with Summer, the more he wonders what happened to her. Or if the injured girl in the hospital bed is really his daughter at all.
 
When troubling new questions about Summer’s life surface, Bill is not prepared for the aftershocks. He’ll soon discover that both the living and the dead have secrets. And that searching for the truth will tear open old wounds that pierce straight to the heart of his family...
 
READERS GUIDE INCLUDED

• ISBN10: 0399584447
• ISBN13: 9780399584442
• Publish Date: 11 July 2017
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Penguin Putnam Inc
• Imprint: Berkley Publishing Corporation,U.S.
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 464
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780399584442

Reviews

[Nadz@Totally Addicted to Reading]

This is my first foray into the world of David Bell. Therefore, I am unable to make any comparison to other works. I can't speak to which is better. However, what I can say is, I enjoyed this book. Yes, it is a mystery filled with many twists and turns, but for me, it was more that.

Bring Her Home gave me a firsthand look into a grieving man's life. Dealing with loss is a difficult road for one travel and to do so twice in a short space of time could not have been easy for Bill Price. I may not have agreed with how he approached the situation, but I completely understood his actions. We each grieve in our own way and I saw Bill's actions as his way of coping. I could relate to what he was going through. His feelings of helplessness, guilt, and anger leaped off the pages.

The portrayal of Bill along with the supporting characters was the driving force behind my enjoyment of this book. Mr. Bell created convincing characters, who were easy to care for and I was eager to discover what would become of each of them.

I consider a well-written mystery to be filled with suspense, unexpected outcomes and one which keeps me guessing from start to finish. Bring her Home encapsulated these criteria for the most part. There were a few events that threw me for a loop and for a time I kept trying to figure out the identity of the villain. There were many possible suspects. However, as the events unfolded and actions became clearer, the identity was no longer a mystery. The motive eluded me for a majority of the story, but then it too became clear after a while.

This is a story that one needs to approach with an open mind. One should never go into this story with any preconceived notions as doing so may cause disappointment.

The story was well written and the pacing for the most was good. However, there were aspects of the story which moved a bit slow for my tastes. As a result, I had a difficult time getting through these areas which tainted my experience to some degree. There is not much more I can say regarding this story without giving away the plot. Therefore if you are curious about the events that transpired in this story and you enjoy mysteries then you need to experience it through your own eyes.

Conclusion/Recommendation
Overall, this was an OK read. It was not mind-blowing, but it kept me entertained. Would I read more from this author?
Definitely, yes

[kimbacaffeinate]

Bill Price, a widowed father, becomes distressed when his fifteen-year-old daughter Summer and her best friend Haley disappear only to turn up in a local park. Haley is dead, and Summer is unconscious and clinging to life after being severely beaten.

Bill is muddling through life with a dead end job just trying to raise a daughter after his wife died tragically. The two have been depressed as they quietly mark the passage of time. There have been a few instances of curfew breaking, but Summer is a good girl and Bill is doing the best he can. As the police question Bill, he begins to question himself and her friends. He seeks answers and grows frustrated at the police. While he keeps vigil over Summer's bedside, it is his sister Paige who points out something that leads to a shocking discovery. What happens next takes Bill on an emotional rollercoaster that certainly would have left me reeling. As questions surface and folks come forward a dirty secret from the girl's school is revealed, but other darker secrets are yet to be discovered.

Bell did an excellent job with red herrings, flashbacks, and suspects as we held out hope. While I won't reveal details to deter your enjoyment, I was a bit disappointed in how quickly I pieced things together. I did so long before Bill and the police. Maybe it is because I've read a few of Bell's book and have come to expect a particular formula from him. However,  this had a made for television feel. The thread involving Summer was the strongest, but the additionals threads seemed at times a  little over the top.  On a positive note, I did picture Bill Price with the voice of Will Patton, and while not loveable I couldn't blame him for his actions.

Copy provided by the publisher. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer