I Know You Remember

by Jennifer Donaldson

[Sam@WLABB]

When she was 14, Ruthie's mother relocated them for a "fresh start". Following her mother's death, three years later, Ruthie was returning to Alaska, and to her best friend, Zahra. However, upon her arrival, she learned that Zahra had disappeared, which prompted Ruthie to initiate her own search for her best friend, and she was not giving up until Zahra was found.

Donaldson probed a few interesting ideas in this story, and wrapped them up nicely into a satisfying and suspenseful read. She explored ideas pertaining to Christianity, fading friendships, reuniting with estranged parents, life with an addicted parent, poverty, and neglect, and I thought they were woven well into this tale, none of which, curtailed the tension, that was slowly building from the beginning of the story.

Donaldson gently waded us into this story, and she slowly, laid out the pieces of this puzzle. Ruthie's emotions and actions sort of matched that pace. She started by playing along with the investigators, however, as more time passed, she started taking more and more of this search into her own hands, until her emotions and actions were both veering into reckless territory. I thought the pace built nicely, and peaked in such a way that accentuated the first big plot twist.

Speaking of twists, I really thought I had this whole thing figured out. I was wearing my super-smug grin, and nodding along, when one detail was divulged, but then the story took a turn I was NOT expecting at all. In hindsight, the clues were there, but I just didn't make that leap. Following that reveal, I started backtracking, and another of my new suspicions was confirmed. This really prompted me to look at things in a different light.

I had a love/hate thing going with the ending. The decisions Donaldson made for some of the characters were quite interesting. Some made me really happy, while others left me wanting. If I see the word "epilogue", I just have high expectations, and they were not met. Despite that, I rather enjoyed this thriller, which had some great twists, and even left my jaw dropping.

*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

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