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Ruby Flood is thrilled when the couple who has been raising her make a stunning announcement—they are not her birth parents.  Relieved not to share blood with the cruel, abusive couple, the 13-year-old runs away from their home, determined to find her real parents.  Ruby sets off into the Forest of Dean armed only with a suitcase and the otherworldly protection of Shadow Boy, her imaginary—and only—friend.  

Soon, Ruby comes upon a ragged group of siblings living on their own in a crumbling mansion in the forest.  Although not all of them are keen on having another mouth to feed, they take her in and make her part of their unconventional family.  The situation suits Ruby just fine, but it's not long before she begins to realize that not everything is what it seems in her surrealistic new life.  It's difficult to tell what is real and what is not in the woods; all Ruby desires is the truth.  Can she trust her new family to help her on her quest?  What secrets are they hiding from Ruby?  She's about to find out ...

It's tough to describe The Doll Funeral, an odd and disquieting novel by Welsh author Kate Hamer.  While it's compelling and lyrical, it's also dark, depressing, hopeless, and sad.  Although I appreciate its lesson about family not always being about blood, I didn't end up loving this story.  It was a pretty meh read for me.  Bummer.

(Readalikes:  Um, I can't think of anything.  Can you?)

Grade:

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

for language, violence, depictions of illegal drug use, and disturbing subject matter

To the FTC, with love:  Another library fine find

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Keeping track of her "dreamy" daughter has always been something of a challenge for Beth Wakeford.  Now that she's newly divorced, she's even more worried that something will happen to Carmel, an 8-year-old who's easily distracted.  When her nightmare comes true during a trip to an outdoor festival, Beth is frantic with worry.  Has Carmel just wandered off in a daze?  Or has something sinister happened to the capricious child?  As hours, then days and months, go by without a sighting of the little girl, the police assume the worst.  Undeterred, Beth vows to find her missing child, in whose death she refuses to believe.  

When Carmel is first led away from the fairgrounds, she's delighted at the prospect of a novel adventure.  Soon, though, she realizes that things are not what they seem and that the likelihood of her being returned to her mother is slim to none.  As Carmel slowly comes to grips with her new reality, she longs desperately for her mum.  But as the years pass, memories fade, and some children forget who they really are ...

The Girl in the Red Coat, a debut novel by Welsh author Kate Hamer, tells a quietly unsettling story about every parent's worst nightmare coming to pass.  It's a compelling tale that kept me riveted throughout.  Although the reader knows what's happening (sort of) to Carmel from the get-go, the plot remains suspenseful because of its over-arching question:  Will Beth and Carmel ever be reunited?  As mother and daughter are both sympathetic narrators, the reader can't help but root for them ... but will they get the happily ever after they both desire?  Nothing is for certain in this disquieting novel.

(Readalikes:  Reminds me of The Disappearance of James by Anne Ursu)

Grade:

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

for language (a few F-bombs, plus milder expletives), mild sexual content, violence, and disturbing subject matter

To the FTC, with love:  Another library fine find

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At a park in Endleby—a small hamlet near Hereford—a devoted mother walks away from her two small children, leaving them alone.  Twenty hours later, she returns.  Where has she been?  No one knows.  Even Selena Cole herself claims to have no recollection of what she'd been doing while her daughters were left alone.  Is the wealthy psychologist telling the truth?  If she is, then where was she for those missing hours?  If not, then why did she leave her kids?  

Not far away, the body of Dominic Newell, a respected defense attorney, is found on a lonely country road.  Dead from a stab wound, his vicious demise shocks all who knew him.  Who would commit such a savage crime?  

Finn Hale, who's been a sergeant detective for 82 whole days, is tasked with solving the case.  His sister, DC Leah Mackay, is investigating the disappearance of Selena Cole.  Are the two events connected?  Or is it just coincidence that they happened at the same time in a quiet place that, as Finn is wont to say, isn't exactly Mogadishu?  As Finn and Leah look deeper into the disappearance and the murder, they discover some shocking clues about what really happened to both Selena and Dominic.

I don't want to say too much about The Missing Hours by Emma Kavanagh because I think it's one of those books where the less you know going into it, the better.  Suffice it to say, it's a tense, suspenseful psychological thriller with plenty of twists to keep the reader not just engaged, but riveted.  Someone recommended this to me (I can't remember who—so sorry!) and I'm so glad they did.  I enjoyed it.

(Readalikes:  Hm, I can't think of anything.  Can you?)

Grade:

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

for language (a handful of F-bombs, plus milder expletives), violence, blood/gore, and depictions of illegal drug use

To the FTC, with love:  A bought a copy of The Missing Hours from Amazon with a portion of the millions I make from my lucrative career as a book blogger.  Ha ha.