Where the Truth Lies by Anna Bailey
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
In Anna Bailey’s debut, we get a deep dive into the small town of Whistling Ridge, Colorado, where a 17-year old girl, Abigail, has gone missing.
Abi’s friend, Emma, is wracked with guilt because she left Abi behind at a party on the night she disappeared. Abi was supposed to be meeting up with a boy in the woods and insisted Emma leave her, but she never should have.
Not only does Emma feel bad about leaving Abi there, others in town blame her as well.
The police believe Abi ran away, but Emma knows that’s not true. Abi would never have left without her. Emma decides to take the investigation into her own hands. She needs to find out what happened to her friend.
Abi’s family is a mess, but truth be told, they were a mess before she disappeared. Her two brothers live in constant fear of their father’s unpredictable temperment, while their mother frequently appears checked-out.
Over the course of the story, multiple town secrets are brought to light. There’s all sorts of racism, prejudice, bigotry and religious fervor. There’s a lot of unlikable characters and unsavory circumstances.
Personally, I never felt connected with this story. None of the characters were distinct to me and I had a difficult time tracking it all through the multiple perspectives and then/now timelines.
I decided to give this 3-stars because I know there is a good story hidden in here somewhere. It tackles a lot of important, sensitive issues and I would never want to take away from that. However, for me, this reading experience was more of a 2-star.
I couldn’t wait for it to be over. With this being said, just because this wasn’t my cup of tea, doesn’t mean it is not a good book. If you read the synopsis and it sounds interesting to you, please give it a shot. It could very well be a new favorite for you.
Maybe I was just in a mood or something. Who knows? Crazier things have happened, but yeah, as of today, not a great experience for me. Extremely forgettable and bland. Solid, mehhh.
Thank you to the publisher, Atria, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I appreciate it. On to the next!