LoveReading Says
Plenty of books fit into the ‘Small town, big secrets’ genre, but for my money this is one of the best. Set in the poorest part of the Missouri Ozarks, the story follows Eve Taggert as she sets out on an all-consuming quest for justice after her daughter is found murdered on the town playground next to the body of her best friend. Eve is a mother with nothing left to lose and her search for the killer leads her into the very darkest depths of the human psyche.
The small, hardscrabble town of Barren Springs is brilliantly portrayed, as is Eve herself – a pleasingly complex protagonist grappling with her own family demons. The story also has some great twists and packs a real emotional punch. Powerful, beautiful and not for the faint-hearted.
Guest Editor T.M. Logan
LoveReading
About The Familiar Dark
One of Publishers Weekly's Best Books of 2020 (Mystery/Thriller)
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The Familiar Dark Synopsis
One of Publishers Weekly's Best Books of 2020 (Mystery/Thriller)
"From its gripping beginning to its sobering finale, Amy Engel's The Familiar Dark never fails to enthrall with surprising twists."-Associated Press
A spellbinding story of a mother with nothing left to lose who sets out on an all-consuming quest for justice after her daughter is murdered on the town playground.
Sometimes the answers are worse than the questions. Sometimes it's better not to know.
Set in the poorest part of the Missouri Ozarks, in a small town with big secrets, The Familiar Dark opens with a murder. Eve Taggert, desperate with grief over losing her daughter, takes it upon herself to find out the truth about what happened.
Eve is no stranger to the dark side of life, having been raised by a hard-edged mother whose lessons Eve tried not to pass on to her own daughter. But Eve may need her mother's cruel brand of strength if she's going to face the reality about her daughter's death and about her own true nature. Her quest for justice takes her from the seedy underbelly of town to the quiet woods and, most frighteningly, back to her mother's trailer for a final lesson.
The Familiar Dark is a story about the bonds of family-women doing the best they can for their daughters in dire circumstances-as well as a story about how even the darkest and most terrifying of places can provide the comfort of home.
About This Edition
| ISBN: |
9781524745950 |
| Publication date: |
31st March 2020 |
| Author: |
Amy Engel |
| Publisher: |
Dutton Books an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group |
| Format: |
Hardback |
| Pagination: |
238 pages |
| Primary Genre |
Thriller and Suspense
|
| Other Genres: |
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Amy Engel Press Reviews
'An achingly raw, emotional story that was beautifully written. From the heartbreaking beginning to the shocking conclusion, it was a journey so powerful that it'll stay with me for a long time to come' Alice Hunter, bestselling author of The Serial Killer's Wife
'Raw, powerful, beautiful - devastatingly good' TM Logan, bestselling author of The Holiday
'Beautiful and harrowing and everything in between' Chris Whitaker, award-winning author of We Begin at the End
'A high quality, sharply written thriller whose motley cast of deviants and misfits delivers some breathtaking twists on the way to a bleak but very satisfying conclusion. This is the reality of motherhood - red in tooth and claw' Sarah J Naughton, bestselling author of The Festival
PRAISE FOR THE FAMILIAR DARK
'Dark and beautifully written. Spellbinding' Catherine Steadman, bestselling author of Something in the Water
'Absolutely bloody brilliant. It's so well-written I felt like I was living her pain' Fiona Cummins, award-winning author of The Neighbour
'Dark, moving, intriguing. Truly inspiring' Susan Lewis, bestselling author of One Minute Later
'Powerful, gripping, heart-stopping' Laura McHugh, award-winning author of The Wolf Wants In
'From its gripping beginning to its sobering finale, Amy Engel's The Familiar Dark never fails to enthral with surprising twists' Daily Mail
'This is fierce and brilliant' The Observer
About Amy Engel
Amy Engel is a former criminal defence attorney living in Missouri with her family. Her debut adult novel, The Roanoke Girls, was a #1 ebook bestseller, a Richard and Judy book club pick and has sold 100,000 copies across formats to date. The Familiar Dark is her second adult novel.
More About Amy Engel
