Review: What Remains of Her by Eric Rickstad

Title: What Remains of Her by Eric Rickstad
Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 416 pages
Book Rating: B+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through Edelweiss

Summary:

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Silent Girls comes this chilling, harrowing thriller set in rural Vermont about a recluse who believes the young girl he’s found in the woods is the reincarnation of his missing daughter, returned to help him solve her and his wife’s disappearance.

I won’t say a word. Cross my heart and hope to die…

Jonah Baum, a professor of poetry at a local college in Vermont, sees his ordinary life come tumbling down when his wife and young daughter vanish from their home. No evidence of a kidnapping. No sign of murder. No proof that Rebecca didn’t simply abandon her marriage. Just Sally’s crude and chilling drawings, Jonah’s little lies, and the sheriff’s nagging fears that nothing is what it seems.

For Sally’s best friend, Lucinda, it’s something else. She trusts in Sally not to just disappear, not after they’ve shared so many secrets—especially about the woods and what they saw there. But she’ll never tell. No one would believe her anyway.

As the search for Rebecca and Sally intensifies, and as suspicion falls on Jonah, the disappearances become more relentlessly haunting than anyone can imagine. Because what’s seen in the light of day is not nearly as terrifying as what remains hidden in the dark…

Review:

What Remains of Her by Eric Rickstad is an electrifying mystery set in rural Vermont.

Jonah Baum returns home from work one evening to discover his wife Rebecca and seven year old daughter Sally have disappeared.  He quickly contacts his friend and neighbor Sheriff Maurice Welch who rapidly organizes a search party to look for the missing duo. With no evidence to go on, Maurice calls in the state police to aid in the investigation. Jonah is their number one (and practically) only suspect and despite the Sheriff’s best efforts to protect him, the cloud of suspicion lingers over Jonah long after the case goes cold.

Unable to function yet remaining hopeful Rebecca and Sally will one day return home, Jonah retreats from society and lives a solitary life in an abandoned cabin deep in the woods. Twenty-five years later, he sporadically maintains contact with Maurice’s daughter and Sally’s best friend, Lucinda. Despite the passage of time, she still struggles with the unanswered questions about her missing friend. Working as a part-time deputy, a case in the present brings up those long ago memories and Lucinda makes a stunning discovery that completely upends her world.

Jonah still bears the scars of his horrific childhood but with Maurice’s help, he has gained control of his volatile emotions. At the time Rebecca and Sally disappear, they are struggling to make ends meet and there is tension between Jonah and his wife. When questioned by Maurice and the state police, Jonah carefully edits his answers which contributes to the suspicions he might have hurt his wife and child. With absolutely no evidence to support the police’s theory and no new leads, Jonah never gives up hope Rebecca and Sally will be found.

Lucinda’s life is forever changed by the unsolved disappearance of Sally and Rebecca. Now in her early thirties, the chance to make a childhood dream come true is within her grasp when an urgent new case demands all of her attention. In the course of this investigation, she is distracted by her memories of Sally. Never expecting to find new information about her missing friend in the long cold case, Lucinda is absolutely flabbergasted by her unexpected discoveries.

What Remains of Her is a spellbinding mystery with a compelling storyline and a cast of multi-layered characters. The plot is intricately executed and the setting is quite atmospheric. Eric Rickstad builds the tension and suspense to a fever pitch and brings this incredible mystery to a twist-filled and shocking conclusion that will completely satisfy readers. I highly recommend this enthralling novel to fans of the genre.