“Title: The Night Olivia Fell by Christina McDonald
Publisher: Gallery Books
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 368 pages
Book Rating: B+
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley
Summary:
In the vein of Big Little Lies and Reconstructing Amelia comes an emotionally charged domestic suspense novel about a mother unraveling the truth behind how her daughter became brain dead. And pregnant.
A search for the truth. A lifetime of lies.
In the small hours of the morning, Abi Knight is startled awake by the phone call no mother ever wants to get: her teenage daughter Olivia has fallen off a bridge. Not only is Olivia brain dead, she’s pregnant and must remain on life support to keep her baby alive. And then Abi sees the angry bruises circling Olivia’s wrists.
When the police unexpectedly rule Olivia’s fall an accident, Abi decides to find out what really happened that night. Heartbroken and grieving, she unravels the threads of her daughter’s life. Was Olivia’s fall an accident? Or something far more sinister?
Christina McDonald weaves a suspenseful and heartwrenching tale of hidden relationships, devastating lies, and the power of a mother’s love. With flashbacks of Olivia’s own resolve to uncover family secrets, this taut and emotional novel asks: how well do you know your children? And how well do they know you?
Review:
The Night Olivia Fell by Christina McDonald is an emotional, poignant and compelling domestic mystery.
Abigail “Abi” Knight knows right away an early morning phone call brings nothing but bad news. But she has no idea just how tragically heartbreaking the news awaiting her at the hospital is going to be. Her beloved, only daughter, seventeen year old Olivia, is brain dead yet due to Washington laws, she has to remain on life support until she gives birth. Abi is stunned by this shocking detail because she had no idea Olivia is pregnant. Even more upsetting is the realization that the police are not investigating her daughter’s late night fall from a bridge. Abi wants to know who is responsible for hurting her daughter and she absolutely refuses to stop searching until she learns the painful truth.
Abi is an extremely over-protective mother who clings tightly to Olivia. She works hard and willingly makes whatever sacrifices necessary for her daughter’s future. Abi holds herself back from friendships and she does not date. She is also very tight-lipped about the identity of Olivia’s father and no one, including her older sister, Sarah, knows who he is.
Up until the past several months, Olivia has never pushed back on Abi’s smothering concern and stringent rules. But after she decides to learn the truth about her father, she asserts herself much to her mother’s dismay. Olivia is also going through changes in her personal life but her well-intentioned choice to protect someone close to her makes her feel guilty. Olivia is withholding important information from Abi but does this have anything to do with her fall?
Due to her difficult childhood, Abi knows how difficult it is to live without answers about life-altering events. So, when it comes to Olivia’s fall, she refuses to let police inaction stop her from unearthing the truth. During the course of investigation, she is dismayed and hurt as she discovers what Olivia was doing in the previous months. However, as she tries to untangle her daughter’s life, she learns a valuable lesson about accepting help and allowing herself to trust the people in her orbit.
Written from Abi’s perspective in the present and Olivia’s point of view in the months preceding her fall, The Night Olivia Fell is an absolutely riveting mystery. With a complex and multi-dimensional storyline and well-rounded characters, the novel captures readers’ attention right from the first page. Abi is an incredibly sympathetic character who sometimes thinks before she acts. Olivia is a normal teenager who wants to learn the truth about her father, but she discovers far too late that she is in over her head. With a stunning array of twists and heart-wrenching turns, the truth about who harmed Olivia and why is revealed in a during a shocking confrontation.
Keep the tissues handy because Christina McDonald’s will bring readers to tears as this emotional debut comes a deeply moving conclusion.
