Publisher's Weekly Review
Kubica's psychological thriller (the follow-up to 2014's The Good Girl) focuses on Heidi Woods, a Chicago-based social worker who espies a homeless teenage waif, Willow Geer, on a train platform, clutching a crying baby. What initially seems to be a professional interest rapidly carries over to obsession for Heidi. Much to the dismay of her husband, Chris, and her moody 12-year-old daughter, Zoe, Heidi takes the possibly psychotic Willow and tot into their home. Kubica spins her disturbing tale using three present-tense points of view, performed here by a trio of readers. Heidi is the first to speak. Her voice, thanks to reader Campbell, is somewhat academic when describing the city's social problems, but quickly shifts to concern for the mother and child. Taylorson's Chris starts out weary from the travel-heavy rut he's in and annoyed by Heidi's new insistence on meatless menus, as well as her ceaselessly downbeat tales of society's ills. Though Heidi's and Chris's chapters include frequent flashbacks to the past, they follow a linked chronology. Reader Marie voices Willow's sections, which take place after her stay in the Woods' household. Sounding vaguely druggy, or maybe just without affect, she recalls events from her past. But she drops a few comments suggesting that some terrible fate has befallen Heidi. But as the novel's powerful and emotionally devastating ending makes clear, she doesn't understand what it is. A Mira hardcover. (July) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Kirkus Review
Things go dangerously wrong when a middle-class wife and mother impulsively opens her home to a homeless teen and her tiny baby in Kubica's sophomore novel. When Heidi Wood, a woman who can't help herself from helping others, spots a teenage girl with a small baby on the platform of Chicago's train system, her heart goes out to them. Not only is it cold and raining, but the pair is obviously in need of help. Soon, Heidi has spotted the homeless teenager again, and, being the nurturing type, she feels compelled to reach out to her. That annoys her husband, Chris, and selfish 12-year-old daughter, Zoe. But Heidi ignores her husband's misgivingsafter all, he's distracted by the new girl at work, Cassidy Knudsen, a lissome blonde who always seems to be nearby when Heidi calls. So when she brings the girl, Willow, and Ruby, her baby, into their condo, it only widens the gap between Heidi and Chris. And, through some clever foreshadowing, the reader knows, almost from the outset, that this isn't going to turn out so well for the Wood family. Kubica skillfully weaves the story together, with Chris, Heidi, and Willow all narrating portions of the tale. As bits and pieces of Willow's story are revealed, the other characters keep the story moving forward toward what the reader knows will be disastrous results. Kubica's debut novel, The Good Girl (2014), also employed multiple points of view and timelines, but Kubica serves up a much more cohesive tale this time aroundthe story is almost hypnotic and anything but predictable. The writing is compelling, but Kubica's strong point is being able to juggle a complicated plot and holding the reader's interest without dropping any of the balls she has in the air. This book will give insomniacs a compelling reason to sit up all night. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Kubica's second domestic thriller (following The Good Girl, 2014) opens with Chicago literacy tutor Heidi Wood speculating about a teen mother she sees huddled at her el stop. Days later, she finally approaches the girl and offers to buy her dinner. The girl, Willow, refuses to take her baby to a shelter, so Heidi invites them back to the condo she shares with her husband and teenage daughter. Chris, an investment banker, can't believe that Heidi would bring a complete stranger into their home. He wonders if this is retribution for the frequent business trips he's been taking with an attractive colleague. Then, the plot shifts gears as Willow's story slowly unravels from inside a holding cell. What did she do to end up there? And why does she think Heidi is being held somewhere wearing her own orange jumpsuit? As the perspective shifts again, readers see Heidi's interest in Willow's baby intensify and senses family tragedy on the way. And yet, the conclusion is a genuine surprise. Recommend for fans of the psychological suspense of Suzanne Berne or Laura Kasischke.--Keefe, Karen Copyright 2015 Booklist
Library Journal Review
Heidi Wood takes a homeless young girl and her baby home because she can't bear to see the child exposed to the wet, cold weather. This act of seeming kindness begins the disintegration of her carefully constructed life. Meanwhile, teenage Willow, abused by her foster father, is working through her own demons as she instinctively acts to protect the little sister she loves but rarely sees. The story is told from the points of view of Heidi, Willow, and Chris, Heidi's husband. Is Willow a murderer? Who does this baby really belong to? Has Willow escaped one horrible home only to wreak havoc upon another? Cassandra Campbell, Tom Taylorson, and Jorjeana Marie voice the three characters and bring out gentle Heidi's need for another child, Chris's self-centered disconnectedness, and Willow's misery and need for love. Their varied performances emphasize the three very different worlds these characters inhabit and add dimension to the story. Verdict Recommended. ["Those who appreciate character-driven explorations of human emotion will enjoy Kubica's sophomore effort": LJ 6/15/15 review of the Mira: Harlequin hc.]-Juleigh Muirhead Clark, Colonial Williamsburg Fdn. Lib., VA © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
