It was a long wait for another book by William Landay. Defending Jacob, an awesome mystery that came out in 2012, led to great anticipation for Landay’s next book. After eleven years, it has been worth the wait. Landay, a former assistant district attorney, understands the interplay of law and criminal behavior. Together with his skill at presenting family dynamics over time, this is another excellent page-turner.

Jane Larkin, faithful wife of Dan Larkin, loving and devoted mother of Alex (17), Jeff (12), and Miranda (8), and best friend-sister to Kate, mysteriously disappears one November day in 1975, leaving not a clue or a trace. No signs of struggle, no signs of kidnapping or flight, Jane is simply gone. This devastates the two younger Larkin children, who are left with their career-focused, uninvolved father, an attorney who lives high on the hog and has a somewhat shady clientele. One year after their mother’s disappearance, their father brings home his girlfriend, a younger and more beautiful woman, and has the audacity to take the Bermuda vacation Jane had meticulously planned for them.

The story is told from each of the family members’ perspectives, their conjectures and unique points of view. Written as a fictional narrative by Philip Solomon, a novelist and long-time childhood friend of Jeff’s, who Jeff met a couple of months before his mother’s disappearance, Philip is convinced by Jeff that his family’s story would make a good novel. This book is essentially that novel. Landay was a master at spinning unexpected twists and turns with Defending Jacob, so I expected this story would be likewise.

The story follows the details around the investigation, relying heavily on the then-young detective Tom Glover, who never really lets this crime go, but works it for the rest of his career. Once the children are adults, Jane’s body is finally discovered, leading the family to a life-changing decision in a desperate attempt to resolve their mother’s fate. Landay does not allow that event to bring closure however, stringing us along a bit more for his final crescendo.

I highly recommend both of Landay’s books. Be prepared to sit awhile, for you cannot put either book down once you begin it. Highly recommended.