After Her by Joyce Maynard

A series of murders sits in the backdrop of Joyce Maynard's After Her, but this is really a book about growing up and sisters. However, the serial killer deaths provide the right eerie setting for our young protagonist and her sister.

It's not just that the killer comes and takes away their freedom of movement...they were used to being able to play all over their mountain and use their creativity to entertain themselves--it's that he takes away their father, who is assigned lead investigator on the case. But as the crimes continue to go unsolved and more bodies pile up, the unsolved murders take a toll on their once vibrant, charismatic father.

I enjoyed After Her for how real it felt to growing up, for the almost foreboding atmosphere of the book, the struggle when sisters paths diverge, the nature of survival. It's not a mystery, though, it's a coming of age tale.

It's a good solid read!

Thanks to William Morrow for an ARC.