Book Review: Somebody’s Daughter

SOMEBODY’S DAUGHTER | David Bell
07.10.2018 | Berkley Books
Rating: 4/5 stars

Late one night the Frazier’s have a knock at their door. The couple unassumingly thinks it must be another neighborhood kid there to sell magazines or candy, but much to Michael Frazier’s surprise he opens the door to find his ex-wife, Erica, standing on his porch. Erica is in a state of frenzy, quickly blurting out that her daughter, Felicity, has gone missing and pleading with Michael to come with her on the search for Felicity. The previous couple hasn’t spoken in many years, so Michael cannot fathom why Erica would come to him for help, that is until she reveals that Felicity is his daughter. Michael has no way of determining if Erica is telling the truth in that moment, but he knows he could never forgive himself for not going out to look for a missing nine-year-old girl. As the two depart, Michael leaves his wife, Angela, behind with more questions than answers.

She’s yours Michael, Felicity is your daughter.

Soon after Michael and Erica depart, Angela’s world gets even stranger when another knock occurs at her door. This time it is the police and they are searching for Erica. It seems before Felicity disappeared Erica was paid a visit by child protective services and like in most missing children cases, the mother is suspect number one. Over the course of this night many truths will come to light and the past will return to haunt those involved.  As the window gets smaller for finding Felicity the pressure is on. Can Michael find the child who might be his daughter or will Felicity be lost forever?

If we don’t act now, if we don’t hurry…The police won’t say what they mean by that forty-eight-hour thing, but I know. They mean she’s going to be dead. Killed. Murdered. Maybe…Well you can imagine all the other things that can happen to a girl. My daughter. Our daughter.

David Bell creates a heart-pounding thriller in SOMEBODY’S DAUGHTER through the use of a shortened timeline and quick, easy-to-read chapters that alternate viewpoints between the various parties involved in the hunt for Felicity. The reader is able to ride along with Erica and Michael, Angela, and one of the detectives overseeing the case, Griffin. Over the course of one night and in to the next morning these three parties each attempt to find Felicity by interacted with a cast of secondary characters who have played some role in Erica or Felicity’s lives. These secondary characters are instrumental in slowly providing the reader bits of information that lead to the ultimate truth of what has happened to Felicity. SOMEBODY’S DAUGHTER is the perfect summer thriller read, especially for those hot days soaking up the sun at the beach, which is exactly where I devoured my copy. This was my first book by David Bell, but I think it’s safe to say more of his work will be finding it’s way to my bookshelves.

A special thank you to Get Red PR, Berkley Books, and David Bell for sending me a free copy in exchange for an honest review.