A disappointing ending that jarred. It didn’t seem to fit what had gone before.

Marco and Anne leave their six-month old baby Cora at home while they go next door to a dinner party. After checking on her every half hour, they come home to find her gone. The investigation by police uncovers little evidence to reveal what happened, and information is kept from them by the family that hides many secrets.

“Marco tries to calm himself, breathing deeply as he drives, his knuckles white on the steering wheel.”

“It is Sunday afternoon. There have been no new leads. No one has called claiming to have Cora. The case seems to be at an impasse, but Cora is still out there. Where is she?”

“”She wonders what the other mothers in her moms’ group would think if she ever told them. We left our six-month-old baby home alone and went to a party next door. She imagines all their jaws dropping in shock, the uncomfortable silence.”

Quotes from the book.

• Kirkus: “It’s difficult to drum up sympathy for this missing child, swaddled as she is in such a dull and harmless plot.”
• The Guardian: “The tale of a child stolen from its cot is full of suspense but promises more than it delivers.”
• Publishers Weekly: “After numerous twists and turns, just when everything appears to be resolved, Lapena delivers one final, deftly crafted surprise.”

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