Heather’s Bookshelf: Lies in Bone
Author: Natalie Symons
Released: 01/31/22
Genre: Dark mystery/suspense
“At just three in the morning, I gave up looking for pictures of Danny. Not that the hour mattered. Something told me I’d be up the rest of the night, attempting to quiet down my head. All I wanted was a face to pin on Danny’s ghost, which was hovering somewhere near that house. That much I knew.”
“Lies in Bone” begins in 1963 with eleven-year-old Chuck Coolidge on a bike ride with his brother Danny. They become lost in the thick smog of Slippery Elm, Pennsylvania and Danny goes missing.
Fast-forward to twenty years later and the POV changes to that of Chuck’s teenage daughter Frank. Chuck is moving Frank and her sister, Boots, back to Slippery Elm to live with his aging mother. Frank is not happy about the move or Grandma and soon thinks of running away with her new friend at school. But when the rumor mill spills over to Frank’s ears, she can’t help but feel for Chuck and what he went through as a kid in Slippery Elm.
When past tragedies intersect with a present one, Frank is caught right in the middle of it. Chuck’s under investigation for murder and nobody in town believes him- nobody but Frank. Will she be able to keep her and Boots safe or find the help she needs to get Chuck out of jail?
Trigger Warning: adult language (including racist and discriminatory language), sexual assault, child disappearance, child death, alcoholism/smoking
Overall, I really enjoyed this story. The beginning of the book sets the tone for the rest of the tale and draws you in immediately. The transition to Frank as a narrator was fantastic- sarcastic, funny, dark, and damaged. Between her strained relationship with her father and abandonment issues with her mother, it’s no wonder she has the challenges she does. Chuck’s an absolutely believable and tragic character and his mother’s a piece of work (but also with a tragic past). The town is perfectly developed as a middle-of-nowhere-town-where-no-one-ever- leaves-and-if-you-happen-to-escape-you-should-not-go-back. There are some really terrible things that happen in this story and the author does a great job in placing doubt in your mind as you read Frank’s perils and discoveries. Suspense throughout the story is palpable but it really picks up over the last third of the novel when the focus switches to more revelations, truths, and consequences. The ending is just about perfect with several surprises and a finality that felt natural.
I ended up checking this book out on mixed platforms (e-book and audiobook). The narrator is really entertaining and does a great job in changing voices throughout many different characters.
I received a copy of this story in exchange of a fair and honest review.
OVERALL REVIEW:
A generational mystery with unstoppable suspense, secrets, tragedies, and family.
Want to learn more about the author?
Check out my interview with Natalie Symons
Interested in checking out the book for yourself?
Find it for purchase here, Kindle Unlimited, or Audible
Interested in submitting your book for review? Visit my review page for guidelines and submission requirements.
