Review by Kathleen Costa
Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a copy of the book and a link to purchase it.
It’s “a place and a culprit.”
Bledsoe is a small community located on the Georgia
coastline but absent a sandy beach or regular tourist trade. It is rich with a
marshy thickness of flora and fauna made unbearable in the August heat and
worse with a summer rain. It is plagued with a sense of isolation filled with
struggling families preferring to keep to themselves to avoid any problems.
Twelve-year-old Kay Whitaker lives there on Hack Road with her parents Clay and
Sue-Bess and three older sibling: Peter, Sarah-Anne, and Freddy. Elizabeth, the
last born, didn’t survive and is now buried under the shade tree prominent in
the yard. Her mother is distant, chronically exhausted, and often anxious with
the constant check-ins by the “state.” Her father is abrupt, frequently
unemployed, and quick to physical punishment. It is limited as a home, but home
nonetheless. It’s a backwater place ripe for shrouding secrets, masking
motives, and concealing crimes.
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| Image Source Sourcebooks |
“Trouble comes looking for you if you’re not careful.
It finds just as easily as it’s found.” —The Floating Girls
Kay Whitaker knows well the marsh area around her home with trees that grow out of the water, animals to avoid, and neighbors nearby, yet she’s startled to come upon a stranger not far from her home. Andy Webber appears her age and lives with his father, doesn’t go to school, and recently returned to Bledsoe after living in California. When asked about his mother, he says she drowned when he was a toddler, an incident some rumored was not an accident. Kay is smitten, yet angered when met with disbelief from her siblings and a demand from her father to stay away from the boy. Her curiosity is piqued when she overhears her parent’s conversation, “So, they’re back?” Kay is not one to be deterred, so she continues to see Andy, even if she needs to sneak out. But, her sister Sarah-Anne goes missing and the police make a shocking arrest.
Brilliant! Lo Patrick has penned an intense first-person narrative with several mysteries to grab my attention: young Andy’s mother’s death years prior, the unexplained behaviors of Kay’s mother and her sister, and her sister’s disappearance. It is rich in a true sense of the south with its real poverty and an understanding of the marsh using all the senses as experienced through young Kay perspective. Although she is twelve with budding puberty, the story is written with a real intelligence and insightful perspective focusing on a naiveté, an anger, a frustration, and a deep desire that would appeal to any age reader. The family dynamic has Kay often fending for herself, dodging the criticism of her dad and brothers, and struggling with the upheaval in her life. making her independent, opinionated, stubborn, and isolated from the family. No real spikes on the excitement meter, but a brilliant character-driven story I could put down!
Book Club Worthy! The author has included a Reading Group Guide, a series of thought-provoking questions that would make for a great book club discussion along with A Conversation with the Author with a fascinating look into inspirations and technique.
Be a Big Fan of Lo Patrick!
Lo Patrick lives in Georgia which gives her a unique connection to the environment and the soul of the southern culture.
To enter to win a copy of The Floating Girls, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line "floating,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen August 13, 2022. US residents only and you must be 18 or older to enter. If entering via email please include your mailing address in case you win. If entering via comment please include your email address so we can contact you. You can read our privacy statement here if you like.
Check out other mystery articles, reviews, book giveaways & mystery short stories in our mystery section in Kings River Life and in our mystery category here on KRL News & Reviews. And join our mystery Facebook group to keep up with everything mystery we post, and have a chance at some extra giveaways. And check out our new mystery podcast which features mystery short stories and first chapters read by local actors! A new episode goes up next week.
Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.Kathleen Costa is a long-time resident of the Central Valley, and although born in Idaho, she considers herself a “California Girl.” Graduating from CSU-Sacramento, she is a 35+ year veteran teacher having taught in grades 1-8 in schools from Sacramento to Los Angeles to Stockton to Lodi. Currently Kathleen is enjoying her retirement revitalizing hobbies along with exploring writing, reading for pleasure, and spending 24/7 with her husband.
The Floating Girls by Lo Patrick sounds like a book with lots of mysteries to unravel and a host of interesting characters.
ReplyDeleteNancy
allibrary (at) aol (dot) com
Sounds interesting! Count me in!
ReplyDeleteSounds like another great book.
ReplyDeletediannekc8(at)gmail(dot)com
Sounds like a good one! tWarner419@aol.com
ReplyDeleteWe have a winner!
ReplyDeleteLorie Ham