Find Dear Child Authored By Romy Hausmann Shown As E-Text

rounded down!! What a great debut novel this was, To start with, this story takes place in southern Germany Bavaria, which is where I was born and raised until I wasyears old, so that immediately had me intrigued.
Also, anything to do with creepy children intrigues me, so that was another plus, Let's just say that one of our young protagonists, Hannah, definitely met my creepiness expectations! The story was very dark and frighteningly realistic or at least plausible, to me.
It gave me the creeps throughout, and a few of the more vivid flashback scenes really got to me! I was able to imagine myself in our protagonist's place, and cringed multiple times! Overall this is a story about ayearold college student who disappears inexplicably one night walking home after a party.
What happened to her I totally got the 'Room,' vibe while reading this, and even more so I felt this book read similar to the BBC series The Missing, with a few distinct differences.
There was a fantastic twist in the storyline in the first part, that afterwards had me hooked! I wasn't sure where the story was going at that point and if there was an unreliable narrator situation or a few other possible scenarios crossed my mind, but I definitely did not anticipate the ending that we got and felt it really came completely out of left field, and I appreciated that.
Without giving much away, this book gives us something it's similar predecessors didn't, in that it attempted to provide the WHY this happened, going so deep as to even make the reader reflect what they might be capable of were they to experience the events and circumstances our antagonist did.
. what are we really capable of when put through the ringer beyond a certain point I thought this book explored that pretty well! If I had to point out any issues with this novel it might just be the similarities it had to the before mentioned series, and I did listen to this partially on audiobook, which had British, rather than German, accented voices for our characters, so I struggled with that, but overall this novel has me really thrilled to see what else this author will release.
I'm definitely a new fan! “days thats how long I spent looking for my daughter”

What a deep, dark, read.


Lena has been missing foryears, So long in fact, that shes had two children while being held captive by a madman,

When the opportunity presents itself, its time for Lena to run! Unfortunately, she runs directly into the path of a passing car and ends up in the hospital.

The first words she manages to utter

“Lena, . . my name is Lena ”

But is it really her And why wont the children tell the authorities what was going on in their so called home

Told through the eyes of Lenas father, 'Lena', and the eldest child.


I listened to the audio version and all the narrators did a superb job bringing their characters to life, Allowing you to feel the pain, the fear and even the indifference from the child,

Not sure how I missed this book originally, but grateful to the many fantastic reviews that led me to pick this one up, Thankyou friends!

Posted to: sitelink . .

Highly recommend the version,
Writing:/Plot:./Ending: le sigh/

THE PLOT

Lena's been missing foryears when she reappears, but wait, it's not her but some other chick Jasmine who was kidnapped as a standin for Lena.
Told from the POV of Jasmine, Lena's daughter Hannah, and Lena's father Matthias, we find out what really happened in the cabin,

MY OPINION

Tbh my writing, plot, ending ratings make no sense because how did I end up withSometimes even my own math does not math, but hey, I have two arts degrees! Anyways.


I gave thisbecause the creepy vibes were there, I was so hyped at the beginning because it was VERY juicy, Hannah's POV was incredibly wellwritten a masterclass in showing not telling, You can clearly see how her upbringing impacted her thought process and her unique way of seeing the world around her, I cackled when she was thinking about how Sister Ruth was a grade A dummy, mood

Tbh Matthias' POV could go. We didn't get anything out of him except that he's in a toxic relationship with the media and low key obsessed with his daughter or is that just how parents love their kids It was Jasmine and Hannah who drove the story toward its Criminal Minds ass ending, so

I vote Matthias off the island.


A fair warning, this is a translated book, so while for the most part it is solid, there is some confusing aspects, Also, originally Lena's flashbacks were italicized, but then the editor said fuck it and you had scenes jumping back and forth without an indication, I love my European writers and this definitely had all the trademarks of their unique writing style, so if that isn't for you, . . NEXT!!!!

SPOILERS SO SCROLL TO THE BOTTOM AGGRESSIVELY




I rated the ending "le sigh" because the big reveal of why and how was disappointing and contrived.
So after doing the most with all the chains and handcuffs and whatnot, he let her go free because Hannah said so This didn't make sense, Someone with that level of control issues definitely would've dragged her by the hair back to the cabin and slapped an extra handcuff on her to the bed just to be safe.
He certainly would not have be like, ok, you get adays head start but IMA FIND YOU!!!! What




PROS AND CONS

Pros: beginning was JUICY AF, Hannah's POV was perfectly written, Jasmine's POV provided insight into a traumatized mindset, translation was top tier

Cons: lots of timeline jumping within the same scene without indication, some confusion around the relationship between Kirsten and Jasmine maybe a translation thing I thought they were BFFs but they're definitely BFFs, ending was doing the most, Matthias' POV was pointless.
stars.
This was a dark, twisty, tantalizing story and also a psychological thriller, For most of the book, I found it suspenseful and compelling and close to astar read for me, I love unexpected twists and revelations, but thought it was overdone with at least one twist too many, I felt the storyline was becoming convoluted near the end, The tension and surprises kept coming, but it seemed the writer was trying too hard to keep up the momentum, I believe this is a debut thriller, and that the author has a very promising future, The characters were well developed, but not entirely likeable,

The story is told throughperspectives,. Matteas, whose beloved daughter,Lena, went missing fourteen years earlier, He hates scandalous articles about her in the newspaper, and urges the papers' support in viewing her as a good, honourable girl,. A woman who is in hospital with severe injuries after being hit by a car, She gives her name as Lena,. Hannah, who accompanied Lena to the hospital by ambulance and claims the woman is her mother, Hannah is thirteenyearsold but looks much younger due to poor nutrition, Her conversation includes irrelevant encyclopedic knowledge and she gives some clues about the confined life she and Lena were living in a shack in the woods, She also mentions a brother whom she considers stupid as he didn't learn to read until the age of four, She often refers to herself as her father's favourite child,

Matteas and his wife are overwhelmed by hope and anticipation when informed that Lena is in hospital some distance away, She had sustained multiple injuries when hit by a car but is expected to survive, Their hopes were dashed when Matteas viewed the woman thought to be his missing daughter and insisted the injured woman was not Lena, The distraught parents notice Hannah in the hallway, Her appearance is eerily similar to Lena, Later, DNA tests confirm that she is Lena's biological child and their grandchild, Why she calls the injured stranger her mother is a puzzle,

We learn some details from Jasmin, a woman who was abducted and kept captive for four months,some of the pieces of the puzzle, Her story tells some of the horrific and humiliating conditions confined in a cabin in the woods, She lived with a cruel and controlling man and Hannah and her brother, He kept them isolated from the outside world, He had rigid rules, making them follow strict timetables for bedtime, meals and when to go to the toilet, When she escaped with Hannah, the brother was left behind, The children did not regard their sheltered home life unusual but are both receiving psychiatric care in the hospital due to some horror they witnessed, Matteas is obsessed with Hannah and wants her to replace Lena in his home, Hannah fills in some of the blanks about life with her father, Jasmin is suffering from PTSD and is often confused,

Who is the kidnapper What happened to Lena Is Jasmin still in danger How will the two children adjust to the world Will Matteas manage to bring Hannah home to his reluctant wife What happened to a baby sister Hannah mentions All these puzzles are answered by the end.
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