What happens after you get what you’ve always wanted? In Colleen Faulkner’s thought-provoking and emotionally compelling novel, a mother is reunited with the daughter who was abducted as a toddler—only to face unexpected and painful challenges . . . It’s the moment Harper Broussard always dreamed of. Her daughter Georgina, snatched fourteen years ago during a Mardi Gras parade, is standing … Mardi Gras parade, is standing before her, making cappuccinos behind the counter of Harper’s favorite New Orleans coffee shop. Harper’s ex-husband, Remy, has patiently endured many “sightings” over the years, and assumes this is yet another false alarm.
Yet this time, Harper is right.
The woman who kidnapped Georgina admits to her crime. Georgina, now known as Lilla, returns to her birth parents. But in all of Harper’s homecoming fantasies, her daughter was still a little girl, easily pacified with a trip to the park or a cherry snowball. In reality, she’s a wary, confused teenager who has never known any mother except the loving woman who’s now serving time. Harper’s younger daughter, Josephine, has spent her life competing with the ghost of a perfect, missing sister. Trying to bond with the real, imperfect version isn’t any easier. And though Remy has agreed to give their strained marriage another chance, he and Harper struggle to connect.
Clinging to dreams of reuniting has been Harper’s way of surviving. Now she must forge new ones on an often heartbreaking yet ultimately hopeful journey—one that will redefine her idea of motherhood and family.
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The author tackles a tough subject from all angles, and I mean all angles. As a mother, I began reading this often heart-wrenching story with the feeling that I knew how I was going to feel. I was wrong.
Told from the viewpoints of three characters, the book explores how a 14-year-old tragedy continues to affect an entire family, and how a homecoming isn’t always the happy event you might expect.
This is a wonderful book with fully-fleshed-out characters, with twists I didn’t expect, and an ending that was both thoughtful and satisfying. I rate this a highly recommended read.
I really enjoyed this book! I highly recommend it to others.
Reading a Colleen Faulkner book is like sitting down with an old friend. I love her writing and this one was no exception. From the opening paragraph to the very last page, we live what it would be like to find our daughter after she’d been kidnapped fourteen years earlier. Ms. Faulkner told a very plausible tale and I like that it wasn’t all rose-coloured glasses. Every member of the Broussard family struggled in their own way with the new family dynamics and that’s what kept me turning the pages. Sadly, I’ve now read all of her books and will wait (impatiently) until the next one.
I really liked this book. As a mom, the book drew me in right away. What would it be like, not only to have your child taken from you, but then to actually find her years later? I could relate to the mom AND the daughter. It was a great story of struggle and loss and love.
Enjoyed every page!
I can’t tell you the last time I read a book in twenty four hours. This book has a rare combo – really good writing and a compelling, moving plot.
The quick summary with no spoilers: a family has found a daughter that went missing as a young girl, 14 years earlier. Her return of course raises many issues- where has she been? What does she remember? How to bring her back into the family?
Told from three perspectives (mother, daughter, and second daughter), I really connected with each character. Beautiful descriptions of New Orleans were a nice bonus.
I had a small issue with the ending- won’t go into it to avoid spoilers- but let’s say I felt like one of the characters acted in a way that didn’t feel congruent with the rest of the book. But honestly, it’s a small criticism – this is an overall “can’t put it down” read for me. — Joanell Serra , Author, The Vines We Planted
A good read….. did not end as I would’ve liked but actually had a more realistic ending with believable characters. Life isn’t always picture perfect but we can still find contentment.
The characters are wonderfully explored. You are drawn right into the story as though you are part of this family going through their emotions. Loved it!
I liked the way this book examines how even a happy occurrence can cause many different reactions.
Great story – strong characters.
It is a wonderful book! I would like to rewrite the ending
Kept me interested all through it.
Finding Georgina by Colleen Faulkner
What if:
*Your toddler was taken from you fourteen years ago?
*You believed she was dead but never truly gave up hoping she was not?
*You believed you had found your child, now sixteen, and she did not at all resemble the memory of her you have kept alive?
*You were faced with integrating you long-lost daughter back into a family with members that have changed – perhaps just as much she has?
How would you cope?
How would the father of your lost child cope?
How would your other-daughter cope?
How would your lost-daughter cope?
This story is told from the viewpoints of
*The mother: Harper
*The unlost-sister: Josephine-Jojo
*The lost-sister: Georgina-Lilla
The emotions are raw, the characters are fully fleshed out, the issues are real, and the dynamics are difficult, the story is not easy reading. The author has done a good job of telling the “what if” story that should have a happy ending for all but makes the reader really look at “what if”…
I had a bit of trouble with Harper…she seemed to be a needy, demanding, controlling sort of helicopter mother. I can see why, in some ways, Remy made the choices he did about his wife but can’t really figure out his reasoning or “needs” in relationship to the family he helped create. I found Jojo to be well portrayed as a somewhat rebellious teenager – not unexpected with Harper as her mother. I found Georgina-Lilla to be an emotionally mature and strong young woman who did her best when she found herself in a very difficult situation. I enjoyed peeking in on the sisters as they learned to know and deal with one another. Having no idea what a REAL family has to contend with if/when they are reconnected with a lost child that was taken so young and kept so many years I am unsure how realistic this story is but it did make me think and ponder and wonder just how I would react if I found myself in any one of the characters’ shoes.
Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for the ARC – This is my honest review.
4-5 Stars
I loved the characters and the story – the ending was unexpected. keep me turnign the page
I enjoyed this book
Enjoyed very much.
Repetitive thoughts. Drawn out subject