A haunting, richly atmospheric, and deeply suspenseful novel from the acclaimed author of The Enchanted about an investigator who must use her unique insights to find a missing little girl.“Where are you, Madison Culver? Flying with the angels, a silver speck on a wing? Are you dreaming, buried under snow? Or—is it possible—you are still alive?”Three years ago, Madison Culver disappeared when her … Madison Culver disappeared when her family was choosing a Christmas tree in Oregon’s Skookum National Forest. She would be eight-years-old now—if she has survived. Desperate to find their beloved daughter, certain someone took her, the Culvers turn to Naomi, a private investigator with an uncanny talent for locating the lost and missing. Known to the police and a select group of parents as “the Child Finder,” Naomi is their last hope.
Naomi’s methodical search takes her deep into the icy, mysterious forest in the Pacific Northwest, and into her own fragmented past. She understands children like Madison because once upon a time, she was a lost girl, too.
As Naomi relentlessly pursues and slowly uncovers the truth behind Madison’s disappearance, shards of a dark dream pierce the defenses that have protected her, reminding her of a terrible loss she feels but cannot remember. If she finds Madison, will Naomi ultimately unlock the secrets of her own life?
Told in the alternating voices of Naomi and a deeply imaginative child, The Child Finder is a breathtaking, exquisitely rendered literary page-turner about redemption, the line between reality and memories and dreams, and the human capacity to survive.
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A beautifully written, gut-wrenching story of a missing young girl, told in dual perspective through the eyes of the child and her coping, AND the “child finder” a young woman who, herself, escaped a horrible something she can’t even remember. Unlike many books in this genre, The Child Finder is so lyrical and well done that I could read the subject matter–which I usually cannot. As a “retired” child therapist, I’m overly aware of their suffering and the damage done by predators, but Rene Denfeld has done a masterful job of weaving rays of light into her story and even, making the perpetrator a sad and complicated man. Highly recommended.
A beautifully written novel. Heartbreaking, tense, terrifying, hopeful, emotionally complex and enchanting. If you haven’t read Rene Denfeld’s work before, I highly recommend The Child Finder and her first novel, The Enchanting. Rene’s language is lyrical and beautiful yet her books have the pulsing pace of thrillers. She has a very rare talent.
I actually read these books out of order, Butterfly Girl first, and Child finder next. If you are reading the the right direction you’ll do yourself a favor, getting to know the character well prior to book 2. This was a beautifully written story. Naomi, a woman with her own past of being a “found” child makes it her life mission to find missing children, like Madison. Madison has gone missing when he family is searching for a live Christmas tree. The parents enlist Naomi to help, although significant time has elapsed. Madison’s continued life is not a mystery, the author shares her perspective as “snow girl,” a fairy tale Madison makes up in order to survive her ordeal. The story comes together, and we learn more about Naomi, her foster brother Jerome, Madison and her captor. Great read, very well written.
This book took me by surprise. I had not heard of the buzz around Denfeld before I picked it up and had no preconceived ideas other than that it took place in the wilderness, so it intrigued me, and I loved the cover. But I was kind of shocked to find beautifully constructed prose and a deep knowledge of human psychology, with a huge underlying substructure of empathy toward victims of all kinds. No easy answers here, Denfeld explores the truth of child abuse, that it is often the result of an unbroken chain of abuse, and allows even the abuser to feel her empathy for the past he had no control over.
I loved Denfeld’s use of the wild and fairy tales to provide foils to her characters, and nature serves as an objective, mighty, healing witness to the horrors being perpetrated within its woods. Crystal clear language verging on the poetic. This book reminded me of two favorites, Peter Rock’s My Abandonment and Diane Thomas’s In Wilderness.
Some of the scenes may be too intense for victims of sexual abuse, but Denfeld handles them cautiously and honestly, without being too graphic.
I loved the characters, the deft plot, and the preparation for #2 in the series. Generally series volumes don’t live up to the first one, but the author smartly left her most intriguing plot for #2, so I’m all in! And will move on to The Enchanted when I get a chance. I’m glad books this well written (you can ignore a couple of overdone sentences when she dips into the subject of love) are finding a large audience. (less)
I really liked this book. It was suspenseful, yet poinient. We
Rene Denfeld has a gift for shining bright light in dark places. The Child Finder is a gorgeous, haunting gem of a novel. Raw and real yet wrapped in a fairy tale, as lovely and as chilling as the snow.
This gripping tale is a perfect blend of literary fiction and thriller . . . with a whole lot of powerful but not pedantic psychological insight as well. Beautifully written and skillfully told.
Outstanding!
A story about a private investigator trying to find a missing child. Eloquent and haunting, with a bit of magical realism thrown in. While heavy and disturbing in many ways, the characters are so well defined, the writing alive and crisp, I can whole-heartedly recommend.
Rather than go for sensation, Rene Denfeld writes a deeply moving, lyrical novel that I found haunting, heartbreaking, and uplifting. The fairy tale element is the perfect touch, the key to how a child survives such a horrific experience.
Not a very plausible ending
This was a difficult read (I have a hard time with books where children are harmed, deliberately, by adults) but an excellent one. The ability of the human brain to create its own reality in order to survive has always amazed me, and to see that ability exercised so capably and imaginatively by a child amazed me even more than usual… The characterization here is stunning, as is the drama. I was frantically turning pages, alternating between agonizing with Madison’s family, praying for her safety (physical AND mental/emotional), and painfully hunting with Naomi (both for the children she attempts to save AND for the secrets locked within her own past). This is a tough read at times, but so beautifully written with emotions at a constant boil right up to the surface, that you can’t help but fall into the story (even when you, like Madison, would rather be anywhere else)…
I am a guy-guy. As a rule, I do not even read books of female authors. However, I liked the premise of this plot, so I started to read this book. I Loved It! Good plot, good characters, plus multiple layers of life lessons/meaning. I read at least a book a week, and this is one of the best books I have read in the last several years.
Beginning was hard to follow but then you get engrossed awesome ending sad but good
A darkly luminous story of resilience and the deeply human instinct for survival, for love. Blending the magical thinking of childhood, of fairy tales, dreams, memories and nightmares, The Child Finder is a terrifying and ultimately uplifting novel that demands to be consumed and then once inside you–lingers.
This book was really well written and quite original in style. I really enjoyed it.
The descriptions of the forest and the plot is a bit spooky but very engrossing. Worth reading
Rene Denfeld’s The Child Finder is a fascinating story. I read it in one sitting. Absorbing, difficult subject matter but well worth it. Denfeld is acutely aware of what it takes to hold onto one’s spirit despite heartbreaking abuse.
Tackles the tough theme of child abuse, and how to overcome it
A well-written novel about a chilling, difficult topic: child abduction and sexual abuse. The book would definitely be triggering for some people. But Denfeld handles this in an unusual way, with complex characters and beautiful prose describing the setting in the snowy mountains of Oregon. The protagonist, Naomi, who is the professional “child finder” of the title, has a mysterious history of having been abducted as a child herself, with years of her childhood a forgotten memory. This adds an interesting dimension to the plot. Some readers will find the depiction of the pedophile “villain” disturbingly sympathetic, but I felt it added another layer of complexity which I appreciated. The last few chapters are full of tension, creating a real page-turner which kept me up way past my usual bedtime! And it does end well.