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 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.
It's the moment Harper Broussard always dreamed of. Her daughter Georgina, snatched fourteen years ago during a 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.
Kindle Edition, 304 pages
Expected publication:
February 27th 2018
by Kensington
Terri's Thoughts
I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher Kensington via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!
I chose to read this story because of the topic, and I chose to love this story because of the topic. Think about it the scenario, there are so many emotional points of view to consider that it is almost as overwhelming as the topic.
Faulkner chooses three different points of view to tell the story. Georgina (Lilla) - the child who was abducted at the age of two and it now sixteen, Harper - The mother who had her child taken away from her, and JoJo - the fourteen year old sister who has been living with Georgina's ghost her entire life.
Starting with Georgina, I really felt for her struggle. In one swift moment her happy life that she had known for sixteen years, technically fourteen, was completely torn upside down. Her loving mother is suddenly in jail and she is swept off to live with a family she does not know or remember. Expectations are placed on her that she can't possibly meet as she struggle to come to terms with what happened and figure out how she fits in to her new reality. I felt her journey was honest and realistically portrayed.
I struggled a little more with Harper. Her expectations of her happy family reunion were so far from realistic it was rather sad. The fact that she insisted Georgina be called by her birth name even though that is not the name she was raised with, the fact that she insisted shew as catholic although raised Jewish, and the fact that she was controlling and over protective. I found myself judging her frequently until I stopped to think about it. Who am I to say how I would act in that situation. It does make sense that she was over protective of the daughter left behind and that she wanted her returned daughter to fit right in to her family life. As far as her anxiety and overthinking, wouldn't I do the same in her situation? Although I would like to think I would handle it better, I am pretty sure I would also be a train wreck.
I felt JoJo's journey to be the most identifiable. As the youngest she was the most immature however surprisingly offered the most insight to the situation. I completely understand how she struggled to live with the ghost of Georgina to suddenly have the ghost living under her roof. I understand her tentative steps to get to know her while at the same time trying to maintain the somewhat normalcy her life had before. As far as her understanding of her parents she was the only one who could see in to their relationship objectively.
The jury is out on Remy. While I found him the only voice of reason at first, I felt his action above everyone else's ended up being the most selfish and self serving.
This story made me think and I like that. An event like this impacts multiple people and the ripples just keep going. I really really enjoyed this read.
I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher Kensington via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!
I chose to read this story because of the topic, and I chose to love this story because of the topic. Think about it the scenario, there are so many emotional points of view to consider that it is almost as overwhelming as the topic.
Faulkner chooses three different points of view to tell the story. Georgina (Lilla) - the child who was abducted at the age of two and it now sixteen, Harper - The mother who had her child taken away from her, and JoJo - the fourteen year old sister who has been living with Georgina's ghost her entire life.
Starting with Georgina, I really felt for her struggle. In one swift moment her happy life that she had known for sixteen years, technically fourteen, was completely torn upside down. Her loving mother is suddenly in jail and she is swept off to live with a family she does not know or remember. Expectations are placed on her that she can't possibly meet as she struggle to come to terms with what happened and figure out how she fits in to her new reality. I felt her journey was honest and realistically portrayed.
I struggled a little more with Harper. Her expectations of her happy family reunion were so far from realistic it was rather sad. The fact that she insisted Georgina be called by her birth name even though that is not the name she was raised with, the fact that she insisted shew as catholic although raised Jewish, and the fact that she was controlling and over protective. I found myself judging her frequently until I stopped to think about it. Who am I to say how I would act in that situation. It does make sense that she was over protective of the daughter left behind and that she wanted her returned daughter to fit right in to her family life. As far as her anxiety and overthinking, wouldn't I do the same in her situation? Although I would like to think I would handle it better, I am pretty sure I would also be a train wreck.
I felt JoJo's journey to be the most identifiable. As the youngest she was the most immature however surprisingly offered the most insight to the situation. I completely understand how she struggled to live with the ghost of Georgina to suddenly have the ghost living under her roof. I understand her tentative steps to get to know her while at the same time trying to maintain the somewhat normalcy her life had before. As far as her understanding of her parents she was the only one who could see in to their relationship objectively.
The jury is out on Remy. While I found him the only voice of reason at first, I felt his action above everyone else's ended up being the most selfish and self serving.
This story made me think and I like that. An event like this impacts multiple people and the ripples just keep going. I really really enjoyed this read.
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