Sadie's gone.
Her rough childhood was defined by the love she had for her younger sister, Mattie. When Mattie is found dead in an orchard near their trailer park, it's as though everything Sadie was living for disappeared.
So she did too.
Where Sadie went and why is at the heart of this poignant and gritty novel. The narrative switches between Sadie's own experiences and a Serial-like podcast that delves into Sadie's mystery disappearance and tries to piece together what would've made her leave.
Where is Sadie??
It's compelling and urgent and gray with the hurt that Sadie can't escape from. She's a tricky character, a girl on the edge and while she's sometimes frightening, she's also so dang vulnerable. I really, really liked the format that switched between what we know happens with Sadie and what the author of the podcast is piecing together. It made it hard to put the book down. I won't give any spoilers about the ending but I didn't finish feeling left adrift, which I appreciated. Child abuse is a huge theme in this book, but it's clear that's what's happening without being graphic. Sometimes the geography of this story left me unmoored a tiny bit - a little more fleshing out of the setting would've grounded me more but that's really the only big complaint I can make. This is a powerful story about a girl who knows she's got power, she just needs to be brave enough to use it.
sensitivity warnings: hard language, child abuse, pedophilia, teenage drinking
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