Sarah Ellsworth is a mother of two teenage sons, one away at college and the other, Finn, still in high school. One night she and her husband Martin receive a frantic, disjointed call from Finn. They aren't sure what is wrong, but they know their son needs help. When they find him sick and disoriented in the woods, they also find the body of his girlfriend, who has injuries that make it look like she has been attacked. Sarah wants to do the right thing and call the police, but her husband, a member of one of the most prominent families in tow, has other ideas. He convinces Sarah to leave the body where it is and get their son home. He and his high-powered family have experience covering up incidents that might put them in a bad light, and the death of a teenage girl, perhaps at the hands of their son and grandson, is no different.
Sarah goes along with the ruse, but is unhappy about it and becomes increasingly concerned about what exactly the Ellsworth's are covering up this time around. Is her younger son actually capable of murder?
The story bounces between the present and past periods of Sarah's life, like meeting her first love in high school, and then meeting Martin at college. Being part of the Ellsworth family has given Sarah a very privileged life, but at what cost to herself and her sons?
I did like the story, but I wasn't riveted by it, and found it hard throughout most of the book to have sympathy for what Sarah was going through. Her ties to her in-laws might have been strong, but it was still very hard to believe there was any justification for the choices she was making as the story played out.
Final rating: ★★★☆☆
ATY prompt 40: A book with flowers or greenery on the cover
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