Life has never been easy for the three Campbell sisters. Jess, Courtney, and Dani live on a remote ranch in Western Canada where they work hard and try to stay out of the way of their father’s fists. One night, a fight gets out of hand and the sisters are forced to go on the run, only to get caught in an even worse nightmare when their truck breaks down in a small town. Events spiral out of control and a chance encounter with the wrong people leaves them in a horrific and desperate situation. They are left with no choice but to change their names and create new lives.
Eighteen years later, they are still trying to forget what happened that summer when one of the sisters goes missing and they are pulled back into their past.
This time there’s nowhere left to run.
As much of a thriller as it is a deep exploration of the bonds among sisters, THOSE GIRLS is an unforgettable portrait of desperation, loyalty, and evil.
As much of a thriller as it is a deep exploration of the
bonds among sisters, THOSE GIRLS is an unforgettable portrait of desperation,
loyalty, and evil.
Wow. My initial reaction to Those Girls is ‘Wow’. I feel
like that is really all that you can say after reading a book that packs that
many emotions into less than 500 pages.
Those Girls deals with a lot of heavy topics. It is hard to
take a lot of it in at once because sometimes you just need a break to unpack
your brain. We are talking about child abuse, alcoholism, drug use, rape,
abduction . . . this book does not take you on a light ride as you travel
through its pages. If you are able to handle reading about these topics, it is
definitely worth it. If it is hard for you to deal with any or all of them, I
would say it is best to skip this one. It is pretty graphic.
The writing is very gripping and really allows you to get
sucked in. The book never runs flat, and it moves along at a pretty quick pace.
That said, attention to detail is not sacrificed for the pace.
Jessica/Jamie – To me, she was the main character. You could
argue that all three sisters together were the main characters, but moreso
Jamie. Therefore, she was the deepest of the characters.
Courtney/Crystal – Man, she was frustrating at times, but
she was also the most damaged. Sometimes the most frustrating characters are
also the ones that you feel the worst for. You root for her until the end, but
sometimes that isn’t enough.
Dani/Dallas – She played a good middle ground between the
three sisters. It seemed fitting that the epilogue was written from her POV.
The sisters were always looking to her for guidance, but we never really got to
hear how she felt about anything until then.
Skylar – I was kind of surprised with her half of the novel.
I didn’t think that it would jump ahead in time and examine what happened to
them down the road and how the story played out. It was a pleasant surprise and
definitely added a lot more to the story. She was a good character to get to
know. I wasn’t sure how Jamie having a daughter would play out, but I am glad
that it worked out okay.
Karen & Patrick – They were just angels. The girls met
them once they got to Vancouver, and they changed their lives for the better.
Gavin & Brian – Scum of the Earth. The fact that there
are people out there like them is truly terrifying.
Owen & Allen – Angels on the level of Karen and Patrick.
I was glad to see Owen later in the novel too.
The investigation – Luckily, I have never been involved in a
missing persons investigation. But, my goodness, could these cops have sat on
their hands any more than they were? I understand that they need to follow
their protocols, but they are a major reason that the ending of this book
turned out the way that it did. I was so frustrating every time Jamie and
Dallas talked to the cops, I just wanted to throw the book across the room.
The ending of this book is pretty tragic. It could have
ended a lot worse, but that almost doesn’t bring any comfort. It was a good
ending, just very tragic.
5/5 Stars
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