This is an excellent book. It was very sad because Maria was so driven to be a good mother only to find that her beloved daughter was a dangerous psychopath.

I have a friend who went through the same situation with her two adopted children. In that case, her husband couldn't deal with the extremely bad behavior of the children and the marriage ended in divorce. By the time her children were teenagers, the daughter was living in a group home and the son had run away. Now that the children are in their 30's, they have a good, but long distance relationship with their mom The daughter seems to be in a happy marriage with a daughter of her own. The son doesn't appear to be very happy. He has several children, but none of the mothers will let him near the kids.

So, you can't blame the parents of psychopaths and murderers for the way their children behave. You can have compassion for their circumstance and hope they can live a happy life in spite of it.

I loved this book and felt so much for the author, what a courageous woman. Maria adopted Alba from Russia and the story describes what the reality of this adoption was. It is a short memoir but so powerful, I am sure Maria and her family will stay with me for a long time.

When I finished this book, I had to just sit and minute and ponder, and to reflect and imagine myself having been put in the same position as the author.
When people are thinking of adoption, many envision a perfect child; a cute little baby or toddler. Everyone hopes for the best and probably many are not prepared when the adoption of their new child isn’t the dream they hoped for and expected.
Maria is in her mid 30’s with no aspects of a husband in sight but she desperately wants a child and chooses to adopt. After the green light, she is connected with a little girl in Russia and soon brings her home and Maria thinks her life is complete. There are some rough spots; Alba is a wild and misbehaves a lot but Maria isn’t too concerned and thinks that Alba will soon adapt.
Not soon after, she meets Pablo who adores Alba, they marry and more children arrive. Alba’s behaviour was always a struggle but instead of getting better, it becomes a 24 hour a day battle. A battle that Maria isn’t winning. Alba is destructive, vicious, violent and manipulating, and has become a danger to everyone in the household. Every single day. While she keeps most of it inside and hidden from Pablo, who travels s lot for work, soon it becomes more than Maria can handle and affects everyone in the house negatively.
This story broke my heart. While I found the telling of the story a little clinical and detached, I imagine the author found writing it a bit therapeutic and maybe to bring a lot of emotion in the writing would crush her further.
I can’t imagine Maria’s anguish at coming to the decision she did and I feel sad that so many people judged her and separated themselves from her. I do believe that she was at first in denial that a child could be that evil and then hid it to avoid facing it and truly believing what Alba was capable of and knowing she’d have to make a very difficult decision about her.
It’s easy to sit back and think about she should have done; people are always really good at judging others without knowing all the facts. I had actually known someone who had done something similar many years ago and there were plenty of people that had plenty to say. No one really knows whether or not anything would be different if she had adopted Alba sooner or Maria hadn’t got married, or hadn’t had other children, or if Maria hadn’t done anything drastic sooner and I am sure she has second guessed herself many times. Facing a decision on whether or not to give up your child; and Maria never wavered from being Alba’s mother in every sense of the word, must be the most excruciating decision. No one wants to believe their child feels nothing for them and could be so evil. But what do you do when one person in the family affects the other five so negatively?
This is not a lengthy book but an extremely emotional ride. Often when I have finished a book, it’s set aside and before long I forget a lot of the details. This is an unforgettable book that will stay in your mind long after finishing those last words.
Thanks to net galley and the publisher by allowing me the privilege of reading this by sending a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Really enjoyed this short story and read it in one sitting. A truly remarkable true story and you can’t help but have a lot of sympathy for the author. Her experience with Alba was horrific and forces you to try and imagine what you would do in the same situation. She is an incredible woman and was so strong and brave. Can’t even imagine how difficult her life must have been. Great read

I love this book, characters were well developed. The plot had many twist and turns. Great read., cannot wait for the next book..