"Knife River" is a brilliant debut from Justine Champine. It is very character driven with an interesting twist. I also felt that this novel was about more than solving the mother's case, its also a story about sisterhood and forgiveness despite trauma.

- KNIFE RIVER is a murder mystery that’s mainly a character study of two sisters forced into a life they never wanted.
- I loved the dynamics in this book, with both sisters being prickly and loving in their own ways.
- There’s honestly so much at play in this book. Small towns, queerness, familial relations, leaving vs staying, being forced to grow up too soon. And all of this as the women begin to uncover what might have really happened to their mom all those years ago.
- Also, it isn’t named in the book, but Liz reads as autistic to me. I loved that Jess simply knew this was the way her sister was and met her there.
- I did figure out whodunnit before the end but not the how, and the how was so devastating I lost my breath for a moment.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - The Dial Press for a free digital copy of Knife River by Justine Champine in exchange for an honest review. First, I thought the writing was completely beautiful. Second, I really liked the sister's relationship. The problem for me, was I felt like the story really dragged. I would read a chapter thinking it's going to pick up now and it never really did. It's really hard to rate such a beautifully written book that dragged. I would love to read something else by this author in the future.

Knife River was a thrilling and interesting read. I appreciated the exploration of the sisters' relationship. The writing was propulsive.

Knife River is a book of renewal of family, growth to understanding, and the acceptance of loss.
Full review on Murder in Common: https://murderincommon.com/2024/07/21/two-summer-reads-knife-river-lucky/

Liz and her mom have an argument over her going to colleague away instead of near by and their mom leaves to go for a walk. Unfortunately, that is the last time Liz and Jess see their mom.
Liz is left to take care of Jess until she’s able to move away. Jess just ends up coasting through life jumping from girlfriend to girlfriend - never really finding a purpose or home in life. After 15 years their mom’s remains are found and Jess runs home to find her sister still stuck in the past. The house and everything inside is still the same as when their mother went missing. Throughout the investigation Liz is stuck on one theory that a certain man in town did it but the small town cops keep telling her they don’t have the evidence to arrest him. Liz and Jess are frustrated at every turn for many different reasons. Liz makes Jess realize what really happened when they were growing up and not just the shiny image of the mom she remembers and Jess rekindles a relationship from high school in secret.
The mind-blowing ending takes the cake and just makes your jaw drop… it’s never who you think, is it…

Cold Case - Small Town - Thrilling - Psychological Twist - keeps you engaged and reading / I didn’t want to put it down

This novel follows Jess's journey which begins with her mother’s mysterious disappearance, leaving her and her sister Liz to navigate the uncertainties of life alone. As Jess grows older, her attempts to escape the grief by drifting through relationships only highlight her deep-seated pain and confusion. It is a book about the bond of family and sisters and a bit of mystery intertwined.

Thank you, NetGalley, for an advanced copy of this book.

I loved how the small town setting was captured and the way the sisters Jess and Liz and their very different lives were used to portray different reactions to incredible trauma.
One day when Liz was still in high school with Jessica a couple of years behind their mother simply disappeared. Since no indication of a crime was found she was assumed to have left them behind and Liz has been “stuck“ waiting for her return while Jess herself has been flitting from place to place - relationship to relationship.
Now, 15 years later, they need to come together and stay together in their house once more - their mother‘s remains have been found nearby.
This story was definitely slow burn as far as the mystery goes and more of an exploration of the ripple effect of this kind of trauma on a small population - Liz was always convinced one man was responsible for her mother’s disappearance, can she even move from that suspicion and open her mind to other possibilities? What about the others who clearly stopped investigating way too early years ago? And Jess who doesn’t even want to be in this sad and desolate small town where lost jobs and bad weather seem permanent fixtures? Can you trust your neighbors or are small towns oppressive when everyone knows everyone‘s business ?
I liked the final twist but even more I loved to see the character exploration of both sisters and the way their different recollections of the past shaped their relationship. It is so hard to see that your „truth“ may not be the only „truth“ out there…

DNF - The book is so slow moving with no clear focus, and after the initial introduction of the bones the story just meandered and never became the real mystery the set-up provided. I did not feel a real connection to any of the characters and lost interest in the story.

Thank you The Dial Press #partner, for the advanced copy of Knife River in exchange for my honest review.

This is the type of book I absolutely love to read and I’m so glad I not only had the chance to read it, but also participate in an online book discussion for it. It’s one of those books that stays with you long after you finish reading…it’s haunting and heart-wrenching all at once and for a debut novel, that’s pretty impressive.

This is an atmospheric slow-burn mystery that is also a complex family saga of sorts. I love stories about sisters and we see how these two sisters, Jess and Liz, have grown since the disappearance of their mother fifteen years ago. The strength in this story lies in just how well these characters are developed. We not only see the sisters as they are now, but get glimpses of them from the past, including the day of their mom’s disappearance.

While there is a mystery with the bones of the mother finally being found, at the heart of the book this really is a character study and it is so beautifully done.

I cannot recommend this one enough. I haven’t stopped thinking about it and will be quite eager to see what this talented author writes next!

This book is slow paced. I kind of felt like it was going to take me forever to read. That being said, it was a good story. Slow burn for sure.
Jess and Liz’s mother disappeared when they were young girls. Never having closure Liz never leaves Knife River, while Jess couldn’t leave fast enough. When remains are found 15 years later, that are suspected to be their mother, Jess returns hopeful to find out the mystery of her missing mom.
I did figure it out. But I still enjoyed the story. This book felt long winded and sometimes seemed the have unnecessary plot points. Solid 3 ⭐️
Thank you netgalley for the ARC!

3.5. Enjoyed the read. Although this book featured the unsolved 15year old murder of two teenagers' mother, it was really an insightful character exploration of the impact of this event on the two young daughters. Both girls handled the tragedy differently - one leaving town as soon as she could, and the other staying in the family home, waiting and hoping for the mother's return. Story explored themes of life in a small town, homophobia, family loyalty, and murder investigation. Enjoyed the read, and the unexpected twist at the end. Recommend the book, although it could have benefited from better editing of some of the introspection of the main character.

I enjoyed this book. Kept me interested and I thought the characters were well drawn and dynamic. I would recommend!

As I started to write this review, I took a quick look at what others were saying to be sure I wasn't just losing my focus each night I was reading it (my only time to read is before bed and I admit I can often be too sleepy to absorb what I am reading) but many readers agreed: slow burn. VERY slow burn. Well-written and insightful but for sure not a snappy thriller if that is what you're looking for. Give it some time going into it.

Thanks to Netgalley for the arc to review.

Knife River follows the story of sisters Jess and Liz as they live in a small town trying to figure out what happened to their mother years ago. She went out for a walk one night and never came home. This is a very slow burn. Very. You are reading more about the aftermath of how a family is torn apart after a family member goes missing, than the actual crime itself. Jess and Liz have a complicated relationship at times, but their end goal is to have some closure regarding their mother. This is not a thriller, more of a character driven novel.
This is Justine Champine’s debut novel, and she can write. I felt for these characters, and their turmoil. I just wish I didn’t have to wait so long to get to the main point of the story. It all ties up very fast, maybe too fast.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read.

Decent with an interesting twist at the end. I did enjoy the characters and the fact that Jess' sexual orientation wasn't a main focus of the story. Rather than this being a "coming out" story, it revolved around her relationship with her sister and their very different memories of their mother. I found it refreshing to see her challenges shown just like everyone else... No better, no worse. Maybe normalized is the right word?

Overall this story was a bit long winded for me. Thanks to NetGalley and publishers for the advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review.

This is a small town thriller where a single mother leaves her two children to go for a walk only to never return. The girls struggle with abandonment issues as decades pass with no word. The town believes that one man is responsible but there is no evidence to convict him of a crime. Then, her body is found decades later buried in a nearby woods.

This one had lots of potential but it just wasn’t very likeable. I really struggled to like any of the characters and the lesbian relationship that became a large focus seemed gratuitous and included more to be inclusive rather than to enhance the storyline. Thanks to NetGalley for this read.

I tried with this book. I just couldn't get into it it was a very slow paced read. I think that was my problem with it. I have to have something to grab onto and pull me into the story with this one unfortunately I never got that. I would still recommend this one because not every book is for every reader- it's readers are out there. I still gave it a 2 star because it did make me want to at least try a second time.

An engrossing, evocative, suspenseful read that was written with beautiful prose and deeply nuanced characters. I loved the portrait of this small town as well, as well as the broader systemic issues of violence and class that are explored.

I’m still amazed that Knife River is Justine Champine’s debut novel - that’s how good it is. It’s the story of two sisters who’s lives were turned upside down 15 years ago when their mother, Natalie, went for a walk and never came back, leaving 19 year old Liz to take care of 13 year old Jess. Liz gave up her dream of going to college and Jess got away from their small town as soon as she could, following each new girlfriend from place to place and never settling down. When Liz calls Jess one day telling her that she needs to come home because their mother’s remains have been found, the sisters are forced to face each other and try to come to terms with their grief and anger.

This isn’t a typical mystery/thriller at all. There is the mystery of what happened to the girls’ mom, but the heart of the story is the relationship between Liz and Jess and how they were both affected by everything in different ways. Liz has basically never moved on from the day Natalie went missing. The house is untouched, exactly the way it was 15 years ago. Liz is filled with anger that the only suspect ever questioned was let go and keeps going about his life. Jess is unmoored; unable to form lasting connections despite having a revolving door of girlfriends. They both need to know what happened to Natalie so they can move on, but that’s not easy in a small town where the police don’t seem interested in solving the cold case.

We do eventually find out what happened to Natalie 15 years ago. I had suspicions and was right about what happened and it made me furious. But the real story is what happens to these the sisters and the work they must do to rebuild burnt bridges and make peace with what happened to their mother and how it impacted them. It’s about relationships and grief and forgiveness and I really like it.