When rebellious teenager Barbara Van Laar goes missing from summer camp, the panic that ensues is monumental. Louise, the camp counselor who discovers that Barbara is missing knows that this is a catastrophic development.

Not just because Barbara belongs to a wealthy family - who are, in fact, the owners of the camp - but also because she is the second child in her family to go missing.

Years ago, before she was born her eight-year-old brother Bear, also disappeared in the nearby woods. Despite an extensive search, he was never found.

As a local, Louise is well aware of the complexities of the relationship between the privileged Van Laars and the local community, many of whom are reliant on the Van Laar family as employers.

To lose one child in a family is a tragedy. To lose another child in the same manner, seems downright careless - not to mention suspicious...

This book provides an excellent snapshot of the 1970s in particular, in all its glorious misogyny and power differentials. Some of the themes covered in the book include the stereotypical roles allocated to married women, the challenges faced by working women, alcoholism, the durability of class barriers and the prevalence of domestic abuse.

This is a slow-paced, intense look at the interrelationships between various characters, and the author does a good job of writing believable, relatable female characters. Worth a read.