It starts with that call—the one every parent dreads. Melissa’s daughter, Casey, is in the hospital: injured, disoriented, and with no memory of what happened. Her son, Dan, was supposed to be watching her. Now a body has turned up in the woods nearby… and suddenly, the nightmare spirals even deeper.

S.E. Lynes has mastered the art of psychological suspense. Told through multiple POVs and a shifting timeline, this story slowly unravels the truth behind one tragic night—layer by layer. With emotional depth, complex family dynamics, and expertly timed twists, Lynes delivers a chilling portrait of maternal instinct and the desperate lengths we’ll go to protect the ones we love.

Melissa is a character you can’t help but connect with—raw, flawed, and fiercely protective. The sibling bond between Dan and Casey adds another layer of tension, especially as secrets begin to surface and loyalties are questioned. And just when you think you’ve got it figured out… bam, another twist knocks the wind out of you.

Yes, some parts move with a quieter intensity, but they build to a climax that is both satisfying and shocking. And that final twist? I didn’t see it coming at all.

This is a smart, emotionally-charged thriller that hits close to home and keeps you guessing until the final page.

⸻

Perfect for fans of:
👩‍👧 Maternal thrillers
🧠 Memory & trauma themes
🔁 Dual timelines
🔪 Shocking final twists
🫣 Complex family secrets

4.5 rounded up!

S.E. Lynes is a name I keep an eye out for, so when I saw this one on NetGalley and it was an instarequest for me!

Premise - Casey's summer job at a campsite ends in the titular "every mother's nightmare" when she's found, sans clothes, with no memory of what happened to her. She'd been talking to a red pill weirdo, Bern, much to her brother Dan's chagrin, so Dan is worried he thinks he might know what happened... and then Bern turns up dead.

What. A. Ride! Lynes knocked this one out of the park. I'm a mom (albeit to a much younger kid and just one of them), but I really felt for Dan and Casey's mom in this. I can only imagine how horrible it'd feel, how out of control, to get a call like she does at the beginning of the book. And that's without the added complications later on!

I won't say more, as I don't want to spoil any of the twists, but the pacing in this was top-tier, the characterizations complex and fascinating, and everyone not only felt like real people, but like really watchable (readable?) people. Compelling? Very!

I listened to the audiobook narrated by Tamsin Kennard. *Warning: incoming fan-girling.* Kennard is an absolute VoiceOver talent! She's brilliant at both the narration and the character acting, somehow managing to feel like a full cast read even though she's just one person (allegedly... maybe she's the new Shakespeare collective *the conspiracy theory started here*). Lynes & team could not have picked a better reader.

Thanks, NetGalley and Bookouture Audio, for the audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.