We Are All the Same in the Dark - Julia Heaberlin

We Are all the Same in the Dark – Julia Heaberlin

The discovery of a girl abandoned by the side of the road threatens to unearth the long-buried secrets of a Texas town’s legendary cold case in this superb, atmospheric novel from the internationally bestselling author of Black-Eyed Susans.

“If you only read one thriller this year, let it be this one. Psychologically absorbing, original and atmospheric. I could not turn the pages fast enough.”–Elin Hilderbrand, #1 New York Times bestselling author of 28 Summers

It’s been a decade since Trumanell Branson disappeared, leaving only a bloody handprint behind. Her pretty face still hangs like a watchful queen on the posters on the walls of the town’s Baptist church, the police station, and in the high school. They all promise the same thing: We will find you. Meanwhile, her brother, Wyatt, lives as a pariah in the desolation of the old family house, cleared of wrongdoing by the police but tried and sentenced in the court of public opinion and in a new documentary about the crime.

When Wyatt finds a lost girl dumped in a field of dandelions, making silent wishes, he believes she is a sign. The town’s youngest cop, Odette Tucker, believes she is a catalyst that will ignite a seething town still waiting for its own missing girl to come home. But Odette can’t look away. She shares a wound that won’t close with the mute, one-eyed mystery girl. And she is haunted by her own history with the missing Tru.

Desperate to solve both cases, Odette fights to save the lost girl in the present and to dig up the shocking truth about a fateful night in the past–the night her friend disappeared, the night that inspired her to become a cop, the night that wrote them all a role in the town’s dark, violent mythology.

In this twisty psychological thriller, Julia Heaberlin paints unforgettable portraits of a woman and a girl who redefine perceptions of physical beauty and strength.

My Review of We are All the Same in the Dark

I really enjoyed Black Eyed Susans. It was one of the first books I reviewed for this blog. So I was excited to read this one.

Set from three viewpoints, the book explores the disappearance of two women in a town in Texas.

Unfortunately, this one didn’t quite do it for me like Black Eyed Susans did. I found it really hard to get into. It was confusing at times and it dragged on a bit. Although I have read praise of how atmospheric it was, which it was.. But I couldn’t move past the disjointedness of it. I had to read a couple of chapters twice just to figure out what was going on and I was still confused.

Gradually it weaved together a bit more and led to an ultimately good conclusion – however, it took me a long time to read for such a short book and I was slightly underwhelmed.

I didn’t guess the killer! Excellent! Super happy about that! I love to be surprised!

I really liked the premise, I just wish it would have been a bit more engaging. They traveled around too much to different places where nothing happened. Still a solid 3.

(3 / 5)