For the Ramirez family, their lives revolve around their missing middle daughter, Ruthy, who was thirteen years old, when she disappeared. Ruthy disappeared after track practice without leaving a trace. Twelve years later, Jessica, the eldest, spots a woman on TV that looks very familiar to their Ruthy. Jessica rushes to tell her youngest sister, Nina, about her findings. The woman on TV has dyed her hair red and calls herself Ruby. Ruby also has a very similar beauty mark under her left eye just like Ruthy.
Life hasn't been easy for the Ramirez family when Ruthy disappeared. Their mother, Dolores, still struggles with the loss and their father has passed which, they believe was due to the stress from Ruthy's disappearance. Jessica is struggling to juggle the demands of a newborn with her hospital job and Nina after just graduating from college is struggling to find meaningful employment.
I thought the book was an interesting read and it was fun reading about Staten Island. I connected with a few of their stories and landmarks since, I grew up in Staten Island. A few times though, I was wondering where this book was heading because I couldn't figure out if it was just about a family in grief over their missing sister or was there a thriller/mystery aspect to the book. The ending was a bit unexpected and it will have you wondering about the "what ifs" possibilities. Overall, I thought it was a good debut novel and I look forward to reading more books by the author.
