The Lost Girls

A Novel

By: Heather Young

Narrated by: Alice Rosengard, Laurel Schroeder

A stunning debut novel that examines the price of loyalty, the burden of regret, the meaning of salvation, and the sacrifices we make for those we love, told in the voices of two unforgettable women linked by a decades-old family mystery at a picturesque lake house.

In 1935, six-year-old Emily Evans vanishes from her family's vacation home on a remote Minnesota lake. Her disappearance destroys the family - her father commits suicide, and her mother and two older sisters spend the rest of their lives at the lake house, keeping a decades-long vigil for the lost child.

Sixty years later, Lucy, the quiet and watchful middle sister, lives in the lake house alone. Before her death she writes the story of that devastating summer in a notebook that she leaves, along with the house, to the only person who might care: her grandniece, Justine.

For Justine the lake house offers freedom and stability - a way to escape her manipulative boyfriend and give her daughters the home she never had. But the long Minnesota winter is just beginning. The house is cold and dilapidated. The dark, silent lake is isolated and eerie. Her only neighbor is a strange old man who seems to know more about the summer of 1935 than he's telling.

Soon Justine's troubled oldest daughter becomes obsessed with Emily's disappearance, her mother arrives to steal her inheritance, and the man she left launches a dangerous plan to get her back. In a house haunted by the sorrows of the women who came before her, Justine must overcome their tragic legacy if she hopes to save herself and her children.

©2016 Heather Young (P)2016 HarperCollins Publishers

Rare treasure of a story

Exquisite story. Full of the faults and pain of each person in it. So good that I will listen again.

To long!!!

too long - boring
I didn't mind the back and forth but it was toooooooo long and the end to short
Also you already know I didn't care for it
I bought it because the ratings ....not good

Tolerable.

It was slow to start. Dragged in the middle and did not care to much for the characters or ending.

Great story

Well written, well read. Interesting characters and a good arc. I hope this author writes more books.

Decent story, average characters

The characters felt like we only heard half of the depth of each of them. I always felt like there would be more but no.
The audible narration was awful.
Ok, but not strong.

Such cowardice, such insanity, such EVIL

This book angered me so I had to keep telling myself it is just a story!

I initially thought it was a ghost story but it's not really. And it is suspenseful but a slow burn. It makes you wonder how people can stoop to such depravity and how secrets fester like an infected wound.

The narrators did a good job. I enjoyed the book I guess you could say because it made me feel. But I'm still angry grrrr

held me captivated till the end!!!!!

very good book, sad, and heartbreaking too. Very Well-written and totally held my attention did not want to stop listening at any point

Could not stop listening.

We are reading this book for my book group this month. (I am the sole Audible person!) The narrators were great and very good about - doing the voices - which definitely helps.

The beginning was a little slow, but once I figured out the back and forth in time I was hooked. There were several times I was near the end of a chapter and just sat in the car listening until it finished. The end was a surprising twist which I never saw coming - I think I might have even let out a gasp!

I loved it!

Another tale of family dysfunction....

Very well written, with strong character development. I'm just a little tired of the dysfunctional family narrative, but to give credit to the author, the prose and discriptive setting add a lot to the story. I did find the final confrontation(s) to be a bit melodramatic, not quite in keeping with the understated tone of the rest of the book. ( it felt like the author was going for some big action sequences, unnessecary ). Both narrators were quite good.

excellent

The story was wonderful, the author did such a great job of making you feel like you were there. and used great adverbs and adjectives. The reader, can make or break a book, this reader really read it in a wonderful way. Can't say enough good things about this book