Publisher: Wild Rose Press Inc.

ISBN: 9781509241187

A single mother finds herself in the middle of every parent’s nightmare when her child disappears. As she works with local police to find her daughter, she discovers troubling truths about herself and tries to reconcile them with memory. Debut author Lis Angus offers readers a strong plot with only a few minor hitches in her first book Not Your Child.

Ottawa psychologist Susan Koss knows that the recent incidents of butting heads with her daughter, Maddy, are all part of growing up. Maddy is 12, and it’s normal for her to assert her independence. All of Susan’s training and her work in a mental health clinic for children point to this as a normal stage in Maddy’s development.

Dealing with the reality of it, though, is a different story. Even with her expertise, Susan finds herself at odds with her daughter almost every day and she’s not sure what to do anymore. Tearing her hair out isn’t a viable option, and trying to have a normal conversation with Maddy seems like reaching for the moon. When Susan finds out that a man followed Maddy and her best friend home from school, her protective instincts kick in. 

The man, Daniel Kazan, is convinced that Maddy is actually Hannah, his granddaughter. Years earlier, baby Hannah was in the car with her parents when they got into a terrible accident. Her parents died right away. When the police arrived on the scene, though, Hannah was missing. 

Daniel has been looking for her ever since, and now he’s sure he’s found her. How can anyone question whether this girl is actually Hannah? She looks exactly like Daniel’s daughter, Hannah’s mother. It doesn’t matter if Susan says she gave birth to the girl she calls Maddy. Daniel knows this is his granddaughter, and nothing will stop him from taking her home to the family farm.

The adults go head to head in their fight for Maddy, but Maddy doesn’t know what to think. Her mom is always on her case about something. When Daniel shows up, Maddy’s scared of him at first but then she talks to him and he doesn’t seem so bad. Definitely better than her boring old mom who might not even be her mom at all. 

Her mom says they have to get DNA tests done to prove Daniel’s not related to them, but then the test says she and her mom aren’t related. Even though her mom has pictures of her of when she was a baby, science can’t lie, can it? The whole thing makes Maddy feel weird and sad and even a little angry.

Susan is just as shocked by the DNA test as Maddy is. Then Maddy goes missing, and Susan knows Daniel had something to do with it. Never mind that he’s told the police he doesn’t know anything about Maddy being gone. Susan is convinced he does, and she won’t stop digging for answers until she can prove it.

Author Lis Angus draws in dramatic lines this triangle of emotion and intrigue between Susan, Daniel, and Maddy. By giving each character time on the page to share their point of view, Angus allows readers to see the problem from all three sides. This might make it tough for readers to figure out who they sympathize with, a win for Angus as she balances matters of family with matters of the law.

All three main characters are three-dimensional and relatable. Susan’s confusion and frustration with Maddy will ring true for parents of tweens and pre-teens. Daniel’s determination to right a wrong, even as he deals with the effects of aging, will gain sympathy for his intentions, even if his methods are questionable. Maddy’s friction with her mother, as she chafes under all the rules, offers reminders of the challenges for children on the cusp of young adulthood.

Angus also gives readers peek into life in one of Canada’s largest cities, making the setting feel lived-in and real. Her choice to place the story in a familiar location pays off in the ease with which she describes the places where Susan, Maddy, and Daniel face off with one another.

If the novel can be faulted anywhere, it’s in the closing pages that offer an explanation for one of the biggest mysteries of the book. Given the clues provided earlier, the resolution doesn’t quite fit with the storyline proposed. It does offer enough closure to answer all of the questions raised, however.

Those looking for a compelling thriller with a slightly literary feel will definitely enjoy this one. I recommend readers Bookmark Not Your Child.