Missing Pieces by Heather Gudenkauf 5 Stars September 2024
This is the third book I’ve read by this author. Gudenkauf is originally from Wagner SD but moved to Iowa as a small child with her family. The majority of her fiction novels have settings in Iowa. I graduated from high school from Wagner SD and write stories with settings in the Kansas City area, so naturally I was drawn to this author. I have not been disappointed by her first two novels I’ve read, with this one my most enjoyable so far.
A happily married Montana couple, Sarah and Jack, board a plane headed to Penny Gate Iowa, the hometown of Jack. Jack’s uncle Hal had called him home, Aunt Julia is hospitalized after a devastating fall down the stairs. Despite being raised by his Uncle and Aunt, Jack has not been home in over twenty years. All Sarah really knows about Jack’s childhood is he and sister Amy lost their parents in a car accident.
Jack’s demeanor changes before Sarah’s eyes the longer they are in town. Soon Sarah discovers how much Jack has never told her. Each chapter reveals a deeper level of discovery and small trickles of doubt about who her husband is, grow into a raving river as Gudenkauf orchestrates a believable and heart pounding crescendo.
When I wasn’t reading, I was constantly thinking about getting back to the book. This always makes reading such a delight. I like Heather Gudenkauf’s style, and the masterful way she tells her stories. ~Kim Luke
Book blurb~ A woman uncovers earth-shattering secrets about her husband's family in this chilling page-turner from New York Times bestselling author Heather Gudenkauf
Sarah Quinlan's husband, Jack, has been haunted for decades by the untimely death of his mother when he was just a teenager, her body found in the cellar of their family farm, the circumstances a mystery. The case rocked the small farm town of Penny Gate, Iowa, where Jack was raised, and for years Jack avoided returning home. But when his beloved aunt Julia is in an accident, hospitalized in a coma, Jack and Sarah are forced to confront the past that they have long evaded.
Upon arriving in Penny Gate, Sarah and Jack are welcomed by the family Jack left behind all those years ago—barely a trace of the wounds that had once devastated them all. But as facts about Julia's accident begin to surface, Sarah realizes that nothing about the Quinlans is what it seems. Caught in a flurry of unanswered questions, Sarah dives deep into the puzzling rabbit hole of Jack's past. But the farther in she climbs, the harder it is for her to get out. And soon she is faced with a deadly truth she may not be prepared for.
