When someone goes missing, people stop to wonder why. Meredith had no reason to run off, and she wouldn’t take her young daughter, leaving behind her husband Josh and son Leo. Some of those closest to her said that she didn’t seem to be herself recently, but that doesn’t explain why Delilah isn’t with her when she’s found. Did Meredith’s disappearance have anything to do with the woman who went missing a few weeks ago? In this small community, the likelihood is great that it does, setting the town on edge.

Investigators think they know what happened but can’t explain where Delilah is. No one forgets about the little girl, but the trail goes cold and stays that way for 11 years. Then miraculously, one day, Delilah shows up, dirty, disheveled and terrified, with a story of where she’s been all this time that makes her father and the police sick to their stomachs.

"Mary Kubica has devised some of the best twists I’ve seen in a thriller....The ending will sneak right up on you."

Eleven years of this child’s life have passed with her being held in dungeon-like conditions and treated like an animal by cruel people with evil motives. The fact that Delilah escaped at all shows how strong she is, but unfortunately she has trouble leading police to her captors. Found wandering out in the country, having fled during the night, she has no sense of direction or landmarks to guide her. Once back home, she’s terrified by almost everything.

Leo, now a young man, is her closest ally. Eleven years ago, he idolized her. Now, he sees a shell of the Delilah he knew. What happened to his sister? This person puzzles Leo. She holds the answers to so many questions. If only she can recall the night that their mother went missing, the mystery will be cleared up. But she stays mute.

Josh and his family live in a close-knit community. When Delilah first disappeared, they all shared Josh’s distress. Now she has come home, and cheers go up from everyone. Neighbors Bea and Kate are more thrilled about her return than most of them. In the early years, they babysat for Delilah and Leo. They also partied with Josh and Meredith. So now, as close friends, they especially want to be there for Josh. With Meredith gone and Delilah needing so much emotional support, Josh is truly grateful. Bea and Kate are godsends. They will aid in ways no one expected.

Naturally, the police reopen the case of Delilah’s abduction. She has given them the names of the two people who held her hostage. Somehow, as she leaks memories, she manages to lead them to the house she was kept in for over a decade. But as her story unfolds, some of it begins to fall apart. As old friends take a closer look at what supposedly went down that night, they notice something is wrong. Somehow the pieces don’t all fit. When they are finally put together, the picture will shock even the most savvy reader.

In LOCAL WOMAN MISSING, Mary Kubica has devised some of the best twists I’ve seen in a thriller. It is full of sympathetic characters --- and despicable ones --- and moves along with the pace of a rushing river in flood stage. Until it slams into a wall. The ending will sneak right up on you.