Arrowood by Laura McHugh

Arrowood by Laura McHugh
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Arden's twin sister disappeared when she was eight years old. The last memory she has is of a golden car driving away with sisters in it. Not long after that the family packed up their belongings and moved away from Keokuk. Now almost 20 years have passed and she is back home in. Her father is dead and she has inherited Arrowood, the old family house. For Arden is it strange to be back home, the town isn't as prosperous as it was before and her old home holds bittersweet memories. But, Ben and Lauren, old friends of her are still in town and perhaps she will finally find the answer to what happened to her sisters all those years ago.

This is a book that I hoped would like. I have a weakness for mystery books and two long-lost twin sisters pique my interest. I was pleasantly surprised with not only liking the book, but loving it. Laura McHugh has written an incredibly compelling book that was hard to put down. The one that "I will only read a chapter turns into one hour or twp of reading). I was actually quite sad when the book ended, even though it ended perfectly. It was more like I had come to like Arden, Lauren, Ben, and Josh so much that I wanted to spend some more time with them. 

The mystery is intriguing, are Arden's memories correct, she was only eight and she was a bit sick the day her sisters disappeared. Are the girls dead? Or did someone just take them? Could someone close by having taken them? Someone that are still living in the town? The questions are many and the book will, in the end, reveal the truth of what happened 20 years ago.

I like that Laura McHugh didn't add a love triangle into the story. I was a bit worried when Lauren met Ben and then Josh showed up that it would turn into a sappy love triangle. I hate it when that happens. Everything turned out just perfect, and I think one of the reasons I so enjoyed the book was the fact that the characters were so well-written. They felt normal with faults, even Courtney, the girl from Arden's childhood who could have been written as a jealous overbearing bitch that would do anything to hang on to Ben felt OK as a character. 

The book was intense, sad and thrilling to read. I loved every minute of it!

Thanks to Random House Publishing Group for providing me with a free copy for an honest review!