Poor little RICH GIRLS
SINISTER SECRETS AND UNCONVENTIONAL ROMANCE MAKE THIS NOVEL AN ADDICTIVE READ
There is a dark secret at the heart of this novel and since I’m not one for spoilers, I won’t give it away. What I will say is that the book deals with one of society’s taboos in an original and arresting way. It is shocking but also very subtle.
The Roanoke girls are beautiful and privileged but they never last long in their hometown of Osage Flats, Kansas; they either die or they run away. Lane Roanoke’s mum was one of the runners. The summer Lane turns 16, her mother commits suicide and she is returned to what is left of the rest of her family who live in an eccentric, rambling old homestead.
Lane’s grandfather is very charismatic and handsome, her grandmother frosty, and her cousin Allegra bright, vivacious but brittle.
The story shifts between the events of that summer, as Lane comes of age, and the present day when she reluctantly returns to Osage Flats after Allegra’s mysterious disappearance.
The boys she knew at 16 are now men, and handsome Cooper Sullivan, with whom Lane had a passionate but destructive relationship, is as compelling as ever. Meanwhile, Allegra’s teen fling, Tommy Kenning, has changed. He is now the town cop, responsible for trying to trace the missing Roanoke girl, and he is hiding some secrets of his own.
This is a love story, but far from a conventional romance – there are different kinds of love after all. You will guess the secret that all the Roanoke girls share pretty early on in the piece – so it’s not exactly a suspenseful thriller – but watching it all play out is mesmerising and unexpected.
This book reminded me of one of the earlier novels by Gillian Flynn (author of GoneGirl). It is unsettling and addictive. I prefer unfussy, stylish writing rather than flowery prose (yuck), and author Amy Engel really delivers with this finely crafted story. The RoanokeGirls is haunting and atmospheric with characters that are complex and very, very flawed.