THE MARSH KING’S DAUGHTER Karen Dionne Loot.co.za (R342) G.P. Putnam’s Sons

KAREN Dionne takes a standard story involving the kidnapping of a woman and the life she experiences with her captor and elevates it to a new level in The Marsh King’s Daughter.

Jacob Holbrook found a 14-yearold girl and lured her away. He took her deep into the marshlands of upper Michigan where they lived in a remote cabin. She gave birth to a daughter, who grew up unaware of her mother’s background or why her father would do extremely cruel things. It wasn’t until Helena was a teen that the truth was revealed and she and her mother were able to escape. He was finally captured and sent to prison for his crimes.

Then her father escaped from prison. The way the story unfolds both captivates and disturbs. Dionne has written a book that invokes raw emotion mixed in with the turning of pages.