Publisher: Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine, Bantam
Date of publication: March 5th, 2024
Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Fiction, Mystery Thriller, Suspense, Crime, Legal Thriller, Adult Fiction, Drama
Purchase Links: Kindle | Audible | B&N | AbeBooks | WorldCat
Goodreads Synopsis:
Two parents, desperate to find their missing daughter, stand accused of murder. How far will they go to find the truth?
Someone is guilty.
For the last seventeen years, Harry and Zara King’s lives have revolved around their only daughter, Sophie. One day, Sophie leaves the house and doesn’t come home. Six weeks later, the police are no closer to finding her than when they started. Harry and Zara have questioned everyone who has ever had any connection to Sophie, to no avail. Except there’s one house on their block—number 210, across the street—whose occupant refuses to break his silence.
Someone knows what happened.
As the question mark over number 210 devolves into obsession, Harry and Zara are forced to examine their own lives. They realize they have grown apart, suffering in separate spheres of grief. And as they try to find their way back to each other, they must face the truth about their daughter: who she was, how she changed, and why she disappeared.
Someone will pay.
Told in the alternating perspectives of Harry and Zara, and in a dual timeline between the weeks after Sophie’s disappearance and a year later in the middle of a murder trial, Imran Mahmood’s taut yet profoundly moving novel explores how differently grief can be experienced even when shared by parents—and how hope triumphs when it springs from the kind of love that knows no bounds.
First Line:
I’ve been waiting six months for my trial but now that I’m here I can’t contain the panic blooming in my gut.
Finding Sophie by Imran Mahmood
Important details about Finding Sophie
Pace: Medium
POV: 1st person (Harry and Zara)
Trigger Warnings: Finding Sophie contains themes that include kidnapping, grief, murder, adult/minor relationship, bullying, child abuse, confinement, death, drug abuse, emotional abuse, rape, suicidal thoughts, blood, trafficking, gaslighting, injury/injury detail, stalking, grooming, and sexual harassment.
Language: Finding Sophie contains moderate swearing and language that might offend some people.
Sexual Content: There is no sexual content in Finding Sophie.
Setting: Finding Sophie is set around an unnamed village in England.
My Review
Finding Sophie’s storyline focuses on Harry and Zara, their desperation to find Sophie, and their murder trial. I am not fond of alternating storylines that go from past to present and back. But, in this case, it worked. The storylines complemented each other. There was no lag when the author switched characters or storylines. Instead, he took what the previous chapter talked about and used it in the present day or in the past to explain how Harry and Zara got to the point they were at. Overall, it was a compelling, well-written story that I was engaged with. My only complaint would be the ending (and I will explain why I wasn’t a fan of it).
I liked that the author portrayed Zara and Harry as parents at the end of their rope with a rebellious child. As a mother of two teenagers, I could sympathize with the talking back, the silence, the moodiness, and even being secretive. But, I did draw the line at what they did in desperation to Sophie. When Sophie went missing, the anguish, the rage, and the self-doubt came crashing back. They weren’t likable characters, but they were sympathetic.
I was surprised at how little Zara and Harry knew about their daughter. Maybe I don’t have typical teenagers, but my kids share (and sometimes overshare) everything with my husband and me. So, when Harry and Zara found out all of this information about Sophie weeks after she went missing, it was surprising.
I initially thought Sophie’s disappearance was due to her being a rebellious teenager and to certain events that happened in the prior weeks. I was NOT expecting the twist her storyline took. I was completely surprised and shocked because it wasn’t what I thought. Of course, I did think Harry was right in doing what he did (after the murder trial).
The events leading up to the murder were disturbing. I did have sympathy for 210 in the beginning, but that sympathy waned as the book went on. Harry may have gone slightly over the top in his actions. However, Harry’s actions became borderline obsessive, and Zara started to do the same thing. So, it wasn’t a surprise when the murder happened.
The trial angle of the book was interesting to read. I can’t remember a book where the author explained how British law works. It fascinated me because while it was similar to American law, it was also so different. There were two major twists in that plotline. One I didn’t see coming and was very surprised by the reveal. I was also astonished that the confession was caught on tape, and that confession almost made me get bookish whiplash. The other twist was who the murderer was. I will say that there were only two people, so I had a 50/50 chance of getting it right. I did somewhat see it coming, but I was shocked.
Now, the end of the book was different from what I thought it would be. I did like that the author wrapped up everything with a neat little bow. But he did something that I didn’t expect. He showed the aftermath of everything. I was with him until the very last chapter. It ended on a very creepy note, and I am still trying to figure out exactly what happened and what he meant in that last paragraph.
Many thanks to Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine, Bantam, NetGalley, and Imran Mahmood for allowing me to read and review an ARC of Finding Sophie. All opinions stated in this review are mine.
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Nice review, Jolie.
Thank you Carla!!