Not My Daughter by Suzy K Quinn (Review by Shelley Jomaa)

Rating: 4/5 Stars

Not My Daughter is a gripping psychological thriller telling the story of Lorna Miller and her teenage daughter, Liberty. This is not my typical go-to genre, so I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. It kept me guessing right up until the very end. I think fans of Ruth Ware or Lisa Jewell would enjoy this.

The story is told in alternating timelines from the points of view of Lorna and Liberty. In Lorna’s teenage years, she was diagnosed with cancer. She credits her survival of chemo and radiation treatment to the music of rock star legend Michael Reyji Ray. To celebrate six months cancer-free, Lorna and her older sister attend his concert. Lorna meets her hero backstage. Romance ensues, but quickly goes awry when Lorna realizes what a controlling monster her boyfriend truly is.

Liberty is frustrated with her mother’s secrecy regarding her father and her strict, overprotective parenting. Following yet another fight with her mother, Liberty runs away with the family dog to find freedom and her real father. When Lorna discovers her daughter is missing, she panics and begins the frantic search and rescue operation before Liberty falls into danger.

The alternating timelines worked brilliantly, filling in the backstory while also propelling the story forward in the present. The author combined this structure with an isolated setting to create a lot of tension that will keep you engaged and wondering what will happen next. I was constantly questioning which characters were reliable and trustworthy. The story had several twists and turns, most of which I did not see coming.

This book is easy to read and hard to put down. It is quick and compelling. I would definitely recommend, and I think it will be perfect beach reading material for the upcoming summer months.