Tall Bones by Anna Bailey

 

When Abi goes missing after a teenage party in the woods one night, the secrets of Whistling Ridge start to emerge.  Who was the boy Abi went into the woods with?  Why was the father of the local drug dealer wandering the woods that night?  Where is the gun from which a shell casing was found?

The police investigate but some believe Abi just ran away that night.  She lives with restrictive parents who believe in the local fire and brimstone preacher who thinks everything is a sin.  Her father is abusive both to his wife and the children, his days in Vietnam still present in his mind.  

Then there are Abi's brothers.  There's Noah, a bright man who should have been at college but who had to give up his dreams when his college fund was needed for a family emergency.  He's not sure about his sexuality but he knows his father will have something to say about it, probably with his fists.  There's her little brother Jude, who walks with a stick after the night he was thrown down the stairs.  They know what goes on in the house but are afraid to tell.

Emma was Abi's best friend or at least she always thought so.  But now she's finding that Abi had a whole secret life she never shared with Emma.  Emma starts drinking heavily and skipping school.  Then there is Rat.  He's the man who drifted into town a few months ago.  He parties with the high schoolers and always has alcohol and drugs to share.  His RV is where Emma goes to drink and where she realizes that he and Noah have a relationship.  The preacher decides to use Rat, or the gypsy as he calls him, as the town scapegoat, the one responsible for all the bad things happening.

Anna Bailey is an English author and this is her debut novel.  It was chosen as a Guardian Book of The Month and was nominated for the Theakston's Old Peculier Crime Of The Year award.  She spent time in Colorado which is where this book is based.  Bailey captures the frustrations of the late teen years and the fact that most have secrets they don't want exposed.  Some are willing to do anything to keep those secrets in the dark.  This book is recommended for mystery readers.