The End of Everything
A Novel
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
From the award-winning author of The Turnout and Dare Me: a "mesmerizing psychological thriller" about a teenage girl who disappears during a 1980s suburban summer (Los Angeles Times).
Thirteen-year old Lizzie Hood and her next door neighbor Evie Verver are inseparable. They are best friends who swap bathing suits and field-hockey sticks, and share everything that's happened to them. Together they live in the shadow of Evie's glamorous older sister Dusty, who provides a window on the exotic, intoxicating possibilities of their own teenage horizons. To Lizzie, the Verver household, presided over by Evie's big-hearted father, is the world's most perfect place.
And then, one afternoon, Evie disappears. The only clue: a maroon sedan Lizzie spotted driving past the two girls earlier in the day. As a rabid, giddy panic spreads through the Midwestern suburban community, everyone looks to Lizzie for answers. Was Evie unhappy, troubled, upset? Had she mentioned being followed? Would she have gotten into the car of a stranger?
Lizzie takes up her own furtive pursuit of the truth, prowling nights through backyards, peering through windows, pushing herself to the dark center of Evie's world. Haunted by dreams of her lost friend and titillated by her own new power at the center of the disappearance, Lizzie uncovers secrets and lies that make her wonder if she knew her best friend at all.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Fans of Tana French and Kate Atkinson will welcome Abbott's haunting psychological thriller set in what appears to be pre-cellphone suburban America. Lizzie Hood and Evie Verver are two 13-year-old girls who have been best friends for years. A few weeks before their eighth-grade graduation, Evie disappears after school. As the last person to see Evie, Lizzie suddenly becomes the star witness, attention she both covets and dreads. When Lizzie remembers seeing a maroon car cruising in front of their school, the police focus on Harold Shaw, an insurance agent whose car matches her description. Yet Shaw is nowhere to be found, and neither is Evie. As the investigation reaches a fever pitch and Lizzie pursues her own leads, she wonders how well she really knew her friend. Evie's boisterous, joke-cracking father lends emotional support. Abbott (Bury Me Deep) expertly captures the nuances of lost innocence and childhood friendships, without ever losing an undercurrent of menace.
Customer Reviews
Haunting...
I couldn't put this book down! Finished it in 2 days. The subject matter was a little hard to handle at times, but worth the read.
Wow!
Love the authors style. I could not put this book down. One of those stories that you HAVE to find out what happens but you don’t want the book to end. The author really does an excellent job of reminding you what it felt like to be 13 years old. Well done!
Sad story
Well written, fast read. Touching story about lost, hope and wanting