The Roanoke Girls
Jul. 15th, 2025 04:50 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
alobearThe Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel is about a young woman named Lane, who is called back to her family's home by her grandparents after her cousin disappears. But that's not what it's really about. Since the main 'secret' of the family is revealed very early on in the story, I don't feel any qualms about stating it here - this book is about incest - on a very grand, very dark, very messed-up scale. You have been warned.
But it's a very well-written tale, which kept me gripped throughout, despite the weirdness of the structure and the vagueness of the flashbacks making it feel as if the author forgot she revealed the secret early. There's a lot more to uncover, though, and none of it is good. I considered DNF-ing at one point, but I'm glad I didn't because it all comes together very successfully and the last few pages, in particular, are really excellent. There are no easy answers or quick fixes here, which is realistic, under the circumstances. But it's a satisfying conclusion and rounds of the story very well.
But it's a very well-written tale, which kept me gripped throughout, despite the weirdness of the structure and the vagueness of the flashbacks making it feel as if the author forgot she revealed the secret early. There's a lot more to uncover, though, and none of it is good. I considered DNF-ing at one point, but I'm glad I didn't because it all comes together very successfully and the last few pages, in particular, are really excellent. There are no easy answers or quick fixes here, which is realistic, under the circumstances. But it's a satisfying conclusion and rounds of the story very well.
