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Safe and Sound
Six years after their cousin vanished from their home while they were sleeping, two sisters set out to learn the truth behind what happened—even if it puts their own lives in danger—in this haunting thriller from the internationally bestselling author of What's Done in Darkness
In a town no one ever leaves, there are only so many places to hide.
As kids, Amelia and Kylee were found unharmed in their upstairs bedroom the night their teenage cousin Grace, who was babysitting them, vanished from the farmhouse in Beaumont, Missouri, leaving only a smear of blood on a door. Scrappy and driven, Grace had been on the verge of escaping their dead-end town, the first in their family to go to college instead of getting married and going to work at the meatpacking plant. Her disappearance is a warning to any local girl who dared hope for better.
Now, as their own high school graduation looms, Amelia and Kylee dream about getting out of Beaumont, but the likelihood of that happening seems as low as that of Grace being found. When human remains are discovered in town, the sisters think they finally know who took Grace—but as they dig deeper into her past, they unearth long-buried secrets and a growing list of suspects.
Amelia and Kylee vow to find Grace, dead or alive. But as they draw closer to the truth and slip deeper into danger, they question how far someone would go to put a woman in her place, or to cover up a crime. The answer is worse than they could have imagined, and in the end, it won’t just be Grace they’re trying to save—they’ll have to fight for their lives.
In a town no one ever leaves, there are only so many places to hide.
As kids, Amelia and Kylee were found unharmed in their upstairs bedroom the night their teenage cousin Grace, who was babysitting them, vanished from the farmhouse in Beaumont, Missouri, leaving only a smear of blood on a door. Scrappy and driven, Grace had been on the verge of escaping their dead-end town, the first in their family to go to college instead of getting married and going to work at the meatpacking plant. Her disappearance is a warning to any local girl who dared hope for better.
Now, as their own high school graduation looms, Amelia and Kylee dream about getting out of Beaumont, but the likelihood of that happening seems as low as that of Grace being found. When human remains are discovered in town, the sisters think they finally know who took Grace—but as they dig deeper into her past, they unearth long-buried secrets and a growing list of suspects.
Amelia and Kylee vow to find Grace, dead or alive. But as they draw closer to the truth and slip deeper into danger, they question how far someone would go to put a woman in her place, or to cover up a crime. The answer is worse than they could have imagined, and in the end, it won’t just be Grace they’re trying to save—they’ll have to fight for their lives.
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First published April 23, 2024
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About the author
Laura McHugh
8 books1,419 followersLaura McHugh's debut novel, The Weight of Blood, won an International Thriller Writers Award for Best First Novel, a Silver Falchion Award for Best First Novel: Literary Suspense, and the Missouri Author Award for Fiction. It was also nominated for an Alex Award, Barry Award, and GoodReads Choice Award (Best Mystery and Best Debut). Arrowood was an international bestseller and a finalist for the International Thriller Writers Award for Best Hardcover Novel, and The Wolf Wants In was one of Library Journal's Best Books of the Year. McHugh's latest novel, What's Done in Darkness, was one of Oprah Daily's Best Beach Reads of 2021, a Self Magazine Best Book of the Year, and Harlan Coben's pick for Best Summer Thriller on the Today Show.
Linktree: Laura McHugh
Linktree: Laura McHugh
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 487 reviews
May 7, 2024
I wasn't prepared for the profound impact this thrilling and emotionally charged story would have on me. It's a dark and haunting tale that resonated with every fiber of my being.
Imagine a town where everything decays, where all the escape routes seem blocked when you yearn to start fresh in a new place, to embrace freedom. But every step you take toward getting out feels like you're being dragged into a suffocating swamp, slowly drowning until you can't breathe. Living in Beaumont, Missouri follows a grim pattern: born at Beaumont General, working at Savor Meats, and ultimately ending up in Beaumont Memorial Cemetery. Many dream of leaving this wretched place before it taints their souls, but few succeed, remaining trapped until the cruel game of life they're forced to play is over.
Amelia and Kylee, two inseparable sisters, plan to escape this place after enduring the hardships of poverty. They were raised by their eccentric mother, a pole dancer who struggles to provide a roof over their heads. Their cousin Grace, who has been missing for six years, played a pivotal role in their upbringing. A home invasion went awry, leaving only the two young sisters hiding in a closet from the intruder. They were saved thanks to Grace's self-sacrifice to protect them. Now, they must unravel the mystery of their cousin's disappearance to pay off their debt before leaving their past behind. However, they need a solid escape plan, which requires digging into the secrets hidden by the town's residents. What they didn't anticipate is that Grace was also keeping significant secrets that could shatter people's lives and further tarnish their already tainted family reputation. The frightening threat that could tear their lives apart might not come from outside forces—it could be lurking within their inner circle. People they trust may harbor greater danger than they can imagine.
Without revealing too much, I can genuinely say that the combined narrative of Amelia, Kylee, and Grace instantly drew me in. These three girls are distinct, yet they are all tough and resilient characters I could easily connect with. Amelia is soft-hearted, self-sacrificing, hardworking, smart, idealistic, and loyal. Kylee is street-smart, selfish, cunning, sarcastic, straightforward, and a total badass. Grace is vulnerable but a fighter, smart, a planner, caring, and mature. Their well-constructed character development made me love them even more.
Overall, the story's enthralling events and the bittersweet conclusion that lingers in your thoughts made my reading journey immensely enjoyable. I'm adding this brilliant author to my list of approved writers. From now on, I'll be reading any book she releases without hesitation, granting it a full five-star rating.
A big thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for sharing this exceptional book's digital review copy with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.
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Imagine a town where everything decays, where all the escape routes seem blocked when you yearn to start fresh in a new place, to embrace freedom. But every step you take toward getting out feels like you're being dragged into a suffocating swamp, slowly drowning until you can't breathe. Living in Beaumont, Missouri follows a grim pattern: born at Beaumont General, working at Savor Meats, and ultimately ending up in Beaumont Memorial Cemetery. Many dream of leaving this wretched place before it taints their souls, but few succeed, remaining trapped until the cruel game of life they're forced to play is over.
Amelia and Kylee, two inseparable sisters, plan to escape this place after enduring the hardships of poverty. They were raised by their eccentric mother, a pole dancer who struggles to provide a roof over their heads. Their cousin Grace, who has been missing for six years, played a pivotal role in their upbringing. A home invasion went awry, leaving only the two young sisters hiding in a closet from the intruder. They were saved thanks to Grace's self-sacrifice to protect them. Now, they must unravel the mystery of their cousin's disappearance to pay off their debt before leaving their past behind. However, they need a solid escape plan, which requires digging into the secrets hidden by the town's residents. What they didn't anticipate is that Grace was also keeping significant secrets that could shatter people's lives and further tarnish their already tainted family reputation. The frightening threat that could tear their lives apart might not come from outside forces—it could be lurking within their inner circle. People they trust may harbor greater danger than they can imagine.
Without revealing too much, I can genuinely say that the combined narrative of Amelia, Kylee, and Grace instantly drew me in. These three girls are distinct, yet they are all tough and resilient characters I could easily connect with. Amelia is soft-hearted, self-sacrificing, hardworking, smart, idealistic, and loyal. Kylee is street-smart, selfish, cunning, sarcastic, straightforward, and a total badass. Grace is vulnerable but a fighter, smart, a planner, caring, and mature. Their well-constructed character development made me love them even more.
Overall, the story's enthralling events and the bittersweet conclusion that lingers in your thoughts made my reading journey immensely enjoyable. I'm adding this brilliant author to my list of approved writers. From now on, I'll be reading any book she releases without hesitation, granting it a full five-star rating.
A big thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for sharing this exceptional book's digital review copy with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.
Follow me on medium.com to read my articles about books, movies, streaming series, astrology:
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February 26, 2024
Teenagers Amelia and Kylee are as close as two sisters can be. Growing up in the small town of Beaumont, Missouri in the heart of the Ozarks, life hasn't always been kind to them. They're mother is an aging stripper that has tried to do her best when she wasn't drunk and swinging on a pole all night to make a buck. These girls know if they stay in Beaumont that their life is as good as over so they dream of escaping together by saving every penny and measly tip Amelia makes from The Waffle House. Before they can go though they will need to find out what happened to their older cousin, Grace, who was their fierce and loyal protector until the day she disappeared six years ago.
"Folks want to think it's strangers you gotta watch out for, but a place like this, we eat our own."
Laura McHugh has once again delivered another gripping and gritty story about people living hardscrabble lives in the Ozarks. In 2017 I read her book, The Weight of Blood, and I was amazed at her ability to bring a story to life. Her characters are so fully realized that you can't help but to become invested. Our characters here are flawed, yes, but many are just trying to do their best with what they've got, which is very little to say the least. In contrast, there are plenty of repugnant characters that will make your skin crawl. It's the juxtaposition between those characters trying to do right but often getting things wrong and those that have no fucks left to give that make these grit lit stories so fascinating to me. The blazing sun, the dust and dirt, the smell of the meat packing plant - I was completely transported - and after turning the last page I am happy to leave Beaumont in the rearview mirror. 5 stars!
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for my complimentary copy.
"Folks want to think it's strangers you gotta watch out for, but a place like this, we eat our own."
Laura McHugh has once again delivered another gripping and gritty story about people living hardscrabble lives in the Ozarks. In 2017 I read her book, The Weight of Blood, and I was amazed at her ability to bring a story to life. Her characters are so fully realized that you can't help but to become invested. Our characters here are flawed, yes, but many are just trying to do their best with what they've got, which is very little to say the least. In contrast, there are plenty of repugnant characters that will make your skin crawl. It's the juxtaposition between those characters trying to do right but often getting things wrong and those that have no fucks left to give that make these grit lit stories so fascinating to me. The blazing sun, the dust and dirt, the smell of the meat packing plant - I was completely transported - and after turning the last page I am happy to leave Beaumont in the rearview mirror. 5 stars!
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for my complimentary copy.
September 26, 2023
Brilliant but triggering. I'm not from small-town Missouri, but I did grow up somewhere very much like it. A place that hardly anyone ever leaves, and where everyone pops out babies as soon as possible after high school and goes to work at the big local company. I also had a family eerily similar to Grace's, complete with the creepy uncle that everyone suspected was into some questionable shit. And I was a lot like Grace – maybe not as smart, perhaps, but my one goal as a teenager was to get far, far away from it all. This book was hard to read at points, because it was kind of like reliving a part of my life that I don't really care to revisit. But, at the same time, it was also really, really good.
The characters in this book are particularly well-written. I loved Grace and Amelia and Kylee and Ketch and Dallas, and even the bad guys have some depth and aren't just one-dimensional cartoon villains. Grace and Amelia are both strong and courageous – Grace because of her desire to protect her cousins and to make something of her life, and Amelia with her determination to solve the mystery of her cousin's disappearance and to get out of Beaumont. Uncle Norman is a piece of rotting dog poo, of course, but pretty much all of the other characters are sympathetic even if they're not especially likable.
The plot is fast-paced and suspenseful, and I about cried when I had to temporarily stop at the 90% mark to attend to real-life stuff.
My one complaint about this book is the ending. In some ways it was amazing, but it was also very … incomplete. The mystery (what happened to Grace?) is technically solved, sure, but the the main characters' futures are all left very much up in the air. There were also a few side storylines that I feel didn't get wrapped up very well, mostly relating to Alan and Bill/Annalise. Still, the ending that did occur was dramatic and suspenseful, and might I even say just a little bit hopeful? For that reason alone, I didn't totally dislike it, and it didn't do a whole lot to diminish my enjoyment of the rest of the story. But, seriously, what happened afterward?!
Final rating: 4.5 stars, rounded up. Safe and Sound is an excellent novel that will likely resonate with anyone who grew up wanting nothing more than a fresh start elsewhere.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House for providing me with an advance copy of this book to review.
The characters in this book are particularly well-written. I loved Grace and Amelia and Kylee and Ketch and Dallas, and even the bad guys have some depth and aren't just one-dimensional cartoon villains. Grace and Amelia are both strong and courageous – Grace because of her desire to protect her cousins and to make something of her life, and Amelia with her determination to solve the mystery of her cousin's disappearance and to get out of Beaumont. Uncle Norman is a piece of rotting dog poo, of course, but pretty much all of the other characters are sympathetic even if they're not especially likable.
The plot is fast-paced and suspenseful, and I about cried when I had to temporarily stop at the 90% mark to attend to real-life stuff.
My one complaint about this book is the ending. In some ways it was amazing, but it was also very … incomplete. The mystery (what happened to Grace?) is technically solved, sure, but the the main characters' futures are all left very much up in the air. There were also a few side storylines that I feel didn't get wrapped up very well, mostly relating to Alan and Bill/Annalise. Still, the ending that did occur was dramatic and suspenseful, and might I even say just a little bit hopeful? For that reason alone, I didn't totally dislike it, and it didn't do a whole lot to diminish my enjoyment of the rest of the story. But, seriously, what happened afterward?!
Final rating: 4.5 stars, rounded up. Safe and Sound is an excellent novel that will likely resonate with anyone who grew up wanting nothing more than a fresh start elsewhere.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House for providing me with an advance copy of this book to review.
July 18, 2024
As kids, Amelia and Kylee were found unharmed in their upstairs bedroom the night their teenage cousin Grace, who was babysitting them, vanished from the farmhouse in Beaumont, Missouri, leaving blood all over the kitchen. Scrappy and driven, Grace, the first in their family to go to college instead of getting married and working at the meatpacking plant, had been on the verge of escaping their dead-end town. Her disappearance is a warning to any local girl who dared hope for better.
Now, as their own high school graduation looms, Amelia and Kylee dream about fleeing Beaumont, but the likelihood of that happening seems as low as that of Grace being found. When human remains are discovered in town, the sisters think they finally know who took Grace—but as they dig deeper into her past, they unearth long-buried secrets and a growing list of suspects.
Amelia and Kylee vow to find Grace, dead or alive. But as they draw closer to the truth and slip further into danger, they question how far someone would go to put a woman in her place, or to cover up a crime. The answer is worse than they could have imagined, and in the end, it won’t just be Grace they’re trying to save—they’ll have to fight for their lives.
A poignant, gritty novel much deeper than I expected, Safe and Sound brought discomfort as well as unbridled awe. From the well-written charactersbewitching, powerful setting, the story came alive as the plot unfolded before me. And while it was a slow burn for a good two-thirds of the book, that last 30% took me on the ride of my life. It even included one jaw-dropping, shock-inducing, cringe-worthy twist. Quite frankly, it alone managed to demonstrate the haunting darkness that simply oozed from the pages.
The characters were the special sauce in this stirring tale, however. From the two sisters who couldn’t be more different to their cousin living through a gut-wrenching nightmare, the dual POVs were charged with authenticity and emotion. Adding to the mix were some truly despicable individuals that made my skin crawl. Together they drew a picture of a small town where the very worst can happen and no one can escape. Filled with desperation and just a little bit of forcefully fostered hope, I simply can’t explain how utterly thought-provoking it all was.
The was one big “but” for this ardent admirer, though. As I raced through the pages yearning to know what was to become of these three spellbinding women, I looked forward to a finale that gave me some answers. Unfortunately, that’s not what I got. With that left the door open for a sequel, there wasn’t a final resolution in sight. Granted, it will remain in my thoughts for quite some time, but still…I’m all about those nice, pretty, little bows to my endings.
All in all, despite the bittersweet last few pagesan immersive, nuanced tale of suspense. With an almost overwhelmingly claustrophobic atmosphere and characters with crystal clear identities, there wasn’t a thing not to love for most of the book. Unflinchingly taking < b>a deep dive into repressed trauma and abuse, there were some deeply uncomfortable topics, but, through them, a sense of < b>hope was left smoldering instead of despair. I’m not quite sure how McHugh managed to stoke that feeling, but it was truly impressive. Rating of 4 stars.
Thank you to Laura McHugh and Random House for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.
PUB DATE: Out now!
Scroll down for my potentially plot spoiling trigger list.
Trigger warning: sexual harassment, molestation, forced captivity
Now, as their own high school graduation looms, Amelia and Kylee dream about fleeing Beaumont, but the likelihood of that happening seems as low as that of Grace being found. When human remains are discovered in town, the sisters think they finally know who took Grace—but as they dig deeper into her past, they unearth long-buried secrets and a growing list of suspects.
Amelia and Kylee vow to find Grace, dead or alive. But as they draw closer to the truth and slip further into danger, they question how far someone would go to put a woman in her place, or to cover up a crime. The answer is worse than they could have imagined, and in the end, it won’t just be Grace they’re trying to save—they’ll have to fight for their lives.
A poignant, gritty novel much deeper than I expected, Safe and Sound brought discomfort as well as unbridled awe. From the well-written charactersbewitching, powerful setting, the story came alive as the plot unfolded before me. And while it was a slow burn for a good two-thirds of the book, that last 30% took me on the ride of my life. It even included one jaw-dropping, shock-inducing, cringe-worthy twist. Quite frankly, it alone managed to demonstrate the haunting darkness that simply oozed from the pages.
The characters were the special sauce in this stirring tale, however. From the two sisters who couldn’t be more different to their cousin living through a gut-wrenching nightmare, the dual POVs were charged with authenticity and emotion. Adding to the mix were some truly despicable individuals that made my skin crawl. Together they drew a picture of a small town where the very worst can happen and no one can escape. Filled with desperation and just a little bit of forcefully fostered hope, I simply can’t explain how utterly thought-provoking it all was.
The was one big “but” for this ardent admirer, though. As I raced through the pages yearning to know what was to become of these three spellbinding women, I looked forward to a finale that gave me some answers. Unfortunately, that’s not what I got. With that left the door open for a sequel, there wasn’t a final resolution in sight. Granted, it will remain in my thoughts for quite some time, but still…I’m all about those nice, pretty, little bows to my endings.
All in all, despite the bittersweet last few pagesan immersive, nuanced tale of suspense. With an almost overwhelmingly claustrophobic atmosphere and characters with crystal clear identities, there wasn’t a thing not to love for most of the book. Unflinchingly taking < b>a deep dive into repressed trauma and abuse, there were some deeply uncomfortable topics, but, through them, a sense of < b>hope was left smoldering instead of despair. I’m not quite sure how McHugh managed to stoke that feeling, but it was truly impressive. Rating of 4 stars.
Thank you to Laura McHugh and Random House for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.
PUB DATE: Out now!
Scroll down for my potentially plot spoiling trigger list.
Trigger warning: sexual harassment, molestation, forced captivity
May 7, 2024
2.5 stars, rounded down-Some slight spoilers below so don't read if you want to be surprised.
I really liked What's Done in Darkness, it was twisty and kept me guessing. Unfortunately, this book was a huge letdown.
I'll start off by saying that there are trigger warnings galore here, not the least of which is child sexual abuse/pornography. This book is absolutely not for everyone because the most vulnerable here are ignored and neglected.
One of the main problems I have with this book , which made me round down instead of up, is due to the ending. It's confusing, not hopeful, and unsatisfying. If you like solid resolution, steer clear, because this book doesn't have that at all. Yes, we find out what happened to Grace (as anti-climactic as it was) but that's it. There are some other threads that are completely unresolved as well--the solutions are alluded to but not fully explained.
I really felt for all of these young women, with their hopes and dreams to break free and make a new life outside of their poverty and horrible upbringings. Spoiler alert--it doesn't happen.
The writing is strong, as with McHugh's other books, and the mystery of what happened to Grace takes somewhat of a back seat to the creation of the atmosphere of claustrophobic hopelessness. Many people have really connected with the story, so if you're going to read it make sure you're in the right headspace before starting it.
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book, all opinions are my own.
I really liked What's Done in Darkness, it was twisty and kept me guessing. Unfortunately, this book was a huge letdown.
I'll start off by saying that there are trigger warnings galore here, not the least of which is child sexual abuse/pornography. This book is absolutely not for everyone because the most vulnerable here are ignored and neglected.
One of the main problems I have with this book , which made me round down instead of up, is due to the ending. It's confusing, not hopeful, and unsatisfying. If you like solid resolution, steer clear, because this book doesn't have that at all. Yes, we find out what happened to Grace (as anti-climactic as it was) but that's it. There are some other threads that are completely unresolved as well--the solutions are alluded to but not fully explained.
I really felt for all of these young women, with their hopes and dreams to break free and make a new life outside of their poverty and horrible upbringings. Spoiler alert--it doesn't happen.
The writing is strong, as with McHugh's other books, and the mystery of what happened to Grace takes somewhat of a back seat to the creation of the atmosphere of claustrophobic hopelessness. Many people have really connected with the story, so if you're going to read it make sure you're in the right headspace before starting it.
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book, all opinions are my own.
August 10, 2024
Gritty, gripping, and often uncomfortable, Safe and Sound takes place in a small, rural town where residents are usually uneducated, judgmental, and happy to accept "the truth" even when facts are lacking.
Laura McHugh created a world that resonates with reality. Places like this Mississippi town exist in every pocket of the world, particularly in the southern region of the U.S. If you've never lived in a small town, the one in Safe and Sound might seem unrealistic. In this way, Laura is bringing the little hole-in-the-wall places to readers who may be unfamiliar. The characters and the entire atmosphere are utterly raw.
That said, this book can get very dark at times. And there are a number of triggers that might affect some readers' experiences (e.g., SA, child abuse, food security issues, abandonment, and more).
Reading this book was an emotional rollercoaster. There were times I felt disgusted and had to balance it with a rom-com, as there were moments I just couldn't go to bed having read some of the things I did. Uncle Norman, a violent and disturbed character, was someone I absolutely despised, and I'm sure other readers will feel the same. On the bright side, the FMCs are headstrong and lovely; they have all of my empathy, as do the real women living in these situations. Their emotional journey is so vividly portrayed that you can't help but feel connected to them.
In the course of the book, we are on the lookout for Grace, a family member who has gone missing. And while we may find her, we don't know the details. Is she alive? What happens? The ending is very uncertain for her and most of the other characters. I believe I know where the author wants us to go as far as the outcome of the book, but it's frustrating having to guess.
While I would recommend this book, I would tell my friends going into it:
a) there is no closure at the end
b) it's so very disturbing and dark
c) Lauren McHugh is a masterful author
Laura McHugh created a world that resonates with reality. Places like this Mississippi town exist in every pocket of the world, particularly in the southern region of the U.S. If you've never lived in a small town, the one in Safe and Sound might seem unrealistic. In this way, Laura is bringing the little hole-in-the-wall places to readers who may be unfamiliar. The characters and the entire atmosphere are utterly raw.
That said, this book can get very dark at times. And there are a number of triggers that might affect some readers' experiences (e.g., SA, child abuse, food security issues, abandonment, and more).
Reading this book was an emotional rollercoaster. There were times I felt disgusted and had to balance it with a rom-com, as there were moments I just couldn't go to bed having read some of the things I did. Uncle Norman, a violent and disturbed character, was someone I absolutely despised, and I'm sure other readers will feel the same. On the bright side, the FMCs are headstrong and lovely; they have all of my empathy, as do the real women living in these situations. Their emotional journey is so vividly portrayed that you can't help but feel connected to them.
In the course of the book, we are on the lookout for Grace, a family member who has gone missing. And while we may find her, we don't know the details. Is she alive? What happens? The ending is very uncertain for her and most of the other characters. I believe I know where the author wants us to go as far as the outcome of the book, but it's frustrating having to guess.
While I would recommend this book, I would tell my friends going into it:
a) there is no closure at the end
b) it's so very disturbing and dark
c) Lauren McHugh is a masterful author
June 26, 2024
3.5 Stars ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️
I gave this thriller 3.5 Stars. Kind of a tough call, but I had issues with the ending.
SUMMARY
Kylee and Amelia’s beloved cousin Grace has been missing, presumed dead, for six years now. Grace, seven years older, was their BFF, role model, protector. She babysat for them so frequently that she was like a second mother to them.
Smothered by their small town, Grace had big plans to go to college and get out. She was sooooo close! She had a scholarship to an out of state college and was wrapping up her senior year when Grace disappeared, leaving only a bloody kitchen behind.
Six years later, Grace is still gone, Kylee and Amelia are coming to an age where they want to leave their small, dead end town. Amelia quit school and got a job to save money for their new life. But, before they leave, they want to find out what happened to Grace. When they start looking, they uncover some startling information. Just when you think you have it figured out, something new comes to light and you find out you were mistaken.
WHAT I LOVED ❤️💕
I loved pretty much everything about the first 3/4ths of this book. I loved the main characters; Grace, Kylee, Amelia, Catch and Levi. The moms were mostly a hot mess, particularly Kylee and Amelia’s mom. They were lucky to have each other! The plot was very twisty. I do love that.
WHAT I DIDN’T LOVE 💔
There were a few pretty horrible things that happened to the girls in the story that I had to skim over. It wasn’t overly descriptive, but still hard to read.
But what really got me was the ending. I found the final chapter or two kind of unbelievable and the end wasn’t as wrapped up as I like. I wanted a final, final ending. Like to see where everyone was 6 months or 5 years later. It felt rushed and unsatisfying. That’s what really knocked it down for me.
OVERALL
Not at all a bad story, and I think a lot of people are happy with an ending not tied up in a bow, but I’m not that reader. I would recommend it to my GR friends who like a twisty plot, strong female characters and are okay with a less tied up ending and skimming through some abuse.
I gave this thriller 3.5 Stars. Kind of a tough call, but I had issues with the ending.
SUMMARY
Kylee and Amelia’s beloved cousin Grace has been missing, presumed dead, for six years now. Grace, seven years older, was their BFF, role model, protector. She babysat for them so frequently that she was like a second mother to them.
Smothered by their small town, Grace had big plans to go to college and get out. She was sooooo close! She had a scholarship to an out of state college and was wrapping up her senior year when Grace disappeared, leaving only a bloody kitchen behind.
Six years later, Grace is still gone, Kylee and Amelia are coming to an age where they want to leave their small, dead end town. Amelia quit school and got a job to save money for their new life. But, before they leave, they want to find out what happened to Grace. When they start looking, they uncover some startling information. Just when you think you have it figured out, something new comes to light and you find out you were mistaken.
WHAT I LOVED ❤️💕
I loved pretty much everything about the first 3/4ths of this book. I loved the main characters; Grace, Kylee, Amelia, Catch and Levi. The moms were mostly a hot mess, particularly Kylee and Amelia’s mom. They were lucky to have each other! The plot was very twisty. I do love that.
WHAT I DIDN’T LOVE 💔
There were a few pretty horrible things that happened to the girls in the story that I had to skim over. It wasn’t overly descriptive, but still hard to read.
But what really got me was the ending. I found the final chapter or two kind of unbelievable and the end wasn’t as wrapped up as I like. I wanted a final, final ending. Like to see where everyone was 6 months or 5 years later. It felt rushed and unsatisfying. That’s what really knocked it down for me.
OVERALL
Not at all a bad story, and I think a lot of people are happy with an ending not tied up in a bow, but I’m not that reader. I would recommend it to my GR friends who like a twisty plot, strong female characters and are okay with a less tied up ending and skimming through some abuse.
April 22, 2024
I have now read several of Laura McHugh’s novels and this may be the most powerful, most visceral, yet. Set in a small town of Beaumont, Missouri, a town in the Ozarks where most people live hard lives in the same place cradle to grave, we meet an extended family holding a vigil for a young woman who disappeared several years before. Grace was a high school senior, very good student, with aspirations to attend college out of state. She planned to break the bonds tying her to this town where the major employer was a meat packing plant and fun was beer and pills.
But then one night, as she was babysitting her cousins Amelia and Kylee, she disappeared, leaving only a blood trail in her wake. Six years later, Amelia is also making plans to leave town and bring her younger sister with her, recalling Grace’s words, or maybe they were commands, to get out when they could and not look back. But what about Grace?
The characters are very well drawn, both those we come to like, those we hope for and those we grow to despise. I have not lived in a town like Beaumont but have only experienced such towns through news reports, essays, biographies, and fiction. The heaviness of spirit shows in all of these sources. McHugh’s town and people feel real and lost and trapped in contemporary America.
Recommended for those who like to read contemporary fiction, mystery.
Thanks to Random House and NetGalley for an early copy of this book. This review is my own.
But then one night, as she was babysitting her cousins Amelia and Kylee, she disappeared, leaving only a blood trail in her wake. Six years later, Amelia is also making plans to leave town and bring her younger sister with her, recalling Grace’s words, or maybe they were commands, to get out when they could and not look back. But what about Grace?
The characters are very well drawn, both those we come to like, those we hope for and those we grow to despise. I have not lived in a town like Beaumont but have only experienced such towns through news reports, essays, biographies, and fiction. The heaviness of spirit shows in all of these sources. McHugh’s town and people feel real and lost and trapped in contemporary America.
Recommended for those who like to read contemporary fiction, mystery.
Thanks to Random House and NetGalley for an early copy of this book. This review is my own.
May 5, 2024
Beaumont, Missouri, a tiny place outside of Springfield, is your classic small town. You’re born there, and you die there. You go to high school (and graduate if you’re motivated), then you end up working at the meat packing plant, the Waffle House or the strip club, living in poverty until the jobs ruin your body and you eventually end up in the town’s cemetery.
We have three young women in the book who tell us the story of what happened to Grace, who went missing six years prior. In the present, Amelia and her sister Kylee are working hard to leave Beaumont, but before they do, they want to know what happened to their cousin. They have no other reason to stay; their mom (Grace’s aunt, Shannon) is a stripper with a substance abuse issue, who probably wouldn’t even notice if they were gone, and neither of them want to follow in her footsteps.
The second half of the books is set in the past, from Grace’s perspective. She was a high school student who had big dreams, of leaving this town and the awful things that happened to her there. (I don’t normally post trigger warnings, but this does deal with her being sexually abused, and it’s heartbreaking.) Grace loved her little cousins, loved her boyfriend, Levi, and was about to be the first person in her family to go to college...then she was gone. What happened to her?
I left this ARC for too long, largely because sometimes I get tired of the “x years ago, tragedy struck, and now someone wants answers” trope. I shouldn’t have let this sit - this isn’t a light, cliche mystery/thriller. This is a book to savor; it’s dark and dramatic and haunting. The town’s characters were great, like the sweet Mrs. Mummer and the misogynistic Mr. Copeland, along with Javi, the cook at Waffle House, and Ketch, who mapped out his plan to become a soldier when he was barely out of diapers. They were all flawless, along with the writing and the story overall. Five stars.
(Thank you to Random House, Laura McHugh and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.)
We have three young women in the book who tell us the story of what happened to Grace, who went missing six years prior. In the present, Amelia and her sister Kylee are working hard to leave Beaumont, but before they do, they want to know what happened to their cousin. They have no other reason to stay; their mom (Grace’s aunt, Shannon) is a stripper with a substance abuse issue, who probably wouldn’t even notice if they were gone, and neither of them want to follow in her footsteps.
The second half of the books is set in the past, from Grace’s perspective. She was a high school student who had big dreams, of leaving this town and the awful things that happened to her there. (I don’t normally post trigger warnings, but this does deal with her being sexually abused, and it’s heartbreaking.) Grace loved her little cousins, loved her boyfriend, Levi, and was about to be the first person in her family to go to college...then she was gone. What happened to her?
I left this ARC for too long, largely because sometimes I get tired of the “x years ago, tragedy struck, and now someone wants answers” trope. I shouldn’t have let this sit - this isn’t a light, cliche mystery/thriller. This is a book to savor; it’s dark and dramatic and haunting. The town’s characters were great, like the sweet Mrs. Mummer and the misogynistic Mr. Copeland, along with Javi, the cook at Waffle House, and Ketch, who mapped out his plan to become a soldier when he was barely out of diapers. They were all flawless, along with the writing and the story overall. Five stars.
(Thank you to Random House, Laura McHugh and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.)
June 12, 2024
This is another superbly written story from Laura McHugh, dropping you directly into a small Missouri town. The residents there know they are born in the local hospital and live and die in town, ending up buried in its cemetery. Grace dreamed of getting out--and she wanted that for her young nieces, Amelia and Kylee, too. But then Grace disappears, with just a trail of blood left behind, and the two girls are stuck.
As she ages, Amelia wonders what happened to Grace, poking around the corners of her secretive town. McHugh does an excellent job creating an atmosphere of claustrophobia, flashing back to Grace's story and her own feelings of being trapped, and then Amelia's deep desires to get out. The whole book feels stifling, overcome with the brittle feeling of no hope or prospects. McHugh's writing is crisp, starkly portraying her teenage characters with clarity and realism.
Sometimes things even feel too real--this book can feel awfully hopeless. The ending is a bummer, without a lot of closure. But the story is well-written, with nuanced characters, and it perfectly captures that oppressive small town feeling.
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and Random House in return for an unbiased review.
As she ages, Amelia wonders what happened to Grace, poking around the corners of her secretive town. McHugh does an excellent job creating an atmosphere of claustrophobia, flashing back to Grace's story and her own feelings of being trapped, and then Amelia's deep desires to get out. The whole book feels stifling, overcome with the brittle feeling of no hope or prospects. McHugh's writing is crisp, starkly portraying her teenage characters with clarity and realism.
Sometimes things even feel too real--this book can feel awfully hopeless. The ending is a bummer, without a lot of closure. But the story is well-written, with nuanced characters, and it perfectly captures that oppressive small town feeling.
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and Random House in return for an unbiased review.
December 7, 2023
Laura McHugh is a queen of suspense and this is the perfect example. When teenage Grace suddenly disappears without a trace, the whole town, including her family, wonder what happened to her. The chapters alternate between Grace’s past narration and her cousin’s present day narration. Lots of characters mean lots of suspects and the author deftly throws readers off when the plot goes in different directions. A shocking ending puts the icing on the cake. Perfect for fans of Kimberly McCreight and Megan Abbott.
Many thanks to Netgalley, Edelweiss, Random House and Laura McHugh for my complimentary e-copy ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Many thanks to Netgalley, Edelweiss, Random House and Laura McHugh for my complimentary e-copy ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
April 24, 2024
Thank you so much to Random House and Laura McHugh for my copy of this book. It was about sisters Amelia and Kylee, who are trying to find out what happened to their cousin Grace six years after she vanished while babysitting them. She left behind a bloody mess, but the sisters were found unharmed. Grace was just about to leave her small town and be the first in her family to go to college, but her disappearance came as a warning to anyone trying to get out and do better. Now as Kylee and Amelia get ready to graduate high school, they start to really look into what happened to their cousin. When human remains are found, secrets start to come out.
Thoughts: This book was sad and triggering and claustrophobic. The tiny town of Beaumont felt oppressive and the reader feels just as trapped as Kylee and Amelia. The description of a small town with limited opportunity was so well written and sucked me into the story. I felt for everyone, and wished they all could get out and have a better life.
There were SO many triggers in this book, but the one I want to mention is child sexual abuse. It made me really squeamish, so keep that in mind if you’re going to pick up this book. The ending wasn’t what I expected at all, and though it was resolved, it also felt heartbreaking and tragic as a conclusion. 3-stars for this one.
Thoughts: This book was sad and triggering and claustrophobic. The tiny town of Beaumont felt oppressive and the reader feels just as trapped as Kylee and Amelia. The description of a small town with limited opportunity was so well written and sucked me into the story. I felt for everyone, and wished they all could get out and have a better life.
There were SO many triggers in this book, but the one I want to mention is child sexual abuse. It made me really squeamish, so keep that in mind if you’re going to pick up this book. The ending wasn’t what I expected at all, and though it was resolved, it also felt heartbreaking and tragic as a conclusion. 3-stars for this one.
March 18, 2024
First read by this author. The book takes the reader from the past to present in telling the story and putting all the pieces together. The characters are living in a town with not alot of hope and promise and there is quite the array of young, old, good, and bad with secrets throughout. Good writing kept the pages turning and the story flowed.
Grace was the focus of the story but I liked two connected characters, Ameila and Kylee, most both in their past and present lives as it was heartfelt and funny at times. The suspense was good and unraveled to an ending that I did not see coming. This was the author's story but it is the ending that left me feeling a little deceived, slightly short-changed, a tad bit confused yet I liked the way the book ended.
My rating pivoted but I went with the higher star after thinking about it from an overall standpoint. I would read another thriller from this author, glad she got me there. Thank you to both Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity in exchange for an honest review.
Grace was the focus of the story but I liked two connected characters, Ameila and Kylee, most both in their past and present lives as it was heartfelt and funny at times. The suspense was good and unraveled to an ending that I did not see coming. This was the author's story but it is the ending that left me feeling a little deceived, slightly short-changed, a tad bit confused yet I liked the way the book ended.
My rating pivoted but I went with the higher star after thinking about it from an overall standpoint. I would read another thriller from this author, glad she got me there. Thank you to both Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity in exchange for an honest review.
March 16, 2024
SAFE AND SOUND
by Laura McHugh is dark, atmospheric, and utterly compelling. With an increasing eeriness that’ll make readers look over their shoulders, gorgeously cinematic writing, and main characters everybody will root for, this haunting story lingers long after the climatic ending. Not to be missed.
October 17, 2025
Hmm... I'm not quite sure about this.
Overall, it's a pretty good story, despite the claustrophobic small-town vibe, the backwards way of thinking, the nasty, disgusting, male characters.
But I didn't like the end, or the way Grace's disappearance was explained. It wasn't just the fact that I wasn't expecting it. It was kind of rushed and did that make sense? Not to me.
Overall, it's a pretty good story, despite the claustrophobic small-town vibe, the backwards way of thinking, the nasty, disgusting, male characters.
But I didn't like the end, or the way Grace's disappearance was explained. It wasn't just the fact that I wasn't expecting it. It was kind of rushed and did that make sense? Not to me.
June 18, 2024
I was 100% going to give this book 5 stars until the ending. McHugh is such a talented writer - she shows the very non-glamorous part of growing up in a small town in the Ozarks in Missouri. I think she is getting better and better at character development. I was rooting for the main characters throughout the book and I was very invested in the story. It surprised me the first time Grace’s narration came into the story (Amelia and Kylee’s missing cousin.) But, I found I liked the dual timeline.
That ending though. 🤦♀️ Only dropping my rating by 1 star, but it was unrealistic and disappointing.
Please be aware of some triggers around child abuse/molestation. Those parts were pretty hard to read (or listen to in my case).
That ending though. 🤦♀️ Only dropping my rating by 1 star, but it was unrealistic and disappointing.
Please be aware of some triggers around child abuse/molestation. Those parts were pretty hard to read (or listen to in my case).
April 21, 2024
4.5 rounded up! Read this book!! Author is going on my automatic read list!!
So to start, my first by this author and I’ve already added all her other books to my library list and will definitely be reading her other books!!
I absolutely loved Grace, Amelia and Kylee. Each was developed so well and written perfectly to a small town girl looking for more out of life, each in a different way.
There are some triggers for child abuse and inappropriate touching/pictures of children. Didn’t bother me, just heads up. It’s written skillfully.
I didn’t want the story to end and just when i thought I’d figured something out, nope, it would twist a different way and i definitely didn’t see the ending coming.
Thanks to Netgalley and Random house for my electronic advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.
So to start, my first by this author and I’ve already added all her other books to my library list and will definitely be reading her other books!!
I absolutely loved Grace, Amelia and Kylee. Each was developed so well and written perfectly to a small town girl looking for more out of life, each in a different way.
There are some triggers for child abuse and inappropriate touching/pictures of children. Didn’t bother me, just heads up. It’s written skillfully.
I didn’t want the story to end and just when i thought I’d figured something out, nope, it would twist a different way and i definitely didn’t see the ending coming.
Thanks to Netgalley and Random house for my electronic advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.
November 11, 2023
This is a great book!
Amelia and Kylee's cousin Grace disappeared years ago when she was babysitting them and was never found. The two believe that some day she may still turn up. Amelia is doing her very best to work a low paying job to get herself and her sister out of the terrible town and away from the toxic family they live with. When remains are found, the two are more determined then ever to find out what happened to Grace.
This book will keep your attention and keep you wondering until the very end!.#RandomHouse #SafeandSound #Lauramchugh
Amelia and Kylee's cousin Grace disappeared years ago when she was babysitting them and was never found. The two believe that some day she may still turn up. Amelia is doing her very best to work a low paying job to get herself and her sister out of the terrible town and away from the toxic family they live with. When remains are found, the two are more determined then ever to find out what happened to Grace.
This book will keep your attention and keep you wondering until the very end!.#RandomHouse #SafeandSound #Lauramchugh
February 28, 2024
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of
Safe and Sound.
I'm glad the author put a brief disclaimer in the front of the book warning of potential triggering themes.
This book is tough to read as it deals with child sexual abuse and neglect, amongst other things, and the cast of characters is mostly despicable, with the exception of Ketch, Grace, and the sisters.
** Minor non-spoilers ahead **
Amelia and Kylee's beloved cousin, Grace, disappeared six years ago, and the sisters have never recovered from their loss.
In a small town where everyone knows everyone else's business, the sisters pursue their own investigation into what happened to Grace, but what they find may be too shocking to believe.
The narrative is divided between the sisters and Grace, which was great because often in these genres, the most interesting person is the deceased.
I liked that Grace had a voice in the narrative.
The writing is good, but the pacing is slow since exposition takes up most of the narrative.
There's very little to no suspense or urgency, and though you know whodunnit Grace's fate is still unknown, though I guessed right at the end.
The final reveal of Grace's whereabouts is a bit hard to suspend disbelief for but I rolled with it because it was the end.
This wasn't bad, but this isn't a thriller or a mystery and some readers may find the subject matter difficult to read.
I'm glad the author put a brief disclaimer in the front of the book warning of potential triggering themes.
This book is tough to read as it deals with child sexual abuse and neglect, amongst other things, and the cast of characters is mostly despicable, with the exception of Ketch, Grace, and the sisters.
** Minor non-spoilers ahead **
Amelia and Kylee's beloved cousin, Grace, disappeared six years ago, and the sisters have never recovered from their loss.
In a small town where everyone knows everyone else's business, the sisters pursue their own investigation into what happened to Grace, but what they find may be too shocking to believe.
The narrative is divided between the sisters and Grace, which was great because often in these genres, the most interesting person is the deceased.
I liked that Grace had a voice in the narrative.
The writing is good, but the pacing is slow since exposition takes up most of the narrative.
There's very little to no suspense or urgency, and though you know whodunnit Grace's fate is still unknown, though I guessed right at the end.
The final reveal of Grace's whereabouts is a bit hard to suspend disbelief for but I rolled with it because it was the end.
This wasn't bad, but this isn't a thriller or a mystery and some readers may find the subject matter difficult to read.
May 22, 2024
4/5 🌟
4/5 ❤️🩹
0/5 🥰
0/5 🌶️
3/5 🔎
4/5 😰😱
1/5 🎭😂
4/5 🎭😭
0/5 👻
0/5 🔬
2/5 🔫
⚠️⛔️TRIGGERS:⛔️⚠️
Child Abuse
Sexual Content
Sexual Assault
Sexual Violence
Sexual Harassment
Gaslighting
Alcohol Use
Alcohol Abuse
Drug Use
Sexism
Misogyny
Violence
Gun Violence
Blood
Gore
Injury/Injury Detail
Pedophilia
Child Pornography
Profanity
Forced Proximity
Death
Murder
PTSD
🗯️💬BOOK BLURB:💬🗯️
Six years after their cousin vanished from their home while they were sleeping, two sisters set out to learn the truth behind what happened—even if it puts their own lives in danger—in this haunting thriller from the internationally bestselling author of What's Done in Darkness.
In a town no one ever leaves, there are only so many places to hide.
As kids, Amelia and Kylee were found unharmed in their upstairs bedroom the night their teenage cousin Grace, who was babysitting them, vanished from the farmhouse in Beaumont, Missouri, leaving only a smear of blood on a door. Scrappy and driven, Grace had been on the verge of escaping their dead-end town, the first in their family to go to college instead of getting married and going to work at the meatpacking plant. Her disappearance is a warning to any local girl who dared hope for better.
Now, as their own high school graduation looms, Amelia and Kylee dream about getting out of Beaumont, but the likelihood of that happening seems as low as that of Grace being found. When human remains are discovered in town, the sisters think they finally know who took Grace—but as they dig deeper into her past, they unearth long-buried secrets and a growing list of suspects.
Amelia and Kylee vow to find Grace, dead or alive. But as they draw closer to the truth and slip deeper into danger, they question how far someone would go to put a woman in her place, or to cover up a crime. The answer is worse than they could have imagined, and in the end, it won’t just be Grace they’re trying to save—they’ll have to fight for their lives.
🌎📖OVERALL REVIEWS📖🌎
Courtesy of Storygraph
COMMUNITY REVIEWS
SUMMARY OF 46 REVIEWS
Moods
dark 100%
mysterious 84%
tense 68%
sad 52%
emotional 40%
challenging 20%
reflective 8%
adventurous 4%
hopeful 4%
Pace
medium 52%
fast 40%
slow 8%
Plot- or character-driven?
A mix: 65% | Plot: 30% | Character: 4%
Strong character development?
Yes: 57% | It's complicated: 33% | No: 9%
Loveable characters?
It's complicated: 52% | Yes: 33% | No: 14%
Diverse cast of characters?
No: 90% | It's complicated: 5% | Yes: 5%
Flaws of characters a main focus?
It's complicated: 40% | Yes: 35% | No: 25%
Average rating
3.71 ⭐️
🤔🧐🤯MY THOUGHTS:🤯🧐🤔
This was an emotionally hard book to read. There is so much trauma caused by one man. It’s sad to say that sexual assault happens so frequently. More than you would expect and most often by someone you know. It is tragic and gut wrenching when it happens to a child under the age of 11.
I hope I listed all of the appropriate trigger warnings, I probably missed some but I think I listed the most important ones. I apologize if there are some missing.
The world and character building are so spot on that you can picture the small town setting easily, especially if you’re from a small town. I’m not sure that you get close to the characters but you can sympathize and empathize with the women in the book as well as 2 of the male characters to an extent.
It’s easy to see why some people and/or family members try to keep these atrocities hidden. Why they bury them and try to overlook them. The perpetrators often to make the victims feel as though it is their fault and lay the blame at the feet of the victims.
RATING KEY:
🌟 Stars - based on the overall plot and theme or idea of the book
❤️🩹 Emotions - based on how emotional I got while reading
🥰 Romance - based on how well I got invested in the love story aspect
🌶️ Spice - based on how the sex scenes were portrayed and written as well as the number of sex scenes
🔎 Mystery - based on how well it kept me guessing who, how and why
😰 Scared🫣/Anxious😱 - based on how scared or anxious the book made me while reading
🎭 Comedy😂/Tragedy😭
-based on if I laughed or if there was a tragic event and how it affected me. I will mark the Masks with either a C or T to indicate Comedy or Tragedy
👻 Spooky😵💫/Creepy🧟♀️ -based on if this had any occult or paranormal themes and if those elements creeped me out or gave me anxiety!
🔬 Sci-Fi -based on the Science Fiction in the book as well as the Dystopian elements.
🔫 Action/Thriller -based on if I thought this was more of a spy action type of thriller.
4/5 ❤️🩹
0/5 🥰
0/5 🌶️
3/5 🔎
4/5 😰😱
1/5 🎭😂
4/5 🎭😭
0/5 👻
0/5 🔬
2/5 🔫
⚠️⛔️TRIGGERS:⛔️⚠️
Child Abuse
Sexual Content
Sexual Assault
Sexual Violence
Sexual Harassment
Gaslighting
Alcohol Use
Alcohol Abuse
Drug Use
Sexism
Misogyny
Violence
Gun Violence
Blood
Gore
Injury/Injury Detail
Pedophilia
Child Pornography
Profanity
Forced Proximity
Death
Murder
PTSD
🗯️💬BOOK BLURB:💬🗯️
Six years after their cousin vanished from their home while they were sleeping, two sisters set out to learn the truth behind what happened—even if it puts their own lives in danger—in this haunting thriller from the internationally bestselling author of What's Done in Darkness.
In a town no one ever leaves, there are only so many places to hide.
As kids, Amelia and Kylee were found unharmed in their upstairs bedroom the night their teenage cousin Grace, who was babysitting them, vanished from the farmhouse in Beaumont, Missouri, leaving only a smear of blood on a door. Scrappy and driven, Grace had been on the verge of escaping their dead-end town, the first in their family to go to college instead of getting married and going to work at the meatpacking plant. Her disappearance is a warning to any local girl who dared hope for better.
Now, as their own high school graduation looms, Amelia and Kylee dream about getting out of Beaumont, but the likelihood of that happening seems as low as that of Grace being found. When human remains are discovered in town, the sisters think they finally know who took Grace—but as they dig deeper into her past, they unearth long-buried secrets and a growing list of suspects.
Amelia and Kylee vow to find Grace, dead or alive. But as they draw closer to the truth and slip deeper into danger, they question how far someone would go to put a woman in her place, or to cover up a crime. The answer is worse than they could have imagined, and in the end, it won’t just be Grace they’re trying to save—they’ll have to fight for their lives.
🌎📖OVERALL REVIEWS📖🌎
Courtesy of Storygraph
COMMUNITY REVIEWS
SUMMARY OF 46 REVIEWS
Moods
dark 100%
mysterious 84%
tense 68%
sad 52%
emotional 40%
challenging 20%
reflective 8%
adventurous 4%
hopeful 4%
Pace
medium 52%
fast 40%
slow 8%
Plot- or character-driven?
A mix: 65% | Plot: 30% | Character: 4%
Strong character development?
Yes: 57% | It's complicated: 33% | No: 9%
Loveable characters?
It's complicated: 52% | Yes: 33% | No: 14%
Diverse cast of characters?
No: 90% | It's complicated: 5% | Yes: 5%
Flaws of characters a main focus?
It's complicated: 40% | Yes: 35% | No: 25%
Average rating
3.71 ⭐️
🤔🧐🤯MY THOUGHTS:🤯🧐🤔
This was an emotionally hard book to read. There is so much trauma caused by one man. It’s sad to say that sexual assault happens so frequently. More than you would expect and most often by someone you know. It is tragic and gut wrenching when it happens to a child under the age of 11.
I hope I listed all of the appropriate trigger warnings, I probably missed some but I think I listed the most important ones. I apologize if there are some missing.
The world and character building are so spot on that you can picture the small town setting easily, especially if you’re from a small town. I’m not sure that you get close to the characters but you can sympathize and empathize with the women in the book as well as 2 of the male characters to an extent.
It’s easy to see why some people and/or family members try to keep these atrocities hidden. Why they bury them and try to overlook them. The perpetrators often to make the victims feel as though it is their fault and lay the blame at the feet of the victims.
RATING KEY:
🌟 Stars - based on the overall plot and theme or idea of the book
❤️🩹 Emotions - based on how emotional I got while reading
🥰 Romance - based on how well I got invested in the love story aspect
🌶️ Spice - based on how the sex scenes were portrayed and written as well as the number of sex scenes
🔎 Mystery - based on how well it kept me guessing who, how and why
😰 Scared🫣/Anxious😱 - based on how scared or anxious the book made me while reading
🎭 Comedy😂/Tragedy😭
-based on if I laughed or if there was a tragic event and how it affected me. I will mark the Masks with either a C or T to indicate Comedy or Tragedy
👻 Spooky😵💫/Creepy🧟♀️ -based on if this had any occult or paranormal themes and if those elements creeped me out or gave me anxiety!
🔬 Sci-Fi -based on the Science Fiction in the book as well as the Dystopian elements.
🔫 Action/Thriller -based on if I thought this was more of a spy action type of thriller.
April 22, 2024
"We've been going through the free lunch line all our lives getting the sloppy joe because that's what they give you, and it doesn't matter whether or not you like it, and there was no point thinking about what we'd rather have instead, because we never had a choice."
Laura McHugh has found a niche writing gritty, emotional stories in which the past and present collide, set in some of America's most rural, poverty-stricken areas. In Safe and Sound, she takes readers to Beaumont, Missouri, where Amelia works at the Waffle House, trying to save enough money to get herself and her younger sister, Kylee, out of town. Six years ago, their teenage cousin Grace disappeared while babysitting them, leaving a kitchen covered in blood -- and now human remains have been found in town. Amelia and Kylee are desperate to get out of Beaumont, to start a life somewhere better -- but even more than that, they want to find out what happened to Grace, once and for all. Their journey for answers will unearth secrets they never expected, and put them in much more danger than they could have anticipated.
Safe and Sound is a dark, emotionally resonant, immersive story about the complex bonds of family, the consequences of repressed trauma, and what it means to feel stuck, desperate and hopeless, in a place where you no longer fit (and maybe never did). The narrative completely transports readers to Beaumont, where the smell of the meat-packing plant permeates all of the town's dusty, worn-down nooks and crannies. Laura McHugh's characters are some of the best I've ever read; they are richly textured, flawed, and in the case of Amelia and Kylee, so endearing and determined. But McHugh can also write a vile, reprehensible character very well -- and there are more than a few that feature in this book.
The subject matter is dark and sad, and McHugh is unflinching as she addresses the topic of abuse head-on. But at the end of the novel, the reader is somehow left feeling optimistic for the futures of these characters. It's this quality of peeling back the layers to reveal and explore the darkest parts of humanity, while also leaving readers with a message of hope rather than despair, that makes McHugh one of the strongest, most authentic voices in modern grit lit. If you haven't read her other novels, I highly recommend them in addition to this one. Thank you to Random House for the early reading opportunity.
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April 30, 2024Count on McHugh for riveting yet repulsive scenes from the gritty underbelly of rural Missouri narrated by smart young women motivated to seek truth and build a better life.
The author is delightful in person and reliable for engrossing, escapist stories in which bad guys are scary but ultimately get what they deserve.
The author is delightful in person and reliable for engrossing, escapist stories in which bad guys are scary but ultimately get what they deserve.
April 15, 2024
I FLEW through this. Need to think a little on that ending but wow, was this a fast paced story. I loved all of the POV and thought it was so well done. At least 4.5, maybe 5 stars.
Updated: 4.5 rounded up, I took off a bit for that ending 🤦🏻♀️
Updated: 4.5 rounded up, I took off a bit for that ending 🤦🏻♀️
May 2, 2024
Folks want to think it's strangers you gotta watch out for, but a place like this,
we eat our own."
Set in a rather bleak, poor, Missouri factory town, this novel could be considered Midwestern noir. Expertly written, it evokes feelings of claustrophobia and despondence, while at the same time you are desperately rooting for the protagonists.
Amelia and her sister Kylee are underprivileged teens, the neglected daughters of a single mother who works as a stripper in the local seedy strip joint. Their elder cousin Grace watched out for them as children. Grace was the one determined to get out of this insular, dead-end town, and she had the smarts to do it! However, it was while she was babysitting the two girls when she disappeared from their home leaving only a bloody handprint in the kitchen...
"We haunted ourselves with her memory, and there was no easy cure for such things."
Now, Grace's mother holds a vigil each year praying for Grace to return. Meanwhile, Amelia and Kylee are determined to find out what happened to their beloved cousin.
Amelia has graduated from high school and is working as a waitress in a Waffle restaurant off the interstate highway, where she has to fend off her 'handsy' boss. Kylee, who is besotted with horses, is in her last year of high school, and is threatening to leave school behind...
In a previous timeline, the reader also hears the narrative of Grace, before she disappeared.
Written with insight and empathy, this novel has some scenes that might prove distressing to some readers. The subject matter is quite dark, so be warned.
The ending was not what I expected, but it was apt and disturbing. This was an emotional story exploring whether a person's background can seal their fate.
Having read Laura McHugh's debut novel back in 2014 and loving it, I'm ashamed to say that I've not read anything of hers until this book. The good news is that I have three of her backlist novels now residing on my TBR list.
Highly recommended!
we eat our own."
Set in a rather bleak, poor, Missouri factory town, this novel could be considered Midwestern noir. Expertly written, it evokes feelings of claustrophobia and despondence, while at the same time you are desperately rooting for the protagonists.
Amelia and her sister Kylee are underprivileged teens, the neglected daughters of a single mother who works as a stripper in the local seedy strip joint. Their elder cousin Grace watched out for them as children. Grace was the one determined to get out of this insular, dead-end town, and she had the smarts to do it! However, it was while she was babysitting the two girls when she disappeared from their home leaving only a bloody handprint in the kitchen...
"We haunted ourselves with her memory, and there was no easy cure for such things."
Now, Grace's mother holds a vigil each year praying for Grace to return. Meanwhile, Amelia and Kylee are determined to find out what happened to their beloved cousin.
Amelia has graduated from high school and is working as a waitress in a Waffle restaurant off the interstate highway, where she has to fend off her 'handsy' boss. Kylee, who is besotted with horses, is in her last year of high school, and is threatening to leave school behind...
In a previous timeline, the reader also hears the narrative of Grace, before she disappeared.
Written with insight and empathy, this novel has some scenes that might prove distressing to some readers. The subject matter is quite dark, so be warned.
The ending was not what I expected, but it was apt and disturbing. This was an emotional story exploring whether a person's background can seal their fate.
Having read Laura McHugh's debut novel back in 2014 and loving it, I'm ashamed to say that I've not read anything of hers until this book. The good news is that I have three of her backlist novels now residing on my TBR list.
Highly recommended!
November 16, 2023
Laura McHugh is amazing and totally underrated, and I'm hoping that Safe and Sound, her 2024 release, catapults her to the wider readership she deserves.
Safe and Sound is a riveting story about growing up in a small impoverished town, of the secrets that can and do hide in them, about the weirdness and rot that can live in families, and it's all wrapped up in a genuinely gripping mystery. Absolutely outstanding and very highly recommended!
Safe and Sound is a riveting story about growing up in a small impoverished town, of the secrets that can and do hide in them, about the weirdness and rot that can live in families, and it's all wrapped up in a genuinely gripping mystery. Absolutely outstanding and very highly recommended!
November 19, 2023
This was a difficult one to read due to the traumatic upbringing of our main characters: Grace, Amelia, and Kylee.
While I grew up in a smallish town that was pretty much the opposite of the setting in this story, my heart breaks for these fictional characters, who were extremely likable, smart, resilient, and determined. I know that there are many real life versions of this town and many real people struggling with the things Amelia, Kylee, and Grace dealt with and I love how the author managed to demonstrate their desperation and their struggles with wanting more from life. She did an amazing job of describing this run down town that lacked options and opportunities for young people and I was able to visualize and immerse myself in their heartbreaking situation.
I really enjoyed the writing style and the way it alternated points of view between Grace and Amelia/Kylee. It didn’t switch back and forth quickly but instead it was broken down into chunks, if that makes sense. This is a book that will stay with me for quite some time. If I have to give one criticism, it would be the ending. It felt abrupt and after investing so much emotion into the story, I was left wanting more of a sense of closure. Regardless, this is an author I will certainly keep reading.
Publishes April 23, 2024
Thank you to NetGalley, the public, and Laura McHugh for the opportunity to review Safe and Sound.
While I grew up in a smallish town that was pretty much the opposite of the setting in this story, my heart breaks for these fictional characters, who were extremely likable, smart, resilient, and determined. I know that there are many real life versions of this town and many real people struggling with the things Amelia, Kylee, and Grace dealt with and I love how the author managed to demonstrate their desperation and their struggles with wanting more from life. She did an amazing job of describing this run down town that lacked options and opportunities for young people and I was able to visualize and immerse myself in their heartbreaking situation.
I really enjoyed the writing style and the way it alternated points of view between Grace and Amelia/Kylee. It didn’t switch back and forth quickly but instead it was broken down into chunks, if that makes sense. This is a book that will stay with me for quite some time. If I have to give one criticism, it would be the ending. It felt abrupt and after investing so much emotion into the story, I was left wanting more of a sense of closure. Regardless, this is an author I will certainly keep reading.
Publishes April 23, 2024
Thank you to NetGalley, the public, and Laura McHugh for the opportunity to review Safe and Sound.
April 3, 2024
Laura McHugh is officially on my radar. I devoured “The Wolf Wants In” and her new book “Safe and Sound” kept me on edge to the very end. Laura writes in a style that is deeply creepy but full of emotion and kindred spirits. It’s easy to feel close to her characters (or at least the ones we like!)
Meet sisters Amelia and Kylee, who will soon graduate high school and hopefully get out of the sad little town they’ve grown up in. The hollow loss of their favorite cousin Grace when they were younger doesn’t make them any fonder of this town full of secrets.
Bones are found in the woods which reignite the sisters’ hope that they’ll finally know what happened to Grace. The more they question, the more walls they hit. It seems that others in the town want to keep Grace where she is, and would like for these nosy sisters to take it down a notch, get married, have kids, and work in the meatpacking plant.
Amelia and Kylee have other plans, but their blind luck and bad choices put them in so much more danger than they ever conceived. Well written with likable characters living in a miserable little town that makes the perfect stage for Laura’s newest best seller.
Thanks so much to Random house Publishing Group for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. The publishing date is April 23, 2024.
Meet sisters Amelia and Kylee, who will soon graduate high school and hopefully get out of the sad little town they’ve grown up in. The hollow loss of their favorite cousin Grace when they were younger doesn’t make them any fonder of this town full of secrets.
Bones are found in the woods which reignite the sisters’ hope that they’ll finally know what happened to Grace. The more they question, the more walls they hit. It seems that others in the town want to keep Grace where she is, and would like for these nosy sisters to take it down a notch, get married, have kids, and work in the meatpacking plant.
Amelia and Kylee have other plans, but their blind luck and bad choices put them in so much more danger than they ever conceived. Well written with likable characters living in a miserable little town that makes the perfect stage for Laura’s newest best seller.
Thanks so much to Random house Publishing Group for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. The publishing date is April 23, 2024.
November 15, 2023
Let me start by saying I’m a huge Laura McHugh fan. Her books make my dark-loving heart sing, and Safe and Sound is no different. This book, first and foremost, is about sisterly love in all its forms and how secrets can bond or destroy a family. I fell in love with Amelia, Kylee, and Grace and how their strong connection drove the story to its twisty conclusion. Like all of McHugh’s books, this story is character-driven and full of heart as well as heartbreak. I’m already having a horrible book hangover!
Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an early look in exchange for my honest opinion.
Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an early look in exchange for my honest opinion.
April 26, 2024
3.5 stars
Safe and Sound revolves around two sisters who live in a small town where people never leave. They grew up poor and they want to leave town like their cousin Grace was planning too. Except, she disappeared and has been gone for 6 years now. When a body is unearthed the sisters finally think they may get answers to what happened to their cousin.
I enjoyed the gritty aspect of this novel. You could really sense the poverty the majority of people are facing in Beaumont. I wanted the sisters to leave this town and have a future for themselves. In terms of the mystery, there are several suspects and things get really crazy at the end. I wasn’t expecting the story to take the turn that it did. While I am satisfied with the ending, it did feel quite abrupt.
However, the dual timeline didn’t work for me. I found the past timeline told from Grace’s POV wasn’t essential to the story, apart from us getting to know more about her and the people in her life. I wish there was more of a focus on the present and Amelia’s storyline. I would have loved to see more of her relationship with her mother, sister, and best friend. Several plot lines in the present could have been teased out more as well. Overall though, I enjoyed this mystery and I think it will appeal to those who like dark and gritty mysteries.
Safe and Sound revolves around two sisters who live in a small town where people never leave. They grew up poor and they want to leave town like their cousin Grace was planning too. Except, she disappeared and has been gone for 6 years now. When a body is unearthed the sisters finally think they may get answers to what happened to their cousin.
I enjoyed the gritty aspect of this novel. You could really sense the poverty the majority of people are facing in Beaumont. I wanted the sisters to leave this town and have a future for themselves. In terms of the mystery, there are several suspects and things get really crazy at the end. I wasn’t expecting the story to take the turn that it did. While I am satisfied with the ending, it did feel quite abrupt.
However, the dual timeline didn’t work for me. I found the past timeline told from Grace’s POV wasn’t essential to the story, apart from us getting to know more about her and the people in her life. I wish there was more of a focus on the present and Amelia’s storyline. I would have loved to see more of her relationship with her mother, sister, and best friend. Several plot lines in the present could have been teased out more as well. Overall though, I enjoyed this mystery and I think it will appeal to those who like dark and gritty mysteries.
April 4, 2024
Safe and Sound by Laura McHugh. Thanks to @randomhouse for the gifted Arc ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Sisters Amelia and Kylee have been taken care of by their cousin Grace. She keeps them safe while their single and distant mother works, until one day she goes missing while babysitting. Now, teenagers themselves, they are desperate to leave their small town but want to find the truth about Grace.
I loved this one! Dark and traumatic at many times, it is hopeful with the two sisters and the reliance they have on each other. There are some evil characters in the story, some truly generous and amazing characters, and some characters just playing the cards they were dealt. I will always love an amateur investigation story, especially with young adults trying to beat the odds of their past and future.
“Folks want to think it’s strangers you gotta watch out for, but a place like this, we eat our own.”
Safe and Sound comes out 4/23.
Sisters Amelia and Kylee have been taken care of by their cousin Grace. She keeps them safe while their single and distant mother works, until one day she goes missing while babysitting. Now, teenagers themselves, they are desperate to leave their small town but want to find the truth about Grace.
I loved this one! Dark and traumatic at many times, it is hopeful with the two sisters and the reliance they have on each other. There are some evil characters in the story, some truly generous and amazing characters, and some characters just playing the cards they were dealt. I will always love an amateur investigation story, especially with young adults trying to beat the odds of their past and future.
“Folks want to think it’s strangers you gotta watch out for, but a place like this, we eat our own.”
Safe and Sound comes out 4/23.
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