The Forgotten Girl
The past has arrived uninvited at Jason Danvers’s door in the form of his younger sister, Hayden, a former addict who severed all contact with her family as her life spiraled out of control. Now she’s clean and sober but in need of a desperate favor—she asks Jason and his wife to take care of her teenage daughter for forty-eight hours while she handles some business in town.
But Hayden never returns.
And her disappearance brings up more unresolved problems from Jason’s past, including the abrupt departure of his best friend on their high school graduation night twenty-seven years earlier. When a body is discovered in the woods, the mysteries of his sister’s life—and possible death—deepen. And one by one these events will shatter every expectation Jason has ever had about families, about the awful truths that bind them.
Praise for: The Forgotten Girl
- Publishers Weekly bestseller
- Target Emerging Authors selection
“[A] strong and moody novel… personal relationships are critical in this satisfying read, which is in the same class as Russell Banks’ The Sweet Hereafter.” —Kirkus Reviews “David Bell is a natural storyteller and a superb writer. THE FORGOTTEN GIRL is a mystery lover’s mystery; a quick-paced and intriguing tale of what happens when the past catches up with the present. Mr. Bell understands the hearts and minds of ordinary and not so ordinary people, and his keen insights add a powerful dimension to his crisp writing.” —Nelson DeMille, #1 New York Times bestselling author RADIANT ANGEL “David Bell writes spellbinding and gripping thrillers that get under your skin and refuse to let go. This is his best so far.” —Linwood Barclay, New York Times and #1 international bestselling author THE TWENTY-THREE “David Bell’s THE FORGOTTEN GIRL is both a tightly-woven mystery and a frightening look at addiction, the mistrust it creates, the power of secrets, and the hurt created by the little lies we tell ourselves. I never felt like I had my feet under me. Bell has crafted an unforgettable story full of surprises. Don’t miss it.” —J.T. Ellison, New York Times bestselling author NO ONE KNOWS “Tense, cleverly plotted thriller from Bell [who] skillfully throws curveballs into the story line… jaw-dropping finale.” —Publishers Weekly “[Bell is] a bang-up storyteller, armed with enough detours and surprises to keep the pages turning.” —The Cleveland Plain Dealer “The best crime novels combine a breakneck thriller plot with a piercing examination of family relationships. THE FORGOTTEN GIRL hits this standard and then some.” —Jeffery Deaver, New York Times bestselling author of THE SKIN COLLECTOR “David Bell has fashioned a taut gem of a mystery in THE FORGOTTEN GIRL, a tale straight out of the psychological thriller territory blazed by the likes of Harlan Coben and Lisa Gardner.” —The Providence Journal “Realistic glimpses of small-town America…You might want to read it the next time you’re drawn back to the place you came from. It’ll remind you of why you got the hell out of there in the first place.” —The Washington Post
Trailer for The Forgotten Girl
Domestic Publisher
New American Library, an imprint of Penguin Books USA