Michelle Richmond

No One You Know is one of those stories that doesn't grab you so much as slowly suck you in. As everyone who has sat fuming at the table while a relative or friend tells a story about you, that while not exactly untrue, frames you in way you do not wish to be seen can attest, sometimes the stories people tell about us affect us more that we wish.
Ellie Enderlin was the younger daughter, sister to a math genius who is murdered. Later, her sister Lila's death becomes the subject of a true crime show more story. The story opens almost two decades after Lila's death, when Ellie encounters a man from her sister's past that sets Ellie on the journey to try and figure out the truth of what happened to her sister.
The story examines perceptions,love, truth and proof in a myriad of ways. San Francisco, coffee (as Ellie is now a coffee taster) and mathematicians figure in also. It's one of those stories I hate to talk too much about for fear of spoiling the way the layers unfold. I found it an enjoyable read. show less

What is the making of a fabulous read? My thoughts changed on this book. It has always been a book which keeps me riveted and unable to put down. This book is there! I was unable to stop reading. I absolutely had to find out what was next. I was snatching 3 minutes here, 5 minutes there. Intense is an understatement. All of that being said…I did not figure out, until I was half way through this book, what I did not like. This is a five star read! I can't put it down right??

The problem show more is….the characters. They do not act the way they should. Alice and Jake are highly intelligent people. Alice is an attorney and Jake is a therapist. They basically sign up to be in a cult. Yes! The Marriage Pact is a cult and a vicious one at that. These two "highly intelligent" people fall right into the trap of the Pact. They do no research. They never stop to think. They just blindly follow and sign everything in front of them…she is an attorney!! SHE KNOWS BETTER!! And Jake is no better….he does whatever Alice tells him to do. These two just didn't fit the cult followers to me.

All of that out of the way. This is such a psychotic read! I was all over the place. I was mad, frightened, gasping for air and almost cried…TWICE!! The intensity of the feelings that pass through the reader during this novel is above and beyond. This is a non stop and crazy story. Do not miss this. It is worth every crazy step!

"The Pact had the mysterious draw of those things that both repulse and attract you at the same time" – The Marriage Pact show less

Every story is an invention, subject to the whims of the author. For the audience on the other side of the page, the words march forward with a certain inevitability—as if the story could exist one way only, the way in which it is written. But there is never just one way to tell a story. Someone has chosen the beginning and end. Someone has chosen who will emerge as the hero or heroine, and who will play the villain. Each choice is made at the expense of an infinite number of variations. show more Who is to say which version of the story is true?

Since her sister's unsolved murder two decades ago, Ellie Enderlin has been living out her role in her family's story. In the months after her sister's death, Ellie had worked through her grief in conversations with a trusted professor/mentor/friend. Her trust was betrayed when her mentor revealed his intention to publish a true crime account of her sister's murder, filled with the details Ellie had shared with him about her family's life and the effect of her sister's death. The book became a best-seller and launched a successful writing career for the professor. In the intervening years, Ellie accepted his account of her sister's murder and the circumstantial evidence pointing to the guilt of a person who had never been charged with the murder. However, an unexpected encounter with the supposed murderer causes Ellie to question what she had believed for so many years, and to launch her own investigation into her sister's death.

This is much more than a murder mystery. It's a reflection on truth and story, on perception and reality. It's a meditation on mathematical conjecture and proof. It's a contemplation of relationships – sibling, parent/child, teacher/student, husband/wife/lovers. It's a beautifully told story that pulled me in from the first page and held me until the last. Even though I couldn't put it down and ending up reading it in just a few sittings in the course of 24 hours, it didn't feel like I was rushing through the story to finally learn “whodunit”. I savored every word. Highly recommended for literary mystery readers, coffee lovers, and math geeks. show less

One of the worst nightmares that could possibly happen, while walking along a foggy beach, Abby lets go of the little hand and allows her future step-daughter to run ahead. She only looks away a few moments to take a photograph, but that’s all it takes to change things forever.

This is a book that was both very hard to read and very hard to put down. The heartbreaking and compelling story of how people cope with the tragedy of a missing child. From the first desperate search, Abby is show more convinced the little girl has been kidnapped and wracks her brains to remember a detail that could lead to finding Emma. Emma’s father and the police come to believe that the child was taken by a sneaker wave, a drowning victim. A memorial service is held, but Abby still cannot let go, even at the cost of her relationship.

She is sure that she holds the key to finding Emma and following up on her memories leads her to Costa Rica where she is finally faced with the answer of what happened to Emma.

Michelle Richmond handles this story deftly, just laying it out simply and letting us feel the emotion without jamming it down our throats. Her insight and sensitivity make this beautifully written book linger in the memory.

If you think you could handle the difficult subject matter, I would highly recommend A Year of Fog. show less