Pray for the Girl

Joseph Souza

Apr 2019 · Kensington Books

About this ebook

Joseph Souza, acclaimed author of The Neighbor, brings readers into the dark heart of a small town in this riveting, relentlessly twisting new novel . . .
 
Lucy Abbott never pictured herself coming back to Fawn Grove, Maine. Yet after serving time in Afghanistan, then years spent as a sous chef in New York, she’s realized her only hope of moving on from the past involves facing it again. But Fawn Grove, like Lucy herself, has changed.
 
Lucy’s sister, Wendy, is eager to help her adapt, almost stifling her with concern. At the local diner, Lucy is an exotic curiosity—much like the refugees who’ve arrived in recent years. When a fifteen-year-old Muslim girl is found murdered along the banks of the river, difficult memories of Lucy’s time overseas come flooding back and she feels an automatic connection. At first glance, the tragedy looks like an honor killing. But the more Lucy learns about her old hometown, the less certain that seems.
 
There is menace and hostility here, clothed in neighborly smiles and a veneer of comfort. And when another teen is found dead in a cornfield, his throat slit, Lucy—who knows something about hiding secrets—must confront a truth more brutal than she could have imagined, in the last place she expected it . . .
 
“Delivers one devilish twist after another, pulling you into the story and never letting go. A tightly paced suspense drawn with compellingly real characters, Souza’s newest domestic thriller is a genre-defining tour-de-force.”
—Steve Konkoly

Ratings and reviews

This is the first book I have read by Joseph Souza. This is not a light hearted story, it is intense. The book is told from Lucys point of view. Our vet who returns from the war minus her legs, who detoured to New York as a Sous chef to try and drown out the voices. She returns to her small home town to get her life together. The books starts with Lucy taking an interest in the murder of an Afghanistan 15 year old. You settle in as much as you can dealing with mental anguish and physical being Lucy. The story is so deftly told you ARE Lucy. While your investigating the death along with members from your past who don't recognize you, your catapulted into twist, turns, secrets and evil in book 2. And what about the ending? She's ready. Thank you you Joseph Souza, Kensington Books and Net Galley. All thoughts and opinions are my own and were unsolicited.

About the author

Before launching his writing career, Joseph Souza worked as an intelligence analyst for the Drug Enforcement Agency (Organized Crime Unit) in Washington, D.C. His award-winning short fiction and essays have been published in literary journals throughout the country. He lives in Portland, Maine, with his wife and two children.