by Todd Ritter
First published 2011
Eric Olmstead comes back to his hometown to bury his mother and honor her final request: discover what happened to his younger brother Charlie. The boy disappeared on July 20, 1969, the same night astronauts first walked on the moon. Charlie had pedaled away on his bicycle, hoping to get a better view of the historic event, and never returned home. Now, years later, Eric teams up with Kat Campbell, the town's former police chief, to investigate the cold case. Together they examine evidence that Eric's mother had gathered obsessively over the decades. Their search reveals disturbing possibilities: Charlie might not have been this small town's only missing child. The community has spent years protecting its secrets, choosing comfortable lies over difficult truths. As Eric and Kat dig deeper, they confront not just the mystery of one boy's fate, but the lasting damage that unresolved loss inflicts on those left behind.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime, thriller
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: investigation, small-town
Setting: Hometown
Period: 1969
368 pages · Hardcover · Minotaur Books