Another Girl Lost

Mary Burton

Montlake Pub

Sept 17^th, 2024

Another Girl Lost by Mary Burton has suspense, intrigue, and mystery. This plot will keep readers wondering if her characters are like the ones in the book Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn or are they real heroines, especially after the victim becomes a suspect.

“This is stand-alone. I wanted to use gaslighting, how a woman believes she knows the truth but everyone around her is convinced she is wrong.  I thought that is a good jump off point to have the heroine remember something while everyone around her is trying to convince her that might not be true.

Ten years ago, fifteen-year-old Scarlett Crosby was held captive in a terrifying ordeal with a girl named Della. Scarlett escaped, their predator was killed, and Della simply vanished. A decade later, Scarlett is a successful artist. As hard as she tries to move on, the mysterious Della remains her inescapable obsession. 

“I wanted my heroines to have imperfections that push the boundaries and are dealing with their own demons and imperfections. Their intentions are very good people with their methods unconventional. They are also trying to be independent.”

Della knew Scarlett’s secrets, understanding the desperate compromises Scarlett made to endure hell, and who, like Scarlett, embraced the darkness to survive, considering they were abused. The scenes of abuse are somewhat disturbing but not graphically described. Now Scarlett is confronted when a girl’s body is discovered, a link to her horrific past, and all her old traumas resurface. Nobody except Scarlett believes that Della ever existed, including Detective Kevin Dawson, who killed her captor and rescued her initially. But Scarlett still feels as if Della is around every corner.

“Della is connected to the heroine, Scarlett.  Scarlett thinks she comes back for her own reasons to want to control her. She was trapped with Scarlett, which bonded them in many ways. She discovered the body of another girl when trapped with Scarlett by the rapist. She embraced the darkness. While trapped with Scarlett she used hate and fear to her advantage.”

Scarlett is frustrated that people think she is lying or confused about Della returning. She is clear-headed.  She has not let go of Della.  She is angry about Della, even obsessed with her, and cannot move on. This is why she keeps repainting Della’s picture. I think she is broken, trying to put herself back together, but the cracks are there. She is getting stronger, but still is fragile. Scarlett is searching for normalization.  She is trying to leave her past behind, but it is not letting her go.  Scarlett is trying to distance herself from the darkness, which was helped by the Judge.”

Detective Dawson and his partner Margo Larson are both trying to pin on Scarlett the murder of the girl discovered.  They no longer see her as a victim but now a suspect.  Scarlett believes that it was Della who participated in the murder, but no one believes Della is alive. The detectives believe Della was made up to help Scarlett cope with her terrible situation or to give her an alibi for the murdered girl found.

What makes the plot very interesting is how it goes back and forth between present and past. Readers get to know Scarlett better realizing she was broken while trapped in the basement, trying to build a normal life, and how she is dangerously obsessed with Della. Although broken, she is did not permanently break even with her psychological and physical abuse. 

It is interesting how the main characters are all involved in subterfuge and deception. All the characters are complex. The plot is gripping, engaging, twisty, dark, with triggers and twists.

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