Paradise

Billie Paradise's family past is riddled with secrets and sadness. She knows there are dark reasons why her mother has kept so much of her history hidden from her, but when she inherits her grandmother's old mansion-esque home in her mother's hometown, she thinks that maybe moving back will help all of them (her mother, her half-brother, and herself) move on and move into a new, brighter life.

The story is told in present-tense when we read Billie's POV; there are also glimpses from the third person into Billie's mother's childhood and from her grandmother's perspective at different times during her rocky marriage. These spotlights on specific moments in the past have an especially poignant building-up effect on the present-day discoveries Billie begins to make after they move to her mother's seaside hometown. It is clear that her mother's past has not only kept her from fulfilling her dreams, but that moving back into the home of her childhood is not a solution, but rather, a prison dragging her mother further into depression. I found Billie's internal dialogue both familiar and painful--and watching her mother sink further and further into darkness was especially heartbreaking, yet compelling to read. I was longing for Billie to uncover every secret, knowing that discovering the truth would set all of them free. But when she begins throwing caution to the wind, it becomes clear that there will be more dark consequences. But uncovering the mystery as I turned each page became more and more necessary the further into the story I went.

Billie's interactions with those around her are so limited (in description) that I found it hard to really pin down who she was. Yet, in a way, this made sense as I went through the story, because even at the beginning, she admits that she is desperate to know "Who am I?" and knows the answers lie in her past, which has been locked away in her mother's heart her entire life. I did want more of her, however. Her mother was an incredibly well-drawn character,and I began to feel her pain and care deeply for her, longing for her to get better and let the past come forth. Other characters are very well-written, especially for how brief their 'screen time' ends up being.

This book is depressing, but worth a read for the way it conveys the concept that lies destroy, but truth is freeing.