The Marcheson family is slowly coming undone. The parents are divorced, and Kik, the mom, is afraid she’s about to lose her teaching job. The oldest daughter is skipping school, doing drugs, and angry most of the time. The middle daughter is cracking under the family stress, and the youngest is precocious. Grasping at straws, they turn to a TV psychologist for help. Just as they are beginning to see improvements, one of the girls goes missing. The crisis will either tear the family apart forever or help them bind together.

Close by Erika Raskin, looks at the fragile link that holds families together. The unraveling of one thread can rapidly lead to the disassembling of the whole unit. Parents and children may have the best intentions, but they don’t always let their true selves be known. Instead, they may hide sadness and insecurity behind a mask of anger, sarcasm, disorganization, and overwork. Finding a way out is difficult, because someone has to know how to take the first step. But if they can find a way to express love and trust with each other, they may be able to carve a path to a brighter future.

Close switches back and forth between the Mom’s point of view and that of each of the two oldest daughters. This lends a little perspective that helps readers understand each of their stories and makes it readable by a wide range of ages from 15 up.

The publisher provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.