I'd Know You Anywhere, by Laura Lippman

When Elizabeth was a teenager, she was abducted by a man named Walter, who had (presumably) been abducting, raping, and murdering young girls.  But when he found Elizabeth, instead of following his usual protocol, he instead kept her with him for many weeks.  Eventually she was rescued, and Walter ended up on death row.  Now, many years later, Walter tracks down the adult Elizabeth and tries to pull her into his web once more.

I have to tell you, this was one of the most emotional reads I have had in a very long time.  The character of Elizabeth/Eliza is so strong, and well developed, you bond with her from the very beginning.  Your heart breaks for her, both in her childhood and her adult life, as she deals with her traumas.  And I found myself having a complicated relationship with Walter; I actually somewhat liked his character, but I hated the things that he did.

I liked the structure of the book; it changed time period or character focus with each chapter.  This allowed the reader to have a fuller picture of the story, and was done so skillfully that the story was fluid, regardless of the shifts.  Not one time was I confused about the timeline or the action.

When I first started reading the book, I could only read a bit at a time.  It really was a bit overwhelming, emotionally.  However, the closer I got to the end, the more urgently I read, and by the last section of the book, there was no putting it down.  It would have been more traumatic to draw it out, rather that to get to the resolution.

This book is intense, no doubt about it, but such a wonderful read.  I would really encourage any fan of women's literature, or dramatic novels about women overcoming adversity to read this book.  It leaves quite the lasting impression.

I received a touring review copy from Crazy Book Tours.