By Angie Kim
Source Library
Published by Sarah Chrichton Books
on April 16, 2019
How far will you go to protect your family? Will you keep their secrets? Ignore their lies?
In a small town in Virginia, a group of people know each other because they’re part of a special treatment center, a hyperbaric chamber that may cure a range of conditions from infertility to autism. But then the chamber explodes, two people die, and it’s clear the explosion wasn’t an accident.
A powerful showdown unfolds as the story moves across characters who are all maybe keeping secrets, hiding betrayals. Chapter by chapter, we shift alliances and gather evidence: Was it the careless mother of a patient? Was it the owners, hoping to cash in on a big insurance payment and send their daughter to college? Could it have been a protester, trying to prove the treatment isn’t safe?
Miracle Creek uncovers the worst prejudice and best intentions, tense rivalries and the challenges of parenting a child with special needs. It carefully pieces together the tense atmosphere of a courtroom drama and the complexities of life as an immigrant family. Drawing on the author’s own experiences as a Korean-American, former trial lawyer, and mother of a “miracle submarine” patient, this is a novel steeped in suspense and igniting discussion. Recommended by Erin Morgenstern, Jean Kwok, Jennifer Weiner, Scott Turow, Laura Lippman, and more-- Miracle Creek is a brave, moving debut from an unforgettable new voice.
This had been on my TBR since it was first published. I managed to go into this without really knowing anything about it, other than that it was a sort of courtroom drama, and that everyone seemed to love it.
This was a fantastic book. It was really well-written, kept me guessing, and it was totally heartbreaking. This was a great book, but it made me so so sad. (I mentioned on Litsy that it was so heartbreaking that I almost wish I hadn’t read it – I know that’s kind of a strange compliment for a book, but it accurately captures how I felt when I finished it)
This is Angie Kim’s debut novel, and I’m definitely looking forward to what she writes next!