Blood Wounds by Susan Beth Pfeffer

Tolstoy said that all happy families are alike, but Jack, Willa's stepdad, disagrees. He thinks all happy families come in their own shapes and varieties, the same as unhappy ones. Willa lives with her mom, stepdad, and two stepsisters. Her mom is back in school, one sister is a tennis player, the other plays lacrosse and competes in equestrian competitions, and Willa sings in the school choir. They are busy. But everything changes when they learn that her biological dad, who she hasn't seen in years, murdered his new wife and children and is on his way to her and her mother.

This book is about what happens after such a tragedy. How people react around Willa, what she does, and what she finds out. She journeys back to her childhood, and finds out so much about herself, her mother, and what family really means. This is a leap from Life As We Knew It, certainly, but it is vivid, expertly written, and emotionally intense. I read this in one sitting, wanting to know how it would resolve. You will too.

Available Sept 13