The thriller, When the Stars Go Dark, is a departure from Paula McLain’s previous books. The Paris Wife, the story of Earnest Hemingway and his first wife, Hadley Richardson, is a fabulous historical fiction novel by McLain and is her normal genre. However, When the Stars Go Dark shows the author’s writing versatility.
The book begins with missing persons detective Anna Hart leaving her husband in San Francisco after a tragedy and going to Mendocino, where she grew up, to reflect. However, a teenage girl goes missing in Mendocino, and Anna volunteers to help Will Flood, the local sheriff and high school friend, with the case.
The novel delves into Anna’s childhood, much of which is spent in foster care, as she is working on the case. She has special insight into helping children since she had dealt with so much as a child. The real-life missing persons case of Polly Klass is intertwined with the fictitious cases in the novel, hence the 1993 timeframe.
The author’s descriptions of Mendocino are beautifully written and Anna Hart is a strongly-developed character. When the Stars Go Dark is a suspenseful read, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see Anna Hart in future McLain novels.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
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