u/MidwestKanaka

This book was a full sensory experience. The world building was phenomenal. The characters were developed and nuanced so they were easy to get invested in.

The plot did remind me of The Heir Chronicles which I read 20 years ago. Both had the theme of characters forced to fight an ongoing battle as pawns in others’ games. This books battle was more on Nature vs Nurture.

I didn’t like the jumping around the timeline even when I could see what the author was building towards. I loved the multigenerational aspect. So much of the book came alive in my mind as if I was watching/experiencing it first hand.

It’s rare that I read nonfiction so I’m really happy I got through this memoir of a woman whose entire life was stolen by the identity theft her parents and eventually she suffered. It’s set in rural Indiana, which is where I live too, so a lot of the places mentioned I recognize which probably kept me more invested.

Her parents’ paranoia around the identity theft led them to isolate themselves from everyone as they suspected any one of being out to get them. Add the constant money struggles trying to exist in a world where credit scores are so important to having places to live, cars to drive, loans for school.

The book is slower before the last chunk where the author is an adult and throws herself into the investigation and finally gets answers on the lifetime of mystery she’s experienced.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I struggled with how close to home this book hit with relating a lot to both Courtney and Emily. The book showed Courtney’s constant mental load and doubts and I’m right there with her. But she got a lot of things wrong with her suspicions and caused more chaos than necessary.

I also have a teen daughter close in age to Reese and reading her thoughts was especially painful. The cyber bullying and her ill fated romantic tryst were really hard to get through.

One theme was the dangers of unrestricted access to tech and the damage it could cause.

It was a decent read overall and I liked how the timelines wove together. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️