Pretty Baby by Mary Kubica | Rating: ★★★★☆ “But there was something telling about that photograph, I thought; our protective glass frame shattered and now here we were, punctured with microscopic holes that might one day tear. Those holes all had names: mortgage, adolescent child, lack of communication, retirement savings, cancer.”
As a note, a printed galley of this novel was sent to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not effect my opinions in any way.
Mary Kubica’s newest novel, Pretty Baby, was an unexpected surprise for me. I have never read anything by Kubica up until this point, however, I’d heard many great things about her previous release. Pretty Baby has a summary that borders on Lifetime cheesiness at the hand of a mystery-thriller and while it incorporates many elements that parallel movies from Lifetime, the end product is far more chilling and intelligent than you’d expect.
It is a pretty solid release that touches a lot of topics that may be triggering to readers. But for the most part, readers will find themselves easily hypnotized by her haunting story. Mary Kubica doesn’t shy away from the gritty, raw, texture of life and human emotion–there are many moments in which your skin will crawl in the most typical of ways because of the way she portrays it all.
