Book Review - "My Name Is Emily Ray" by Michele Dominguez Greene

Blurb:

Emily Ray. Josie Vance. Danica Hansen. Three girls with one thing in common: they were all seven years old when they were abducted.

When young Josie Vance vanishes from Cove Park, California, leaving behind her light-up sneakers, Special Agent Emily Ray leads the investigation to find her. She is the very best at finding abducted children. Twenty-eight years ago, she was one of them.

As she leads the hunt, the kidnapper sends a drawing. It depicts a little girl in pink leggings, standing before a brick house, clutching silver balloons. The address scrawled in the background is identical to where Emily was held captive.

Along with a hair clip and a faded children's book, the clues spark a chilling realization: Her abductor may still be alive.

To find the missing girl, Emily must unearth the past she buried. But with every step, she fears the case is not just about saving one child, but confronting the man who's returned to destroy the life she's painstakingly rebuilt from the ashes.

My review:

This book pulled me in right from the start. Fast-paced and emotionally charged, this story follows Emily Ray, a woman who survived being kidnapped as a child and now works for the FBI, helping to locate missing children.

I loved the direction the author took with Emily’s character. Turning such a traumatic past into a drive to protect others is not just powerful, it’s the kind of psychological healing and purpose we can only hope for in real life. It made her feel so real and relatable. Fighting your own demons while facing the world? That really hit home.

Without spoiling anything, I’ll just say: the twist completely blindsided me. I gasped. Total “what did I just read?!” moment.

Apparently this is the start of a series, and I’m already looking forward to more. I finished this ARC on publication day, which feels like perfect timing.

If you want to read it too, you can find this book here: My Name Is Emily Ray