Love makes fools of us all, and we all know nothing is stronger than a mother’s love. Simone and Lucy just wanted to have a nice mother-daughter holiday camping in the west Texas desert.
Note to self: never book a holiday in west Texas.
Lucy is snatched from her bed in the middle of the night, with nothing but an outdated flip phone in her place. When it rings, it’s an unknown caller, and they’ve ransomed her daughter. Simone and Lucy are in a time of transition. Lucy is preparing to go off to college, and Simone is feeling the absence of her more than ever, making the ache of intense love only a mother can understand more tender than ever. Perhaps it is this specific texture of feeling that leads to what happens next.
What would you do, when pressed into a corner, to recover one you love?
Gillian McAllister is so good at what she does. Her thrillers have an atmosphere and a desperation and a logic that propels you through the pages relentlessly. It’s a story about familial love, it’s a story of desperation, it’s a story about having to move without knowing if it’s safe, where it’s safe, or who is safe.
Don’t miss it.
Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Details
Title::Caller Unknown
Author::Gillian McAllister
Genre:: Thriller
Publisher:: Willam Morrow
Length:: 336 pages
Published::May 5th, 2026
The Litertarian Rating:: 5-Stars
If you liked this book, check out…
Wrong Place Wrong Time | Gillian McAllister
Every Moment Since | Marybeth Mayhew Whelan
Beautiful Ugly | Alice Feeney
The House in the Pines | Ana Reyes
Nobody’s Fool | Harlan Coben