This book went in a much different t direction than I anticipated. I was expecting this to be more of a thriller, but I was surprised to find that this was more of a mystery intertwined with family drama. I loved how the relationship between the two sisters were portrayed, and how the death of their mother impacted each of them. This was a slow burn, which I normally don’t mind. However, I felt that this book did drag out longer than it needed to. This is the only reason why this was not a five star for me, but this could easily be a five star for someone else!

3.5/5

I wasn't really sure how I wanted to rate Knife River by Justine Champine and I still don’t know if I like my rating. This is a character driven storyline that reminded me a lot of In Cold Blood by the beloved Truman Capote. I didn’t like that book because of how slow and over-the-top descriptive it was, which was the vibe I got from this one except different? I liked the mystery element but that isn’t really as front and center as the character study of Jess and the bonds of sisterhood after a tragedy.

I got to listen to the audiobook which is narrated by Jennifer Pickens, and she is definitely what kept me going. Slow, character-driven books aren’t always my jam and without her this may have been a DNF. However, I am really glad I finished because the ending completely shocked me. I can’t say it made the slowness worth it, but it was up there with twists I didn’t see coming. I also have to admit that Champine’s writing is very expressive and sharp; something I took into consideration when giving Knife River a star rating.

I first need to address expectations with this book because I think expectations, in this case, have the potential to kill it for some readers.
When a book kicks off with a disappearance and then finding the remains, I think it sets up expectations of a mystery or a thriller…or at least something a bit more fast-paced. That is NOT the case with this book. BUT - credit to the publisher for calling this Literary Fiction in Edelweiss.
This story is quiet and not much happens - but, that’s what I was in the mood for at the time.
The writing is really good.
At 56%, I was actually undecided on what the overall point of the story was or if I liked it.
Ultimately, this felt like a quiet story about sisters. And, their mother’s murder is just something they’re dealing with, but not the central point of the story.
We get to watch their relationship grow and evolve as they’re brought together and there is hope in this story. And, I liked that.
I’m intrigued by this debut author and will absolutely read her next book!

Knife River (2 1/2 stars)is a bit of mystery and dysfunctional sisters trying to cope with their mothers disappearance.
Jess was a child when her mother disappeared and had to rely on her older sister, Liz, to take care of her.
Liz and her mother had an argument the morning of her disappearance. Liz’s world comes to a stop and she has to give up her dreams of college and getting out of town to care for her little Jess. Fast forward present day Liz is still emotionally traumatized and having difficulty coping with moving on.
Jess left Knife River immediately after graduation and plans to push push forward. She never kept anything stable. She moved around frequently after breakups and would move onto another girlfriend and wherever that took her.
Jess returns home when Liz calls and tells her they found bones and think it’s their mothers remains. Once home Jess finds herself in the small town vibes that the people haven’t changed and their attitudes/beliefs/values are stuck in the 1970’s.
This book started off strong, mediocre middle, and little twist at end but not jaw dropping.
Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group/The Dial Press for the ARC read in exchange for my review.

I really enjoyed this book — it was definitely more literary than mystery, but I really liked getting to know Jess and Liz, and the author’s writing managed to be both gripping and beautiful. A great read, plus a satisfying ending.

The writing was good but the story was painfully slow and the characters very unlikeable--I really had to force myself to stick with this book.

While for me this was a case of wrong expectations (I thought I was reading a page turning mystery), if you go in with the right expectations this could be for you. If you are looking for a slow burn, character driven, small town story, this could be for you.

For me, this novel felt a bit slow (or at least slower than I expect for a mystery). It also explores relationships (family lovers, neighbors, etc) but it felt that some of these lingered a bit too long, and resulted in losing the plot line. Although my attention felt divided, I did like both---the exploration of complicated relationships and the plot of two daughters wrecked by their mothers disappearance many years ago and the body that is discovered that might be her's. I think there is great potential here and the writer is quite talented, but maybe tried to do a bit too much.

Listed as a mystery, this story does indeed have a mystery at its core. However, it’s so much more a character study, particularly of Jess, the main character, who is also the narrator.. Her inner workings, thoughts, physical reaction to stresses are all finely detailed. The setting of her childhood home, the home of Eva (girlfriend of her youth), and even of parking lots and the police station are detailed - giving this reader the same physical reactions as Jess. You can see, smell, and almost touch each location in the story..

As much as I love detail, this was almost too much detail. It became repetitive. Several times I considered jumping ahead - just get to it. At 47% I assumed I was near the end.

The things I’ve criticized, however, are also the things I loved. I felt I knew many of the characters personally. I carried the feeling of the story around with me, even when not reading. I understand this is a debut novel - I will definitely look for this author’s next book.

Round up to 3.5

This smart, literary thriller had me from page one. Sisters, a missing mother who turned their lives upside down, this was just delicious.

This was an engrossing read. The book had a chilling tone to it. No wonder as Jess lost her mother when she was thirteen. Well, they never found out what happened to her. She just disappeared. Jess and her sister have made the best of the past fifteen years. And now, their mother’s remains have been found. The story is about how the two sisters have dealt with their loss during the past years. And how they will deal with this new part of their lives.

This is a SLOOOOOOOOWWWWW burn. It is more about a woman's personal growth especially in relationships. Can she overcome her past traumas to finally find love in a small, sometimes unforgiving town? The "mystery" of the mother's remains being found is WAAAY back burner and really doesn't make a difference until literally the last chapter when the author rushes to wrap things up. I did enjoy the LGBTQ aspect and the sister definitely has neurodivergent tendencies.

I think if I had different expectations going in, I would have enjoyed it more. It is not a mystery/thriller by any stretch. It is more a coming of age story with a smallish, tiny dash of long drawn out mystery thrown in.

I would like to thank NetGalley and The Dial Press for providing me with an advance e-galley of this book in exchange for an honest review. Look for it now in your local and online bookstores and libraries.

When Jess was thirteen her mother went for a walk and never returned. Jess and her older sister Liz never found out what happened. Instead, they did what they hoped their mother would do: survive. As soon as she was old enough, Jess fled their small town of Knife River, wandering from girlfriend to girlfriend like a ghost in her own life, aimless in her attempts to outrun grief and confusion. But one morning fifteen years later she gets the call she’s been bracing herself for: Her mother's remains have been found.

I had mixed feelings on this book. On one hand I liked it but it was just really slow for me. The beginning and the end were the best parts. The middle is where it was really slow. The characters were great.

Liz calls Jess saying they found bones and she thinks it's their moms. Jess comes back to Knife River and she then has to deal with her crap. We find out the killer isn't who we think it is. Like I said great beginning and ending just kinda slow in the middle.



I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Knife River tells the story of a young woman named Jess who returns to her hometown, Knife River, fifteen years after her mother first disappeared. While Jess has been dealing with the family tragedy by leaving home and dating girlfriends, her sister Liz has been stuck in their small town, relentlessly trying to solve missing person cases. Jess' return forces the sisters to examine the complex depths of their relationship with each other and their relationship with their mother, even as they navigate the past and all it has to hide. This was an intoxicating read that pulled me in. I enjoyed the portrayal of the small town atmosphere and the claustrophobia that goes with it, and the unanswered questions kept me turning pages far into the night. If you enjoy true crime and family drama, you will enjoy Knife River.

Thank you to NetGalley for a free copy of the book in exchange for a fair review.

This was a slow-moving literary mystery that just didn’t work for me. The prose was so beautiful and gorgeous but in service of such a lackluster story.

Some of my favorite mystery novels are slow-burns so I was not unprepared but Knife River really took it to the next level and unfortunately, I do not mean that in a good way. I honestly struggled to stay focused throughout the entire story because it felt like absolutely nothing was happening. I understand that probably was supposed to be the “point,” to show a “realistic” cold case investigation in a small town. But I felt totally unmotivated to continue reading after about the halfway mark when there had been absolutely 0 progress made in the central mystery.

I really loved the dynamic between the sisters and the close look at how their mother’s disappearance changed them in such different ways. I liked the depiction of their initial discomfort and even distrust of each other after being out of touch for so many years.

However, I really struggled with Liz and Jess’ insistence on a certain suspect being their mother’s killer. It made absolutely no sense but they were so dead-set and certain. I could understand Liz being fixated on this suspect but it did not make sense for Jess’ character and really took me out of the story.

This novel skillfully weaves a compelling mystery around the long-standing disappearance of Jess and Liz's mother, drawing readers in with its exploration of grief, family dynamics, and small-town secrets. The author's vivid portrayal of Knife River and its inhabitants creates a palpable atmosphere of suspense, while Jess's journey of self-discovery adds depth to the central mystery. However, despite the strong buildup and engaging narrative, the final revelation fails to match the intricacy of the plot, leaving readers with a sense of anticlimax that doesn't quite live up to the story's initial promise.

This novel is compulsively readable and I was really moved and impressed by the author's work here. I love queer stories, so I was automatically interested, but the story and pacing had me hooked from the beginning. I love the prose, the movement of this book, and its willingness to look at grief, what it means to have a missing parent, to live with yourself when you're haunted. Definitely recommend!

"Knife River" is a brilliant debut from Justine Champine. It is very character driven with an interesting twist. I also felt that this novel was about more than solving the mother's case, its also a story about sisterhood and forgiveness despite trauma.

- KNIFE RIVER is a murder mystery that’s mainly a character study of two sisters forced into a life they never wanted.
- I loved the dynamics in this book, with both sisters being prickly and loving in their own ways.
- There’s honestly so much at play in this book. Small towns, queerness, familial relations, leaving vs staying, being forced to grow up too soon. And all of this as the women begin to uncover what might have really happened to their mom all those years ago.
- Also, it isn’t named in the book, but Liz reads as autistic to me. I loved that Jess simply knew this was the way her sister was and met her there.
- I did figure out whodunnit before the end but not the how, and the how was so devastating I lost my breath for a moment.