My thanks to NetGalley, author Dorian Box and the publisher for the ARC of "The Girl Goes Home" in exchange for an honest review.
Here's as honest as I can get. I think I've finally run out of adjectives to describe how much I love this series of books. Any thriller fan who wants genuine heart and soul mixed in with all the suspense and action......look no further. These books are a pure goldmine of page turning entertainment.
Emily Calby, sole survivor of the home invasion slaughter of her mother and little sister, has been toughened by cruel fate to become a force to be reckoned with.......and a fierce avenger against those who harm others. And yet at the same time, she's an achingly hurting, troubled girl, even as she takes on evil while up against impossible odds. Fortunately, in the midst of her chaotic and dangerous coming-of=age, she acquired ex gang leader Lucas as her mentor-protector and at times, exasperated father-figure.
Now a fledgling new lawyer starting her own practice, Emily's contacted by a fellow young attorney back in her original home of Dilfer County Georgia. He's found suspicious documentation concerning the adoption of her late father, who died in a tragic farm equipment accident. Or was it an accident after all?
Emily's return to Dilfer County to get to the bottom of things runs her afoul of a powerful, corrupt family dynasty who control everything in the county including the courts and police. This repugnant, murderous clan think they have nothing to fear from a skinny little blonde girl. But as Emily continues her relentless hunt for the truth, they find out how terribly wrong they were to underestimate her.
What's truly remarkable about all of Emily's perilous adventures is the expert way these books tug on your heart strings even as they're serving up the violent action. (You might practically tear up and/or smile warmly at Emily's first tentative steps at affection and love). I can only hope that author Box doesn't choose to end the series here.
The five stars I'm giving "The Girl Goes Home" is only because the rating system here won't let me go any higher....(which I would in a heartbeat.) Highest recommendation.

I was thrilled to be offered this arc to read and review! I so loved the previous three books and had no idea a fourth was coming. In this story Emily is learning a bit more about her father’s family. She learns that her father was possibly murdered and that is where the fireworks start! Emily is tenacious as always and determined to find out what happened to her father. This leads her to go back to her home and face the awful memories of the murder of her mother and her sister. But she is able to reconnect with her best friend in childhood, Meggie and that is a joy. You should read the previous books first and that will give you the background to Emily’s growth. I would so love to see another book, concentrating on the growth of Emily’s law firm and her relationship with Zach, another lawyer. Also, there was a hint at the end that Emily may have figured out why her family was killed, maybe not so random as the authorities first thought! I think I know the answer but I am not giving anything away! Please let us have a fourth book!
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The Girl Goes Home by Dorian Box
Emily Calby #4

Meeting Emily and watching her grow through this series has been an amazing experience that I hope won’t end with this book ~ Excellent addition to a wonderful series!

What I liked:
* Emily Calby: strong, intelligent, good friend, protective, horrific backstory, survivor, lethal, has PTSD, newly minted lawyer with a practice to give a voice to the voiceless, curious and intrigued by new information about her past, intriguing
* Zach Skellar: lawyer, moved from Chicago to Nantyville, Georgia, Finds documents that he offers to Emily, loved vinyl records, quiet, the opposite to Emily, potential love interest for Emily
* The slow burn romance between Emily and Zach and that they seem to be opposites but good with and for one another
* Lucas Jackson & Kiona: husband and wife that have been like parents to Emily for half her life, strong, supportive, protective, there for her in more ways than one, like them both
* Briley Carr: journalist, followed Emily’s story and wants to write a book, good person, finally meets Emily in this book, integral part in the story
* Meggie Triblet: Emily’s best friend during childhood, mother of two, in the process of divorcing abusive underhanded husband, good friend even after years apart, like her
* Supporting characters: Jemmi/gym owner, Tim/bartender, Myla/housekeeper, Elmer Ferguson/lawyer who sold Zach his practice
* The way the plot was paced with new tidbits of pertinent information coming at just the right
* That I was drawn in, cared about the outcome, and felt invested in Emily and all of the rest of the characters
* That Karma was active in meting out justice…eventually
* Hoping that there will be another book to look forward to

What I didn’t like:
* Who and what I was meant not to like:
* Most of the Wilbur dynasty and the hold they had on the county, the evil they did, the harm they caused
* Thinking about how different the lives of Charlotte, Averill, Sammy, and the next generation could have been if only…

Did I like this book? Yes
Would I read more in this series/by this author? Definitely

Thank you to NetGalley and Friction Pres for the ARC – This is my honest review.

5 Stars

Emily Calby, you live rent-free in my character-driven mind. I loved this book so much I emailed the author with a million "omg"s, and I'm surprised he didn't block me. Why is this book series not yet a Netflix series?

This book gives us so much of Emily's back story, the ancestry she didn't want and didn't know she needed, and I hyperfixated on every page. Like in the other books, the trauma symptoms remain accurately presented, the dialogue is that of a girl emotionally stunted at 12 (but with a law degree), and the characters live on the extreme opposites of the sinister-versus-good spectrum.

I suggest everyone start at book 1 and fall in love with one of the most persistent, endearing, willful, resilient, and loveable young adult characters written.

I think I squealed a little when I saw there that was another book in the Emily Calby series by Dorian Box. It was just published at the beginning of January, 2025. If you haven’t read this series yet, I encourage you to do so. The whole series is heartbreaking and uplifting at the same time.

I was captivated by the story line of a twelve-year-old girl whose family was murdered, but she managed to escape. In each book, the reader learns more about Emily’s life. I’m not going to share about her life, in case you haven’t read the previous books yet. You should definitely start with Book 1, The Hiding Girl.

Once again, Dorian Box has written an exciting, adventurous, heartbreaking, and uplifting book. To be honest, I don’t think I would have loved it as much if I had not read the whole series first. I think you should definitely do that. It answers so many questions from the previous books.

I love the characters of Emily and Lucas. His fierce love as her father-figure is endearing. Plus, Emily is a badass, and you have to love a strong, female character.

Box does a wonderful job of showing how Emily deals with her past trauma. He examines her internal struggles as an adult. He also explores how a childhood trauma can affect every single part of your life.

I definitely recommend this whole series. I would say that Book 2 and 4 were my favorites, but I liked each one.

I gave this book five out of five stars because of the adventure, mystery, and romance part of the book. I hope there will still be more books in this series.

Thank you to NetGalley, Friction Press, and Dorian Box for my free copy of this book. This is my honest review.