Name: The Family Tree
ISBN: 9780008461256

Steph Mullin

Nicole Mabry

“This thriller keeps the shocks coming right up to the climatic end.” Lisa Gardner

The Family Tree

Samia Elashry

Caitlin Snyder

(+) Fantastic premise - serial killer in your family tree? Definitely a great idea!

(-) The characters were soooooo annoying, particularly the main character.

Sarah Sanchez

This book was such a fun ride I had a hard time putting it down! I was immediately interested in it because it focuses on using DNA results in a public database to find a serial killer. This is a story that I had just started hearing about in the news/true crime genre (Golden State Killer - Gone in the Dark) but thought would be an interesting premise in fiction. Turns out it was a page turner for me which is exactly what I needed after being in a year long reading slump. 

I loved how the chapters went between the serial killer’s POV and Liz in the present. Typically I hate dual timelines but the way it unraveled felt very clear and easy to follow chronologically. It also added to the story by helping me to piece it together from two perspectives in a unique way that felt unlike other dual timeline stories I’ve read before. 
This book also features a normal girl who gets thrown into a criminal investigation as it happens. Since she came from such an ordinary world it helped to ground the shocking things going on around her. I also thought she and her cousin were well developed and had great banter between them that felt realistic. Especially for later scenes in the book as Liz begins to research and interact with her blood family.

As thrilling as this book was my favorite part had to be the cultural representation - Liz being raised in an Italian family then learning about her Mexican roots. A main protagonist is rarely ever a Hispanic woman so it was refreshing for me to read since I am Hispanic and hardly ever see representation in a lead character from this genre.

Overall, I think it’s great if you enjoy thrillers and if you are interested in a fast-paced read about how a DNA database could be crucial in a decades long ongoing case.

*I received an advance reader’s copy of this book*

The Family Tree

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