Reconstructing Amelia

 

 

I decided to read this book because I heard rumors that it is coming out as a movie next year. This was Kimberly McCreight's debut novel, and while it could have used a little tweaking, I did enjoy it. Reconstructing Amelia is definitely Gone Girl-esque with likeable characters.

 

Kate Baron is a lawyer in an upscale firm in New York City. She is also a single mother to teen age daughter, Amelia. Kate receives a phone call from Amelia's top rated private school that Amelia has been suspended and that Kate needs to pick her up immediately. Kate arrives late to find police cars and emergency vehicles lined on the school grounds. She is told that Amelia jumped from the roof of the school to her death. Kate is understandably devastated. A random text message jump starts the investigation. Kate knows that Amelia would not have committed suicide, but on this journey she learns much more about her daughter than she ever expected.

 

 

Throughout this book I felt really bad for Kate. She was single, but also a successful lawyer, and able to provide. All she had was work and Amelia. She put a lot of her time into work and you could really see how much guilt she felt about that. She blamed herself for Amelia's death (If she had been there on time) and she felt as though she had failed as a mother. It did not help that her own parents were horrible examples, and completely full of themselves and their careers. I just wanted to give her a hug.

 

 

I enjoyed the alternating points of view between Kate and Amelia. It was also nice how the book alternates between past and present. Throughout the book I felt bad for Amelia. She did not really seem to have anyone she could fully rely on. Her mother worked ridiculous hours and she spent most of her time alone. Her best friend, Sylvia, tended to put boys first and was constantly talking about herself. Amelia becomes apart of a group in school, but is eventually harassed. She had to go through a lot and she could have really used a better support system.

 

 

The ending of the book was anti-climatic. The plot builds you up and you are wondering what really happened, but once you get there you are left thinking, "that's it?" I also was not thrilled with how the epilogue played out. It was really random. Overall, I enjoyed this book. It was a fast read and kept my attention.