Jessica Strawser

When friends Molly and Liza were younger, they were very close. Molly married Daniel, and Liza was welcomed into the family. Liza moved to another city, and the separation affected their friendship. Molly suffers from chronic pain and feels that no one sees the pain she is in. She is constantly in demand to her children, and has become friendly with a single dad and his young daughter.
Molly and Liza have a video call to catch up and rekindle their relationship, Molly is called away, and Liza sees something at Molly's house. When Molly blows it off, Liza becomes concerned, and this begins another phase of the relationship. Many secrets in this one.
I was bored, didn't care for the characters at all.… (más)

Domestic violence is too often downplayed, overlooked, and still far too uncomfortable a conversation to have; we must do better in this area of life.

Jessica Strawser has crafted a great story about the Sequence, an underground group who help women in their last option in DV situations. If you need the Sequence, you are in the position similar to witness protection: You will leave everyone and everything behind, get a new name and new social security number, and get set up in an undisclosed location.

The group, who use code names and works on the basis of anonymity, even within the group — for plausible deniability reasons, assist these women to the Grove, a nature conservation in the middle of nowhere. Katie winds up as the caretaker on the property after her best friend, now boss, insists she is up for the challenge following her divorce. Little does Katie, or Bess know that Katie is stepping into the shoes of one of the underground workers.

Thrust into the unknown of working on the property and helping battered women who show up in the middle of the night, Katie is in way over her head. When her years as a tech worker solving problems leads her to ask too many questions, she finds not only is she now at risk, but so are the people she cares for most.

The Last Caretaker is a realistic look into the horrors of life on the run for battered women whose lives depends on becoming invisible. This is a tough subject and a near impossible one to write about successfully in a fictional way that keeps the reader interested while not disrespecting true victims. Jessica Strawser has found the sweet spot within which to master both these tasks.

A must read in our ever violent world.

Thank you NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for the ARC. My options have not been influenced and this is an uncompensated review.… (más)

i thought that this was a great exploration of family and the ways in which we connect to each other (and why) and how those connections work in real life. (how what works for one person/couple is entirely different than what might work for others.) it had a twist toward the end that i wasn't at all on the lookout for and that i never saw coming. i'm not entirely sure (looking back on it) that it's necessary, because this quiet idea of relationship is interesting enough for me, but i can see why it was added, and it certainly adds more for thought. i do like how by the end the author makes us think, at least a little, about the american health care system and how screwed up it is.… (más)