The Bookish Outsider: My Name Is Anna

Thursday 10 January 2019

My Name Is Anna - Lizzy Barber

Two women – desperate to unlock the truth.
How far will they go to lay the past to rest?

ANNA has been taught that virtue is the path to God. But on her eighteenth birthday, she defies her Mamma’s rules and visits Florida’s biggest theme park.

She has never been allowed to go – so why, when she arrives, does everything seem so familiar? And is there a connection to the mysterious letter she receives on the same day?

ROSIE has grown up in the shadow of the missing sister she barely remembers, her family fractured by years of searching without leads. Now, on the fifteenth anniversary of her sister’s disappearance, the media circus resumes in full flow, and Rosie vows to uncover the truth.

But will she find the answer before it tears her family apart?

I first saw this book mentioned sometime during mid-2018 and thought it sounded like something I would love so, of course, I put my hand up when it came to a call for reviewers. Needless to say, I'm very glad I did...

My Name Is Anna is an interesting take on the child abduction story. Seen from 2 different viewpoints, the missing child herself, Emily who is now known as Anna, and Anna's sister, Rosie. Rosie was a baby at the time Emily was taken so has never really known anything else except that she should have an older sister. Her parents have stayed together, unusual in most cases, and had another child, Rob.

Anna's life could not be more different from Rosie's. Instead of London, she's being brought up in the heat and humidity of Florida by a woman who is deeply religious, clean to a point of obsession, and extreme in her response to Anna's questions that involve her childhood.

The whole story starts when Anna is taken to Astroland, a theme park, by her boyfriend William, the local pastor's son. Forbidden from going there by her mother, Anna wants to go to the place where all her classmates have spent their free time but doesn't realize this is about to change her life forever.

It's not a spoiler to point out that Anna is Emily as this is revealed very early on in the book and the main theme is that of the two sisters both searching for 'Emily' but from different approaches. Rosie is very aware that time is running out to find her sister so takes a leap into the online forums about Emily to investigate herself. Anna is being pushed in the direction of 'Emily' thanks to gifts left in the mail by strangers, and by discovering that her mother may not have been exactly honest with her.

My Name Is Anna is full of twists, some of which are heartbreaking, and the ending itself? Is it an ending? Or something slightly more ambiguous. I loved My Name Is Anna and Lizzy Barber is definitely a talent to be watched. The devastating story of a parent looking away for seconds is written wonderfully and the effects on a family throughout the years following were absolutely gripping. If you're looking for a thriller seen from the family point of view rather than the investigative side, then do check out My Name Is Anna!

Huge thanks to Century/Penguin Random House and Rachel for a copy of the book and the chance to take part in the blog tour. Do check out the stops as there are plenty of reviews, guest posts, and interviews with Lizzy.