Review: Leave No Trace by Mindy Mejia

Summary from Goodreads:

There is a place in Minnesota with hundreds of miles of glacial lakes and untouched forests called the Boundary Waters. Ten years ago a man and his son trekked into this wilderness and never returned.

Search teams found their campsite ravaged by what looked like a bear. They were presumed dead until a decade later...the son appeared. Discovered while ransacking an outfitter store, he was violent and uncommunicative and sent to a psychiatric facility. Maya Stark, the assistant language therapist, is charged with making a connection with their high-profile patient. No matter how she tries, however, he refuses to answer questions about his father or the last ten years of his life


But Maya, who was abandoned by her own mother, has secrets, too. And as she’s drawn closer to this enigmatic boy who is no longer a boy, she’ll risk everything to reunite him with his father who has disappeared from the known world.

Release Date: September 4th. 2018

My Review:


What I Liked:

Writing. This was my first Mejia novel (and not my last) and I found her writing style to be compelling and beautiful. I connected a lot with her prose. I would myself wanting to highlight or tab quotes that resonated with me, something I do not tend to do with my novels.  I might have to return this thriller with some tabs. 

Characters. The novel has duel points of view but mainly stays with the main character, Maya. I enjoyed reading from her POV, she was a flawed and realistic character. It was easy to connect with her and want her to succeed within the novel. Mejia also did a good job crafting the side characters, Lucas, his father, and many others were well written and intriguing.

Representation of Mental Illness. I was unsure about reading this because it is set in a psychiatric facility. I was afraid it would have negative stereotypes instead it is very eye opening about how our society treats those with mental illness. I felt that it was tastefully done. 

Plot. The novel was a slow burning thriller but it still kept me on edge for the majority of it. I did struggle with some of the pacing but that did not keep me from compulsively reading it has the story kept getting better. 

What I Disliked:

Pacing. The only aspect that I did not care for was the pacing. I felt that sections of it dragged for me and the conclusion could have come quicker. Plus, I felt that the ending epilogue and conclusion were rushed. 


I recommend checking out this intense upcoming thriller. I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it and Mejia's writing style. 

My Rating:

4.5 Stars Out of 5 Stars