Once Was Lost by Sara Zarr

15-year-old Sam has always been defined as the pastor’s daughter. But not all is well behind closed doors. Under the pressure of being a pastor’s wife, Sam’s mother is an alcoholic who after one too many DUI’s is now in treatment. But it’s not a fact that Sam wants her friends (who often don’t invite her along to less questionable activities – you know – the whole being the pastor’s daughter thing) to know about nor is it something that Sam and her father openly talk about with each other.
It is during this crisis in her family that her community faces a crisis of its own. A young girl in the church has mysteriously gone missing and no one is free from suspicion including her own father and the girl’s older brother, whom Sam has always crushed on. This family and community crisis shakes Sam to her inner-core where she also experiences her own personal crisis – one that questions her faith, hope, and belief in something that is bigger than she is.

for a great rad, try Once Was Lost by Sara Zarr.

Karen