Family members of those who commit a crime are often scorned just as much as the actual perpetrators. Along the same lines of Defending Jacob and We Need to Talk About Kevin, Stephanie Kegan's Golden State asks the question of how far would you go to protect someone you love? Natalie Askedahl is the youngest child in a family of prominent politicos. Her life seems ideal, and she especially looks up to her older brother, Bobby, a mathematical genius; after he returns from college, things seriously change, with Bobby pulling away from his family and taking on a reclusive life.
When Natalie grows up, she seems to have it all -- a husband and two daughters, but she still desperately misses her brother. A series of deadly bombings starts to occur across California, and the trail leads right to Bobby. Will Natalie turn her brother in when she finds damning evidence? What will this do to her mother and sister, who see it as the ultimate betrayal?
I sailed through Golden State rather quickly, and it definitely is a real page-turner. Kegan has a way with words that makes the reader want "just one more chapter." Very solid novel.
MY RATING - 4
