Publication Date August 29, 2023
2019’s Miracle Creek introduced Angie Kim, an amazing talent. It also introduced me to HBOT (hyperbaric oxygen treatment), a somewhat controversial treatment for what a center near me claims are “dozens of medical conditions…and used to improve athletic treatment and …for anti-aging.” Ms. Kim has personal experience with HBOT, which she wove into a compelling story, including elements of mystery and domestic drama. Knowing she had used it to treat her own special needs son gave more impact to her writing lines such as “Having a special-needs child didn’t just change you; it transmuted you, transported you to a parallel world with an altered gravitational axis.”
Now Ms. Kim brings us Happiness Falls, a new family drama that also includes a family with a special needs child. In this case, it is a young boy named Eugene, who has a rare genetic condition called Angelman syndrome and is unable to speak. Other family members include twenty year old twins John and Mia and their parents. Mia, the protagonist, is irreverent, talkative, and hyperanalytical. She always has an explanation for everything—so at first she isn’t overly concerned when her father and Eugene don’t return from their daily walk in a nearby park. She tells herself they must have lost their phone, or gone on an errand….so she takes a nap. Later, Eugene runs into the house, alone and covered in blood. Because he can’t speak, Eugene can’t help find his father. He seems to have disappeared…leaving a lot of blood behind!
So the mystery is, what happened to the father? And was Eugene responsible? Just as in Miracle Creek, the story is multilayered, and includes a mystery, the exploration of what it means to be unable to communicate verbally, and the revelation of one loving but stressed-out family’s secrets. Once again, I learned about conditions and treatments that were previously unknown to me, which is always a plus. (Frankly, I had never even heard of Angelman Syndrome).At the same time, this book was totally entertaining while being both educational as well as thought provoking, Another five star book for Angie Kim! Thanks to Random House/Hogarth and NetGalley for providing a copy in exchange for this honest review.