Tess Hudson Invisible Girl

Invisible Girl

Tess Hudson

Mira, Jun 2006, $13.95

ISBN: 0778323145

In Manhattan Maggie Malone's brother Danny is shot and her Irish-American father is murdered. She assumes the two incidents tie together with a third that of her mother Vietnamese expatriate Mai dying years ago in the East River.

Unable to ignore the tragedies that she also concludes are tied to her late dad's mysterious work, Maggie investigates who shot her sibling and killed her father because she feels that will reveal why her mother died. However, as she begins to unravel a web of deceit that leads back to the Viet Nam War era "Operation Babylift", someone wants Maggie to stop digging for the truth. That unknown adversary makes it clear she will die if she continues on her quest, but Maggie is beyond concern as she is fixated on knowing all the players and whys.

This is a fascinating look at the impact of the Viet Nam War on a generation of Amerasians but at times is difficult to follow with the constant switching between the present and the 1960s. When the story line focuses on Maggie's amateur sleuth investigation into her family history as opposed to shifting eras, the tale is gripping and fun to follow, but before fully hooking the reader a time transfer occurs and jolts the plot. This is still worth reading by readers who do not mind a bit of disorientated time joggling and the final spin is fabulous as Tess Hudson shines a light on a little known poignant piece of history by showcasing its aftermath thirty plus years later.

Harriet Klausner