Girls Like Us

my father's ashes blow away on the wind.

 

The burial is, I believe, what my father would have wanted. Short and sweet. No standing on ceremony. He is out on the water, the only place he ever seemed at peace. Dad always fidgeted like a schoolboy during Mass. We sat in the back so we could duck out before Communion. Dad claimed to hate the taste of the stale wafers and bad wine. Even then, I knew he was lying. He just didn't want to confess.

 

After it's over, Dorsey hands us each a Guinness and we toast. To the too-short life of Martin Daniel Flynn. Dad had just turned fifty-two when his motorcycle skidded off the Montauk Highway. It was two in the morning. I imagine he'd been drinking heavily, though no one dared say as much. No sense in pointing fingers now. According to Dorsey, Dad's tires were worn, the road was wet, the fog clouded his visibility. End of story.

 

With these guys, what Dorsey says goes. Of the four, Dorsey went up the ranks the fastest. He got his gold shield first, then quickly pulled Dad and Ron Anastas out of plain, clothes and put them into homicide. When he became chief of detectives, Dorsey made sure that Vince DaSilva got elevated to inspector of the Third. The Third Precinct of Suffolk County covers some of the island's rougher parts: Bay Shore, Brentwood, Brightwaters, Islip. It's where the four men spent their early years together as patrolmen. It's also where my father met my mother, Marisol Reyes Flynn. Dad always called the Third a war zone. For him especially, it was.

 

Dorsey and Dad went way back. Our families have been in Suffolk County for three generations. Before that, we hailed from Schull, a small village on Ireland's rugged southwest coast. They used to joke that we were all probably related somewhere down the line. The men certainly looked it. Both were tall and dark-haired, with green eyes and sharp, inquisitive faces. My father wore his hair in a military crop his whole lif

the smart, spunky heroine....[I] couldn't put down Girls Like Us." Shelter Island Reporter

Plenty of surprises and some unexpected twists to push you to the finish, and lots of tension along the way. The women whose lives were lost in the novel feel real specific in their characterizations, yet universal as (like us) they try to make the best of their circumstances. The East Hampton Star

"[An] edge-of-the-seat adventure...This is not a book to put down easily: plan accordingly. Alger's thriller is emphatically plot-driven, but her characters hold their own....Heart-racing action and a twisty-turny plot. Shelf Awareness

"If you like mysteries with thriller endings...and a main character you root for don't miss this one." BookRiot

[Girls Like Us meets] the hype and then some. With fascinating, deep characters and excellent plots with good twists, I was enthralled. MysteryPeople

[An] excellent crime novel...[Alger] captures the social dynamics of Suffolk's eastern extremes perfectly. The first-person narrative is appropriately terse Nell delivers a thorough report but it occasionally surprises with a gripping depth....Highly recommended. Booklist (starred review) 

[A] propulsive thriller...Alger expertly ratchets up the suspense all the way to the explosive finale. Readers will hope to see more of tough, smart Nell. Publishers Weekly 

[Nell] has a vulnerable, empathetic core that will pull readers in, and Alger has a feel for small-town dynamics....The tension becomes nearly unbearable as Nell realizes she truly can't trust anyone. Readers can expect a few genuine surprises, and the light Alger shines on society's most vulnerable members is an important one. Melancholy and addictive. Kirkus Reviews

This fast-paced psychological thriller...will intrigue mystery readers as they shadow Nell's precarious quest for the truth at all costs, despite the consequences. Library Journal 

This thriller will keep you on the edge of your seat until the last page. The Everygirl 

Girls Like Us is the best of psychological suspense: nuanced, expertly fast-paced, and full of surprises you truly don't see coming. Cristina Alger is my kind of writer as graceful on the page as she is gritty. Harlan Coben

Riveting...I'm a fan of Cristina Alger, who now proves that she can write about anything, anywhere. Lisa Scottoline

Cristina Alger, who is known for creating pulse-pounding plots and gutsy female protagonists, has done it again. Gritty, twisty, and unputdownable, GIRLS LIKE US is sure to be the thriller to read this season. Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen, authors of The Wife Between Us and An Anonymous Girl

A smashing read. Instantly gripping and compulsively readable, with a heroine as vulnerable as she is tenacious. Riley Sager, author of The Last Time I Lied

Girls Like Us is something special: A beautiful, deeply textured novel and a poignant, surprising mystery. I loved it, every chapter and every word. I m going to be thinking about it as a reader, a father, and a storyteller for a long, long time. Chris Bohjalian, author of The Flight Attendant