Actual rating 4.5 stars. 
 "How many years does ones family have to be in this country not to be a foreigner?" 
 Ok, so first up, let me preface this review by admitting that this is not the sort of book I would normally read. The crime thriller and detective fiction genres fall a little outside of my normal comfort zone and personal reading preferences, although I do have a love of literature that explores the darker elements of human nature as well as studies wider social issues. However, I don't have much basis for comparison when it comes to these particular genres, outside of a few books I studied in high school. Honestly, I almost didn't even pick this book up, despite having enjoyed some of Marchetta's previous work, because it just didn't seem like my sort of story. 
 I am so, so glad that I did. This book was absolutely amazing, made better by the fact that I did not expect to love it so much. It is one of those rare masterpieces, a story that has so much heart and soul, elevated by its understanding of humanity and the way it explores relationships. A book rich in ideas and questions and powerful truths, that shines a light on some of the darkest aspects of our society with brutal honesty. There is something so important within the pages of this book, it strikes me as an almost modern take on To Kill A Mockingbird, but set in the court of public opinion rather than a court of law. It is timely and challenging, deeply authentic and sadly realistic. 
 The story is set in the wake of a fatal bombing on a British school bus in Calais, after which two of the students who had been on board suspiciously go missing. It is told primarily from the perspective of Bish Ortley, suspended Chief Inspector of the London Met and recently divorced borderline alcoholic, who finds himself compelled to assist in the ensuing investigation. For Bish, the attack is personal; his teenage daughter was on the bus when the bomb exploded and one of the missing students is a ghost from his past, a girl named Violette LeBrac. 
 Thirteen years prior Violette's grandfather blew up a London supermarket, killing dozens of people as well as himself. Her mother, Noor LeBrac, is serving a life sentence on terrorism charges. Bish was not only involved in the initial investigation following the supermarket bombing but was the person who removed Violette, then a baby, from the arms of her mother after her arrest. With Violette on the run anger ripples across the country. The sin of being the child of terrorists is enough to confirm her guilt in the eyes of the media and public alike, that she is a foreigner of Algerian descent and disappeared from the scene of the crime seems only to cement her culpability. The search for answers reveals uncomfortable truths about the past, bringing long buried secrets to light, as well as a quest for revenge that will place more innocent lives in danger. 
 As far as the crime thriller and mystery elements of the story, which is what this book claims to be, this is a reasonably solid but not amazing read. I'm not sure that it does enough, on its own, to stand out for lovers of these genres in isolation. The plot is definitely intriguing, but not really the focus of the book, acting more as a vehicle for what Marchetta does best; explore human relationships. There are aspects of the story that, from a crime procedural standpoint, seemed a little implausible if not inaccurate, and it almost felt more concerned with the effects of crime on the individual as well as society, than the actual criminal act that was committed (though this is not necessarily a bad thing, in my opinion). The 'whodunit' mystery was compelling but at times weak; I never felt on edge with uncertainty and the clues felt almost too easy. There was something anticlimactic, almost predictable, about the conclusion. The actual narrative outcome of the story is far less impressive than the messages the author is trying to get across. 
 There is also a heavy-handed complexity that made this book challenging to follow at times. It is overloaded with a convoluted web of characters, interconnected relationships, detailed back story and jarring shifts in point of view. This book is in many ways incredibly smart and there is so much going on, so many threads that weave throughout the plot, bringing the past and present together in a way that is very beautiful and heartbreaking and poignant, but did sometimes become overwhelming. However, I imagine other more astute readers may not have this same difficulty. This is not to say that it isn't fantastically written though, because it absolutely is, filled with witty dialogue, thoughtful moments and beautiful prose. 
 But where this book really shines is in its characters and the concepts that it explores. This is a story that is, at its core, about people. About family. About love and loss and heartbreak. About the ties that bind us, both in our relationships and to the past. About lost children and the burdens that must be carried in the wake of tragedy. About very real and important issues that are impacting our world today; racism and racial profiling, islamophobia and terrorism, cultural identity and diversity, media ethics and the impact of social media on criminal justice, law and politics, vigilantism and displacement. This is not what I had expected, and it undoubtedly brings so much more to this story. 
 Marchetta's gift as an author is in her ability to understand human nature and relationships. She is able to write characters that feel utterly real, they have a presence and authenticity that just leaps from the page. I had worried that centralising this book on a male lead - an over-the-hill, alcoholic cop no less - would feel tired and overdone, someone I might struggle to connect with as a character. I was thankfully wrong; I genuinely liked him. And besides, this story is very powerfully grounded in the vast number of female characters. Female characters who are brilliantly diverse, self-motivated, unashamedly smart, fiercely independent and unwaveringly loyal. While this book is also not technically branded as young adult (my usual reading wheelhouse), I honestly think many young adult readers will find something very relatable about the teenage experience here. While it would be easy to look at the children affected by the bus bombing as victims, they never really play that role in the story. They are people first, independent characters with real involvement in the story, active participants and questioners rather than bystanders. The world concerns them, and in return they are concerned about their place in the world. They are real and growing and challenging and I loved each and every one of them. It is almost impossible not to appreciate the strength of the characterisation in this book, the deft manner in which relationships between people, as well as their relationships with their heritage, history and the wider world, are explored. 
 There is something unforgettable about this story. It explores some of the darkest aspects of our society, but it does so with honesty and emotional authenticity. It is one of those books that you just know is important and valuable, a book of enormous scope and far reaching consequence, of past and present, love and loss. A book so rich in spirit it deserves every ounce of praise it receives.