Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

Any book concerned with the opioid crisis will get my attention and this was no different. I thought Liz Moore's writing about addiction was moving and well-informed and the relationship between the main character and her addict sister was very well-written. I had an issue with the lack of speech marks - I try not to mind - but it turns out I do. And also that the front story - the crime solving story was not as good as the back story. However I did really feel for Mickey and I read this to the end and found parts of it very moving. I like that the author worked hard to expose the inevitably, sometimes-cavalier attitude of law enforcement to the death of drug addicts.

Many thanks to NetGalley for the review copy.

The Long Bright River by Liz Moore is not a comfortable or easy book to read. It highlights the opiod crisis and addiction of all forms. It is a story about humanity, families, sisters, people and cities in crisis, love, forgiveness and hope.

omg i really enjoyed this one! i loved how different the story was, it wasn’t your typical procedural crime book and it focused a lot on the familial connections of the characters as well as the active murder case. it made the both a lot more intriguing to read as there were two storylines working alongside each other and i couldn’t put it down.

3.5 stars

thank you netgalley and penguin for the arc!

This book blew me away... Definitely in my top 10 reads for the year. Beautifully told story about two sisters, its an absolute eye opener and made me so upset and angry.. the drug addiction and the part pharma play in the big picture I was shook.

At the heart of the story is the sisterly love and connection. I highly recommend this book its amazing.

Tried multiple times to read this on my kindle but compatibility issues seem to be preventing it downloading properly. Unable to review. Apologies.

Thank you NetGalley,

A beautifully written book. Really enjoyed reading this. Thanks to publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read

Mickey is a Philadelphia Police Officer and she has had a pretty rough time. mickey comes from a very complex family and is explored throughout the book. Her mother died of a drug overdose, her sister is a drug addict and prostitute, she is estranged from her father and her son's father is also a Police Officer.
When Mickey's sister goes missing the Police department don't seem too concerned, just another addict!! Mickey decides to take things upon herself to try to solve the case of the missing and murdered addicts.
This is a very good story with many layers, I highly recommend it.

i had heard so much about this and was looking forward to it. Unfortunately it wasn't for me. I couldn't get into it
at all. I thought it was going to be fast paced and it wasn't.. I gave it for as long as i could, but i did not finish it

This is very much more than a police procedural – it’s full of complex, authentic characters, and at the heart there’s a story about family, loss, poverty and hardship.
Mickey is a well-drawn and likeable main characters and this is very much her story. Her love and concern for her sister fells authentic and you really want to keep reading, to find out what has happened to her and for both to have a happy ever after, however far-fetched that might feel against the back drop of drug riddled, crime ridden inner city Philadelphia.
I was concerned that there might be judgement here, but drug issues and addiction are treated compassionately and realistically, with sympathy for those caught up in a system that puts the most vulnerable in society at risk.
Heartfelt and well-written, a recommended read.

Long Bright River features Mickey, a police officer who encounters addicts, sex workers and drug dealers on a daily basis through her work. Her sister is the polar opposite, a street worker who has gone missing. Given that there's been a spate of murders in the area, Mickey is understandably concerned for her sister, which gives her greater motivation to find the killer and put him away.

Against this plot is a backdrop of abusive childhoods and the impact this has, the issues of drug abuse and what happens when men abuse their power. It can be a tough read, but there's also hope here and plenty of food for thought.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC without obligation.

Mickey Fitzpatrick has been patrolling the 24th District for years. She knows most of the working women by name. She knows what desperation looks like and what people will do when they need a fix. She's become used to finding overdose victims: their numbers are growing every year. But every time she sees someone sprawled out, slumped over, cold to the touch, she has to pray it's not her sister, Kacey.

When the bodies of murdered sex workers start turning up on the Ave, the Chief of Police is keen to bury the news. They're not the kind of victims that generate a whole lot of press anyway. But Mickey is obsessed, dangerously so, with finding the perpetrator - before Kacey becomes the next victim.

Firstly, thank you so much to Lydia at Cornerstone for sending me a copy of this novel.

This debut is absolutely incredible.

I was hooked right from the first page. The book explores the life of a female police officer and her hunt for a serial killer. The book was fast paced and a real page turner. I did not want the book to end.

I did not guess the ending and I cannot recommend this book enough!

I cannot wait to read more by this author

I was so looking forward to Long Bright River but unfortunately it just didn't live up to the book I was expecting. I found I wasn't gripped by it at all and had to push hard to get through.

Unfortunately I didn’t love this one as much as I was hoping to. I liked the idea behind it and the storyline, but it fell flat for me. I can see why some people love this one, but it just wasn’t for me.

An intense and compelling family thriller, I found it to be evocative and moving, keeping me hooked right up to the end.

Following a police officer as her city is plagued by a series of murders, but with each new body she visits the worry grows that this could be her troubled sister.
This was a long and peaceful mystery told with tender love. If you are looking for a fast-paced romp of a thriller you will not find it here. This is ultimately a story about familial love in a mystery wrapper.

Great quiet read.

Thank you Penguin Random House UK and Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book.
This wasn't one for me. I found it too intense and didn't like the main characters and couldn't connect to them.
The story was ok but not one I'd recommend.

a tad depressing and hard going at times but there was a good story here and was glad persevered with it and read the whole book

A heavy and intense read, but well worth it. I found it a little difficult to connect to the main character, but the overall story more than compensated for that.

In choosing fiction, my preference is for narratives driven by emotion rather than action – I want to be in a character’s head and to know what they are feeling, as opposed to being a bystander, ‘watching’ what happens to them.

Long Bright River by Liz Moore is very much an action-driven story. It tells of two sisters, Mickey and Kacey, whose lives begin in the same troubled home but then take very different paths . Kacey lives on the streets of Kensington, Philadelphia, addicted to heroin, and doing what she has to do to feed her habit. Mickey also knows the streets of Kensington but that’s because she joined the police force. Although the sisters are estranged, Mickey keeps an eye out for Kacey. When a string of unsolved murders occur – the victims all young women with drug habits – Mickey fears for her sister.

Long Bright River is classed as a mystery. The suspense moves at a good pace – a few twists and turns but not so much that it becomes implausible. And although there are clues throughout, I didn’t guess ‘who dunnit’, so it held my interest until the end. However, this story had themes that offered the opportunity for much greater emotional depth, including what it means to act honourably; the impact of addiction on a family; and ambiguous grief. Kacey and Mickey’s mother died from an overdose when they were young. Mickey reflects on this while feeding her newborn baby, Thomas –

‘…for the first time I understood the choice my own mother had made to leave us – if not by design, then by her actions, her carelessness, the recklessness with which she sought a fix. I understood that she had held me – us – in her arms, and gazed at us as I was then gazing at Thomas. She had held us like that and had decided to leave me, to leave us, anyway.’

Notably, that was the only quote I highlighted in my copy of the book – the rest was largely ‘police procedural’.

I was interested to read an interview with Moore, whose own family experience with addiction had influenced the novel. The interview hints at the stuff I wanted from Long Bright River – an examination of relationships, and the complexities of loving someone who is doing the ‘wrong’ thing. But the original inspiration for the novel came from photographer Jeffrey Stockbridge’s Kensington Blues project (trigger warning), where he documents the human cost of opioid addiction. The images and videos captured by Stockbridge are devastating, and it’s like watching Long Bright River come to life.

3/5 Solid, as far as mysteries go.

I received my copy of Long Bright River from the publisher, Penguin Random House UK, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.