INVISIBLE CITY is a story that takes place in the Hasidic
community in
New York. Rebekah Roberts was raised by her father. Her
parents met in
the religion section of a bookstore and even though they
were two complete
opposites, they fell in love. Her mother left them to
return to a Hasidic
community in Brooklyn. Her mother left her when she was
just a few
weeks old. Rebekah felt discarded by her mother and even
though she
was now a "stringer" for a newspaper in New York, she
feels like she can
never forgive her. My heart was breaking for Rebekah. She
has been
through so much in her life. Her mother abandons her and
she never really
learns the reason why. She is told many different
versions of why from her
Dad, but never the real story.
After receiving a call from the newspaper to report to a
crime scene, she
finds herself immersed in the murder mystery of a Hasidic
woman who is
from the same community as Rebekah's mother was. It is a
fascinating
case. A woman is found dead in a construction crane.
She's naked and
her head has been shaved. There is no way that this is
not a strange and
questionable death. But no questions are asked. The
woman is a
member of the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community in the
Borough Park
neighborhood of New York City, and the community has its
own rules about
investigating crime among their members, and more than
enough political
clout with the city to be permitted to go their own way.
Basically, the police
do not question her husband or family and to Rebekah this
just isn't right.
She vows to keep the story alive until the truth comes
out.
When Rebekah meets Jewish detective Saul Katz at the home
of the
victim, he recognizes her based on her looking exactly
like the mother she
never knew and she is thrown into a world steeped in
tradition and secrets.
With each new fact she discovers, another question
replaces it. Her past
pushes her to dig further and also puts her in danger.
INVISIBLE CITY is
filled with secrets and many twists and turns. Rebekah is
determined to get
to the truth and is constantly putting herself in danger
to see the story
through.
The end of INVISIBLE CITY suggests that this is the first
of a series and
sets the stage for Rebekah to continue to learn more about
both the
Hasidim and her mother's life. I hope that is the case
because I really
want to know what she finds out. Is her mother still
alive? If so, will she try
to find her? Will she ever forgive herself or her mother?
I really want to
know! This is a very thoughtfully written debut novel!
I learned so much
about the Hasidic community which I previously knew
nothing about. I look
forward to reading more of Julia Dahl's novels.
Just months after Rebekah Roberts was born, her mother, an
Hasidic Jew from Brooklyn, abandoned her Christian boyfriend
and newborn baby to return to her religion. Neither Rebekah
nor her father have heard from her since. Now a recent
college graduate, Rebekah has moved to New York City to
follow her dream of becoming a big-city reporter. But she’s
also drawn to the idea of being closer to her mother, who
might still be living in the Hasidic community in Brooklyn.
Then Rebekah is called to cover the story of a murdered
Hasidic woman. Rebekah’s shocked to learn that, because of
the NYPD’s habit of kowtowing to the powerful ultra-Orthodox
community, not only will the woman be buried without an
autopsy, her killer may get away with murder. Rebekah can’t
let the story end there. But getting to the truth won’t be
easy—even as she immerses herself in the cloistered world
where her mother grew up, it's clear that she's not welcome,
and everyone she meets has a secret to keep from an
outsider.
In her riveting debut Invisible City, journalist Julia Dahl
introduces a compelling new character in search of the truth
about a murder and an understanding of her own heritage.
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