Dr. Noah Alderman, a pediatrician, is being charged with assault and murder to his step-daughter Anna. Despite those charges, Dr. Noah denies doing anything to Anna and continues to stick to his tale, no matter how outlandish it seems to the jury and the judge, and despite the evidence proving his guilt. As he awaits the verdict from the jury, the reader begins the journey through Noah's memories and that of Maggie's, his wife who is torn between her new and old family in this riveting and complex tale of lies, secrets and heart pounding action that will keep the reader turning pages long into the night.

For a long time, Maggie and Noah were a happily married couple raising Noah's son Caleb. But one day, Maggie gets a call she has always dreamed of; her estranged daughter Anna from her first marriage wants to connect to her. Upon learning that Anna's father and his family has passed away from a plane accident, Maggie and Noah make a choice to invite Anna to live with them, and its a decision that will shatter everything the family holds dear, for Anna is not what she seems.

Parceling out details and clues like breadcrumbs in Hansel and Gretel throughout AFTER ANNA, Lisa Scottoline is good at keeping the reader reading past their planned time, to when finishing this haunting and enjoyable tale becomes far more important than any other chores or duties.

The storyline of AFTER ANNA itself is riveting, mysterious and there are twists and turns everywhere, places where senses cannot be trusted. What I enjoyed most about the story is the tension, the characters and how frightening the story is. The tension is taut as a whip ready to lash out, and its merciless on its audience. Lisa Scottoline seems also prescient when it comes to writing the tale because the clues and twists are not where one would expect them, and as the action moves on along, the audience becomes loath to stop and smell the roses. Although both Maggie and Noah tell the tale of Anna, there are missing pieces about Anna that don't come together until the very end of the book, and the reader does wonder what is true or what are lies during this roller-coaster ride.

For a mind-blowing tale about family, secrets and lies where it's a matter of life or death in being right, AFTER ANNA by Lisa Scottoline should be right up the alley.