We had always spent our summer holidays in remote places. That had always been my mother’s preference. This year was different...

Ten-year-old Alex thought this holiday would be fun, but now everyone in her family is being boring.

Her mother needs to finish her novel, her dad wants to watch cricket and her older sister only has eyes for the local lifeguard. Then her new friend, Kahu, tells her a secret. Two years ago, a girl went missing and everyone said she drowned.

But what if the adults are wrong? What if she’s waiting to be found?As Alex and Kahu hunt for clues, childhood curiosity soon gives way to a darker reality. As the summer heat peaks, one terrifying question remains: did the missing girl really drown, or is a predator hiding in plain sight?Brilliantly page-turning and tensely atmospheric, A Beautiful Family will leave a lump in your throat and a hole in your heart.