In Mary Behan’s Finding Isobel, we first meet Isobel as she contemplates the intentional suicide of Maggie, the elderly patient dying from cancer that Isobel has cared for, which granted Maggie the opportunity to stay at her Wisconsin home and finish out life on her own terms. Isobel and her boyfriend, Vic, discuss the unusual situation they find themselves in after Maggie is gone, including Vic’s inheritance of Maggie’s cabin and property and Isobel’s generous monetary gift—money that will pay for vet school and give Isobel the chance to find out who her real parents are and why they had abandoned her as an infant. But life doesn’t follow a straight path for Isobel. Having to postpone vet school and then leaving Vic behind, she flies to New Zealand to find her aging adoptive parents (someone she has never had a close relationship with) to confront them to unveil the secrets of her true heritage.

Behan does a marvelous job capturing the reader’s attention from the very first sentence to the final pages of the story. Brilliantly written, her words will take you on a guided tour from a Wisconsin homestead to the unique landscape of New Zealand to city life in Sarajevo and more. Each place is beautifully described as if the reader is standing right next to Isobel as she travels across the world to find herself. It is obvious that Behan has carefully researched (or experienced) the countries and their histories she uses in Finding Isobel. On top of the strong sense of settings, Behan’s character cast is nothing short of amazing, with each person owning a distinct personality. But it is Behan’s storytelling talent that carries the unfolding of secrets, and even more secrets, throughout the novel. Just when the reader is sure they have figured out Isobel’s truth, more layers are revealed—a truly captivating story.

I enjoyed Finding Isobel so much I tried to read it in one sitting—it was that good. I loved Behan’s writing style and story twists. If I had been in a writing group with her and read the first few chapters, I would have asked her to consider using First Person POV instead of the Third Person POV to bring the reader even closer to Isobel’s direct feelings and experiences since the story is told through her, but that would only have been a suggestion. Still, I would love to read other works by Mary Behan based on this novel and highly recommend this wonderful, entertaining read.