Local Woman Missing Summary
Mary Kubica

Local Woman Missing Overview

In the thriller Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica, wife and mother Meredith Dickey disappears ten days after the disappearance of Shelby Tebow. The short time span between the disappearances leads police to believe that they are connected. The bodies of both women are found, but Meredith’s young daughter Delilah, who disappeared at the same time her mother did, remains missing. It is erroneously determined that Shelby was murdered by her husband while Meredith died by suicide. The truth about both murders is finally revealed 11 years later when Delilah is found. Themes in the novel include the extreme actions taken to protect oneself from accountability, invisible victims, and victim blaming. Sliding door moments serve as a motif to demonstrate throughout the novel how seemingly insignificant decisions have lasting consequences.