Rabbit Hole

Rabbit Hole by Kate Brody is a newly published mystery and thriller that touches on true crime fandoms, conspiracy subreddits, and the effects that these online communities have on the family of victims. This is actually the first book I’ve read that talks about these specific topics (although I’ve heard Penance by Eliza Clark does also, and it’s on my TBR). These aspects of our culture, the obsession with conspiracies and murder mysteries, has always been one of those topics that make me feel a bit of an ick yet I can’t seem to stay away. What makes us so curious when it comes to the extreme misfortunes of other people? Why are so many people obsessed with true crime?

Theodora “Teddy” Angstrom lives a pretty uneventful and boring life. Unless you’re counting her sister’s (Angie) missing person case and her dad’s (Mark) recently suicide as “interesting” events, in which case her life is completely bonkers and chaotic. She exudes lack of ambition and seems to only care about making it to the next day. Although how could you blame her? In the wake of her sister’s disappearance, she held her parents together. In the wake of her father’s death, she has to put her family finances back together. How can one have ambitions for their own life when they can’t escape the shadow of those who left?

“There’s no accounting for the gulf between who we were and how we ended up. I can’t make it make sense. I can’t dream, can’t plan, can’t come up with any vision for the future. I can’t consider the alternate universes, the things that could have been. […] Instead: What’s for dinner? What bills are due? What appointments do we have this week? Everything else hurts too much.”

As you follow Teddy’s thought process, you get to understand on POV of how some people get hooked on true crime—when it’s related to someone they know. Not only has Angie’s case been a hot topic over the years both online and off, Mark was active in the digital communities, researching her sister’s case. Her dad’s suicide has to do with more than true crime and it’s digital communities, but how much effect has it had on his overall declining mental health?

I really enjoyed how this was a good balance between lit-fic and mystery/thriller. There were just enough sinister situations and elements to move the plot along (a vandalized car, cyber stalking, and doxxing) yet there was also enough focus on Teddy’s disintegrating sanity and morality that kept the spotlight on character development. Kate Brody’s language, writing style, and story-telling seems to flex around Teddy’s stability, making her most disillusioned states feel like a fever-dream to read. She also used Mickey’s character really well to add to the overall sense of suspense and confusion. I found myself wondering at many points if Mickey was real or whether Teddy had made her up in her head. What are the chances that she meets a girl who reminds her exactly of Angie and they become partners-in-crime?

Although the supporting characters such as Mickey (her mysterious young friend) and Bill (her suspicious sad puppy boyfriend) gave the story more dimension, they themselves felt one-dimensional and unbelievable at times. I understand why Brody chose to keep an air of mystery around the characters for the majority of the book yet it seems like when the fog cleared they fell flat as meaningful characters. Then there were other characters you expected to learn more about (like her half brother for example) yet they never ended up making it into the story in an impactful way.

As a whole, the best part of this book for me was the commentary on true crime and online conspiracy communities. If the story had a different foundation, would I have enjoyed the book as much? For the most part, the story did keep me turning the pages and wanting to know what happened but once I closed the back cover, I didn’t feel the satisfaction I was hoping for from Rabbit Hole.

✏️ Favourite Quotes

“I read somewhere that most people die at 25, but are buried at 75”

“I understand what was meant by it, of course. By twenty-five, you’ve given up all your hopes and dreams, your novel-in-progress, your hot body, your plans to travel to japan. By twenty-five, you have a steady job and you’re right on track for your panic-inducing suburban middle age. But what’s so bad about that?”

“I walk across the lot and rocks barefoot, moving gingerly, still tender in that off-season way. Needing to rebuild what Dad always called our ‘summer feet.'”

“For a second, once, I thought—do I want kids? And almost instantly I tried to scrub the thought from my brain. why would I create another vulnerable little person I cant protect?”