WHO opens with the sudden disappearance of Kaia Ingram, the first-ever member of Philadelphia’s mysterious “August Girls”—a troubling pattern of young women who have vanished at the close of summer year after year. As the fifth anniversary of the earliest case approaches, Maura Sterling is easing into life as an empty nester. Her twins, Soleil and Selene, have just moved to the city to launch their journalism careers after graduating college. But just as Maura gathers herself for a busy morning, an unexpected knock shatters the quiet. When she opens the door, two detectives stand on her doorstep with devastating news: her daughters may be missing as well.
What follows is a tightening web of secrets involving the Sterlings’ closest acquaintances, each adding new shadows to an already baffling series of cases. As the investigation intensifies, Maura and the detectives race against time—can they find Soleil and Selene before the pattern claims them too? And in searching for the truth, will they finally uncover what happened to the other August Girls? Who is behind it all?
Content Warnings: Drug Use, Missing Persons, Sexual Assault
Giving Back: Ten percent of all earnings from WHO will be donated to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC). With themes as dark as these, it felt essential for the project to contribute to something meaningful beyond storytelling. Far too many people have lived through the real-world horrors reflected in this book, and NCMEC provides vital support to impacted families and individuals.
