The Lucky One
Lori Rader-Day
William Morrow Pub.
Feb. 18th, 2020
The Lucky One by Lori Rader-Day premise includes a search for justice and finding out answers.
The story has a young woman recognizing the man who kidnapped her as a child. Alice was taken from her backyard in Indiana. Luckily for her, she was found by her policeman father within twenty-four hours. In the aftermath of the crime, the family moved to Chicago. Now many years later, Alice volunteers for a website, “The Doe Pages,” that tries to connect unidentified bodies with those declared missing. While searching, she sees the same man who kidnapped her decades ago.
In their search, Alice and her Doe friends come across Merrily Cruz, someone who also is from Indiana. It seems there is a connection between the kidnapper, Richard Miller, and Merrily’s surrogate father, Rick, who was once her mother’s boyfriend. He has stayed in touch over the years, through funny texts and letters that are sent from places unknown. Working together they try to uncover what are lies and what is the truth.
This psychological thriller is a story of betrayal. Readers will hope that those characters who were deeply affected find hope and closure.
Elise Cooper: How did you get the idea for the story?
Lori Rader-Day: After a new neighbor moved in, I decided I wanted to build a new fence since all the houses in Chicago are on top of one another. She told me that she is worried someone could reach over the old fence and grab her young daughter. It never occurred to me that the fence was not a protector for young children. She told me she was kidnapped as a child. After thinking about it I asked her if it would be all right to use her as a protagonist for my next book. I used her story as a jumping off point and then changed it from there.
EC: Why the kidnapping angle?
LRD: My neighbor was kidnapped from a day care center after someone leaned over the fence and took her. It went unnoticed completely but luckily, she was returned that afternoon. There was also my own experience. As a child I rode a school bus with someone who went missing. When I was doing research for this book, going through the “Doe Network,” I saw Debra’s face. She went missing when she was twelve. Her sister’s body was found two years later, and she had been shot and raped. Her step-father was found guilty, but it was after he had died. Unfortunately, Debra’s body was never found.
EC: Is there really a Doe website?
LRD: Yes, although its name is the “Doe Network.” The founder tried to solve a thirty-year-old cold case in Kentucky. I actually interviewed his son-in-law, Todd Matthews. It was founded in 1999 and evolved into an informal volunteer organization. The Cold Case of the missing girl, known as the “Tent Girl,” was solved by Todd.
EC: Is it realistic what you had in the story?
LRD: Yes, in that these amateur sleuths have a heightened sense of reality. But it is basically one person sitting in a room with a computer looking for tiny details and connections to match a cold case missing person with unidentified remains. To make it riveting I had to change some things or else the plot would be pretty boring.
EC: Why the Alice In Wonderland reference?
LRD: The main character was named Alice. Also, I actually love the book and used it as an excuse to write about one of my favorite stories. At my last job, I worked for someone I called the “Red Queen.” At first, I thought I was the White Rabbit, but actually I figured out I was one of those cards who painted red roses.
EC: How would you describe Alice?
LRD: Considering what happened to her she has a normal life. Her dad was more doting, loving, and caring than her mother. Because of her kidnapping and now having an easy life, she decides to give back by volunteering at the “Doe Pages.” Overall, she is hesitant, a shrinking violet, and stuck in her patterns.
EC: How would you describe Merrily?
LRD: She thinks she is tough and street-wise. She does not realize she places herself in danger. She says what she thinks and does what she wants.
EC: What about your next book?
LRD: It is a WWII historical novel. The story is about those children that were evacuated from London during the German bombings. Ten of the children were taken to Agatha Christie’s house in the countryside of England. It should be out in the early summer of 2021.
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