Long Bright River: A Novel

ONE OF BARACK OBAMA'S FAVORITE BOOKS OF THE YEAR

NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY NPR, PARADE, REAL SIMPLE, and BUZZFEED

AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

A GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK

[Moore's] careful balance of the hard-bitten with the heartfelt is what elevates Long Bright River from entertaining page-turner to a book that makes you want to call someone you love." - The New York Times Book Review

This is police procedural and a thriller par excellence, one in which the city of Philadelphia itself is a character (think Boston and Mystic River). But it's also a literary tale narrated by a strong woman with a richly drawn personal life - powerful and genre-defying." - People

A thoughtful, powerful novel by a writer who displays enormous compassion for her characters. Long Bright River is an outstanding crime novel... I absolutely loved it.
--Paula Hawkins, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of The Girl on the Train

Two sisters travel the same streets, though their lives couldn't be more different. Then one of them goes missing.

In a Philadelphia neighborhood rocked by the opioid crisis, two once-inseparable sisters find themselves at odds. One, Kacey, lives on the streets in the vise of addiction. The other, Mickey, walks those same blocks on her police beat. They don't speak anymore, but Mickey never stops worrying about her sibling.

Then Kacey disappears, suddenly, at the same time that a mysterious string of murders begins in Mickey's district, and Mickey becomes dangerously obsessed with finding the culprit--and her sister--before it's too late.

Alternating its present-day mystery with the story of the sisters' childhood and adolescence, Long Bright River is at once heart-pounding and heart-wrenching: a gripping suspense novel that is also a moving story of sisters, addiction, and the formidable ties that persist between place, family, and fate.

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Published Jan 7, 2020

496 pages

Average rating: 7.29

389 RATINGS

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Community Reviews

thenextgoodbook
Sep 04, 2025
10/10 stars
thenextgoodbook.com
Long Bright River by Liz Moore
480 pages

What’s it about?
Mickey and Kacey are sisters who grew up in a working class Philadelphia neighborhood. Although they were once close, they now no longer speak. Kacey is an addict living on the streets of the old neighborhood, and Mickey is a patrol officer in that same neighborhood. Then a string of murders hit the neighborhood and Kacey goes missing.....

What did it make me think about?
The title of the book refers to the long bright river of departed souls from the opioid crisis. This book made me think about addiction, gentrifying neighborhoods, the way we police those neighborhoods, and of course- family.

Should I read it?
This was a great book! One of my favorites so far this year. This was a family drama wrapped up in a mystery. It also gave me a glimpse into a world I do not live in.

Quote-
"In a moment of clarity, once, Kacey told me that time spent in addiction feels looped. Each morning brings with it the possibility of change, each evening the shame of failure."

If you liked this try-
The Long and Faraway Gone by Lou Berney
My Sunshine Away by M.O. Walsh
The Child Finder by Rene Denfeld
Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin
thenotoriousABC
Sep 04, 2025
9/10 stars
Rich story telling by Moore in a tough backdrop. Compassionately told and also a thrilling tale.
MacyMcR
Aug 13, 2025
7/10 stars
This was better than I thought it’d be. I don’t think I’ll remember it in a year, but it was more than a typical cop novel.
Harrietaspy
May 04, 2025
8/10 stars
A little long but I liked the exchange between then and now. A few twists that were predictable but others that weren't. Overall good.
sloanefk
Apr 02, 2025
6/10 stars
An interesting study in siblings, each struggling to overcome the trauma of their upbringing and painful childhood and navigate adulthood, burdened with a lack of options or support. It switches back and forth from the past to the present to provide back story for the primary characters. It is done well and not confusing. But I did think the main character, Mickey, could have been better developed so she did not seem so uninteresting. Two of the supporting characters, Truman and Mrs. Mann, were my favorites. I didn’t care for either of the sisters, which I attribute to the writing, not to their lifestyles or choices. The book seems like it was intended to be uplifting. The book ended so abruptly that the reader is left having to wonder about the fate and future of all,of the characters. I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Allyson Ryan. The narrator’s delivery was not enjoyable.

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