INVISIBLE CITY is a story that takes place in the Hasidic community in New York. Rebekah Roberts was raised by her father. Her parents met in the religion section of a bookstore and even though they were two complete opposites, they fell in love. Her mother left them to return to a Hasidic community in Brooklyn. Her mother left her when she was just a few weeks old. Rebekah felt discarded by her mother and even though she was now a "stringer" for a newspaper in New York, she feels like she can never forgive her. My heart was breaking for Rebekah. She has been through so much in her life. Her mother abandons her and she never really learns the reason why. She is told many different versions of why from her Dad, but never the real story.

After receiving a call from the newspaper to report to a crime scene, she finds herself immersed in the murder mystery of a Hasidic woman who is from the same community as Rebekah's mother was. It is a fascinating case. A woman is found dead in a construction crane. She's naked and her head has been shaved. There is no way that this is not a strange and questionable death. But no questions are asked. The woman is a member of the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community in the Borough Park neighborhood of New York City, and the community has its own rules about investigating crime among their members, and more than enough political clout with the city to be permitted to go their own way. Basically, the police do not question her husband or family and to Rebekah this just isn't right. She vows to keep the story alive until the truth comes out.

When Rebekah meets Jewish detective Saul Katz at the home of the victim, he recognizes her based on her looking exactly like the mother she never knew and she is thrown into a world steeped in tradition and secrets. With each new fact she discovers, another question replaces it. Her past pushes her to dig further and also puts her in danger. INVISIBLE CITY is filled with secrets and many twists and turns. Rebekah is determined to get to the truth and is constantly putting herself in danger to see the story through.

The end of INVISIBLE CITY suggests that this is the first of a series and sets the stage for Rebekah to continue to learn more about both the Hasidim and her mother's life. I hope that is the case because I really want to know what she finds out. Is her mother still alive? If so, will she try to find her? Will she ever forgive herself or her mother? I really want to know! This is a very thoughtfully written debut novel! I learned so much about the Hasidic community which I previously knew nothing about. I look forward to reading more of Julia Dahl's novels.

Book Summary

Just months after Rebekah Roberts was born, her mother, an Hasidic Jew from Brooklyn, abandoned her Christian boyfriend and newborn baby to return to her religion. Neither Rebekah nor her father have heard from her since. Now a recent college graduate, Rebekah has moved to New York City to follow her dream of becoming a big-city reporter. But she’s also drawn to the idea of being closer to her mother, who might still be living in the Hasidic community in Brooklyn.

Then Rebekah is called to cover the story of a murdered Hasidic woman. Rebekah’s shocked to learn that, because of the NYPD’s habit of kowtowing to the powerful ultra-Orthodox community, not only will the woman be buried without an autopsy, her killer may get away with murder. Rebekah can’t let the story end there. But getting to the truth won’t be easy—even as she immerses herself in the cloistered world where her mother grew up, it's clear that she's not welcome, and everyone she meets has a secret to keep from an outsider.

In her riveting debut Invisible City, journalist Julia Dahl introduces a compelling new character in search of the truth about a murder and an understanding of her own heritage.