Plano Reads: Miracle Creek
3 mins read

Plano Reads: Miracle Creek

Read our review of Miracle Creek by Angie Kim, a Mystery Book Club pick for August. 

You can join us to virtually discuss Miracle Creek on August 20 at 7 p.m. using Zoom! Register online here.  

Miracle Creek by Angie Kim  

Currently available as an eBook  and audiobook on OverDrive or through the Libby app. 

Description from OverDrive: How far will you go to protect your family? Will you keep their secrets? Ignore their lies? In a small town in Virginia, a group of people know each other because they’re part of a special treatment center, a hyperbaric chamber that may cure a range of conditions from infertility to autism. But then the chamber explodes, two people die, and it’s clear the explosion wasn’t an accident. A powerful showdown unfolds as the story moves across characters who are all maybe keeping secrets, hiding betrayals. Chapter by chapter, we shift alliances and gather evidence: was it the careless mother of a patient? Was it the owners, hoping to cash in on a big insurance payment and send their daughter to college? Could it have been a protester, trying to prove the treatment isn’t safe? Miracle Creek is a brave, moving debut from an unforgettable new voice. 


Miracle Creek by Angie Kim is the 2020 winner of the Edgar Award for Best First Novel, and it is incredibly deserving of that honor.

The story unfolds as we learn about the tragic events surrounding and following the explosion of “Miracle Submarine,” the hyperbaric chamber that held several children and adults and in which two people were horrifically killed. A former trial lawyer, Angie Kim walks us through the crime, the brutal and enlightening trial, and the aftermath.

All of this is enough to make a compelling legal thriller, but Kim goes even further by creating compelling characters. Young, a Korean immigrant woman at the center of the story, is one such complex character. As she fights to understand the truth behind the explosion of her husband’s treatment center, Young begins to question her family’s loyalty as well as her role as a wife and mother.

The author also delves deeply into themes involving parenthood, immigration, autism, and families with children who have other special needs. Pieces of Kim’s experience as a lawyer, a Korean immigrant, and the mother of a “submarine” patient are expertly woven into the story, making Miracle Creek both thrilling and heartfelt. 

Emery Courtney, Librarian

Learn more about Angie Kim on her website, which includes her biography and more information on her debut novel. 


Read-alike titles available on OverDrive and the Libby app:  

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