This is a sad and touching memoir about a woman who disappears and presumably dies of a heroin overdose after many years of a downward spiral. Atlantis Black grew up in a family with significant mental illness, including a mother with bipolar disorder and others suffering from depression. Her father was physically abusive, on at least one occasion pounding Atlantis' head repeatedly on the floor, as witnessed by Atlantis' sister Betsy, the author of this memoir. As the older sister, Atlantis was on the receiving end of the majority of the abuse, but Betsy did not go unscathed, as she recounts at least one violent incident in this book. Atlantis was a musician and actor, but also had degrees in geographic information systems and pharmacology, and briefly worked in both of those fields. However, her volatile nature and drug abuse led to her losing relationships, jobs, and eventually her home. She talked repeatedly with Betsy about disappearing by changing her identity, so when she's found dead in Tijuana, Mexico, and there are conflicting stories from the police, Betsy is left wondering whether her sister is really dead or not. Given that, I wondered why Betsy didn't follow up on potential evidence, such as a DNA test that would prove the remains found in Mexico were really Atlantis'. (In addition to being the recipient of Atlantis' ashes after her cremation, she had requested a lock of her hair, which was delivered to her with bits of the scalp attached (yuck). Betsy throws this away when it might have been used for a DNA identification.) Betsy is left not only mourning her sister's death, but also wondering whether she might still be out there. The book doesn't resolve any of these questions, so it remains a mystery that may never be solved.
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