On January 29, 2008, just days after a bitter winter storm, Nova Scotians watched with breaking hearts as a young mother in the small town of Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, pleaded on the news for help finding her missing twelve-year-old daughter. For thirteen days, the country held its breath as the search for Karissa Boudreau continued. When, a frozen, snow-covered body was discovered near the LaHave riverbank, police soon confirmed Karissa was dead. The first murder in more than fifteen years unleashed fear in the small town. Shock turned to anger when Karissa's mother, Penny Boudreau, was arrested for the murder of her only child. A year after Karissa's death, Penny sat in the prisoner's box in Nova Scotia Supreme Court. What the people in the courtroom heard that day would haunt many for years to come. Seasoned journalist Sherri Aikenhead scoured official Bridgewater Police records, RCMP investigative records, court records, and Penny Boudreau's Parole Board of Canada decisions to painstakingly recreate what happened fifteen years ago. Through interviews with Karissa's circle of family and friends, and including a first-hand account from a key undercover agent who reveals how the Mr. Big operation extracted Penny's confession, Aikenhead skillfully builds a powerful and intimate narrative of what really happened to "Bridgewater's daughter." With photos, some provided by Karissa's family members, the book takes readers on a heart-pounding journey into the unfathomable question: How could a mother murder her own daughter?