Journalist Jenna Halliday wants to make her mark as a podcast host. She's found a cold case that she thinks will be perfect - the twentieth anniversary of the disappearance of three young woman. Four went out on the town and only one - Olivia - came home. Not a sign of the other three. Were they abducted? By something otherworldly? By someone? Could they still be alive? The small village that was home to the girls is not overly welcoming to Jenna. But she is determined to find the answer....but at what cost?
I liked the premise - having so many options for what might have happened keeps the reader guessing.
Jenna was an interesting lead - braver than I think I would have been in some situations. She's quite pushy at times. Douglas worked as a journalist herself and I think that the book and character benefit from that inside knowledge.
There's a dual narrative with the other voice being Olivia's. She has secrets and memories that she has kept quiet about, for all of those twenty years. Seeing the same supporting characters through different eyes and experiences again gives the reader more information than Jenna has.
There's an italicized group of short chapters that focuses on a number of unknown people. What is their story and connection to the book? And last, but not least - there's also a fairly large group of supporting/suspect players, each with a role to play. I did find some of these players a bit caricaturized.
The plotting of The Girls Who Disappeared is quite busy and does ask the reader to suspend disbelief at a number of junctures, including the police investigation and Jenna's involvement in it. But on the flip side, that brings our protagonist closer to the whodunit. Just go with it. The final whodunit wasn't who or what I had thought it was going to be. Douglas also adds one more twist in the final pages that was also unexpected. Nicely done.
The Girls Who Disappeared is another good read from Douglas. See for yourself - read an excerpt of The Girls Who Disappeared.
3 comments:
Plot twists make the book much more interesting. Glad this was a good one.
For me Harvee, Douglas is an entertaining author.
Another I had been wondering about, but I think it will go on my list. Yay!
Post a Comment