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Missing by K.L. Slater was a solid psychological thriller where the suspense was secreted in the words, giving this missing child plot arc an added layer of mystery. I have read the 3 previous novel by KL Slater and find her novels very enjoyable and of a consistently high standard. This is a fast paced psychological thriller that gets the reader hooked and wanting to learn more. I was certainly hooked and just had to learn the truth causing me to stay up into the early hours to finish it. First, most of the story is told from Rose's point of view, in a 'step-by-step' format. I have a problem with this kind of narrative, which tends to be circumscribed and slow-moving. Blake is a councilman, Lucy is a stay at home mom, they live a nice comfortable life with their two adorable children Grace and baby Oscar... then one day they allow nine-year-old Grace to walk home alone from a friends and their lives are changed forever... as the investigation begins into the who? Why? How? The layers start peeling away from Blake and Lucy‘s so-called perfect lives... both these characters were hiding quite a few things from one another, so many secrets, so many lies, so many suspects....
Missing by K L Slater | Waterstones
In this one, the main character, Rose, blames herself for her brother Billy’s death. They went to a park to fly a kite, and he went missing while he was retrieving his kite. Billy’s body was found two days later after a massive search. Step by step Gareth manipulated Rose into isolating herself from her family and friends. He also convinced her to accede to his increasingly intrusive demands. Gareth wanted to control every aspect of Rose's life - from the movies she saw, to the flavor of ice cream she ate, to her college plans. When Rose resisted Gareth's 'requests', he became furious and made ominous threats. Rose is playing the blaming game with herself. Sixteen years ago her eight year old brother, Billy went missing while she was watching him. He was found dead and Rose is still asking herself what if.... If, after subscribing to my newsletter, you would like to put your books for review, then the link is hereLike I mentioned earlier, the misleading blurb had me thinking this was an entirely different book than what it was. There is nothing bad to say about this novel- creative, addictive writing, suspense-fueled plot, passionate and honest characters (both good and evil alike). Surprises at every turn will leave the reader constantly wondering what’s going to happen next. “The Mistake” has it all- young, teenage romance and the passion that could go horribly wrong, the murder of a young boy and the mystery that shrouds the sadness, and the quest of an older sister to bring the killer to justice. MY THOUGHTS: There were things I liked about this book, and things I didn't. I will start with the negatives so that I can end on a good note. At about this time, another tragedy occurred in Rose's life. One sunny afternoon Rose took her 8-year-old brother Billy to Newstead Abbey - to fly his kite - and the little boy disappeared. The main character, Josie, is a mom of a 7 year old girl and is recently divorced. She owns her own business, a bakery in town, and works very hard to keep the business growing. Her ex-husband is lax with his visitation of their daughter, Ivy, due to his gambling addiction. When Josie was a teenager, her younger brother Jimmy went missing and was found dead.a few days later. Jimmy was the same age that Ivy is now. The murder was charged to Josie's neighbor, Samuel Barlow. Samuel served 25 years in prison for the murder and was released 5 years shy of his 30 year term.
Missing by K. L. Slater Book Review – Missing by K. L. Slater
Rose learns the hard way that he is not to be trusted, but its taken her some time and some loses along the way, including her best friendship with Cassie. Such an excellent start, but the slow development was not very engaging and didn’t feel realistic. The writing was repetitive and I didn’t care for any of the characters. That news puts Josie on red alert; after all, her daughter with ex-husband Terry is Jimmy's age when he died and Samuel once had a "thing" for Josie. If that weren't enough, his mother Maggie seems to be stalking her. But balancing her need to be extra-watchful of Ivy and keep an eagle eye on her fledgling business, Delicious Desserts, proves almost impossible, even with friend Fiona there to be Ivy's caregiver when needed - which these days, is a good bit of the time. By the time the inevitable happens - Ivy does indeed go missing - just about every character is a suspect. Josie, though, has no doubt whatsoever: the culprit is the same man who murdered her little brother. Will Josie forever be known as the murdered boy’s sister and mother of the kidnapped girl? Will the evil event pass “through the generations like an ill wind” or will Josie be able to press pause and rewrite Ivy’s future? The book focuses on Josie Bennett who, as a young teenage girl, lost her brother in the most tragic of ways. Jimmy was only 8 years old when he went missing, and family friend, Samuel Barlow was charged with his murder. Twenty-five years on, Josie’s life goes on, she is a single mother with a young daughter and is running a successful catering business. When she hears that Barlow is to be released from prison five years early, her life heads off into a spin and Josie is convinced that Barlow will be out for revenge for Josie giving evidence against him.
Sixteen years earlier, before Billy went missing, Rose began dating a man named Gareth. He was much older than she was. He was handsome, and seemed oh so sophisticated. He liked that she was sweet, fresh and unsoiled. When Gareth began dictating what Rose did with her time and who she was friends with, she thought he wanted the best for her, being young and naïve, Rose didn’t realize what it meant and how it would change the course of her life -until it was too late. When I thought I had it nailed, it then turned another corner with a revelation of her neighbours secrets. Boy oh boy. For five full, long minutes she walked up and down the long road, stepping into the bushes wherever there was a gap, searching everywhere for her brother.
Missing by K.L. Slater | Goodreads
Thank you so much to NetGalley, Bookouture, and K.L. SLATER for the opportunity to read a copy of this book in exchange for a review. I am so glad I read this as the book has so much to offer than a topic plot that’s been hashed to death over the last year or so. This novel consists of a prologue, 67 chapters and an epilogue. The chapters are short to medium in length so possible to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case! This is my 15th book read and reviewed by the author and can, I think now say she is one of my ‘go to’ authors, always a great story and ‘Missing’ continues this traditionWell, in theory that would normally be a fairly sound plan. That is until one of the fathers takes his eyes off her for just a moment. Now Grace has vanished!
K.L. Slater - Book Series In Order K.L. Slater - Book Series In Order
Second, I have an issue with Rose as a character. Though I understand a teenage girl being infatuated with a dashing older man, Rose seems overly foolish. She constantly makes excuses for Gareth's terrible behavior; believes whatever he says; and gives in to him against her better judgement. Even as an adult, Rose has trouble dealing with the manipulative creep. I just don't like to see a character being such a doormat (and a little whiny to boot).I wanted the final twist of identity and motive of perp to be more connected to the main plot line. I could easily know who were not the perps.
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