| Title: | All the Missing Girls | |
| Author: | Megan Miranda | |
| Published: | 2016, Simon & Schuster | |
| No. of Pages: | 384 | |
| Cover Price: | $25.00 Hardcover, $16.00 Paperback, $12.99 Kindle |
Megan Miranda has added an innovative twist to her bestselling novel, All the Missing Girls, in that the story is told backwards, with the twists and turns, as well as the palpable suspense, unfolding from day 15 to day 1. The only thing left for readers by the end of the book is the denouement, which, of course, isn’t revealed until the final chapter. Nicolette Farrell has returned to her rural hometown of Cooley Ridge, ten years after her best friend, Corinne, disappeared. Her father isn’t well – has mental issues - and she and her brother, Daniel need to sell the house and take care of things. Nic, who is engaged to Everett, an attorney, is reunited with old friends, Tyler, her old boyfriend, and friends who were with her the night Corinne disappeared after hanging out at the fair. Tyler’s new girlfriend, Annaleise Carter, has now disappeared, under similar circumstances to Corinne.
All the Missing Girls is well-written, and Miranda has done an excellent job of giving readers a sense of each of the characters so that they become real people. Corinne isn’t held in high esteem and described as a perfect girl, just because she has been missing for ten years; rather, her true personality is evident, and makes it feasible that someone might want to make her disappear. Annaleise, who was just thirteen when Corinne disappeared, seems to be obsessed with the disappearance, even ten years later.
While the book has been compared to The Girl on the Train and Gone Girl, it isn’t because the stories are similar, but because the main character, Nic, is not particularly likeable, and seems to be extremely self-absorbed despite what has happened in the past, and is happening in the present. There is no sense of wanting Nic to come out ahead, but a sense of wanting to find out why Nic doesn’t seem to care about her missing best friend, who always liked to stir up trouble, and was even more self-absorbed than Nic.
The novel is one that isn’t easy to put down, has dozens of twists and turns, and is a unique and fascinating novel. Once read, it’s evident why this has become a runaway bestseller, and it is one that is not to be missed.
Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this novel.
This book may be purchased at Amazon:
All the Missing Girls: A Novel
