This is a fantastic debut mystery/thriller from a very talented author. The vivid descriptions of the bleak Irish town and the rich character development combine to build tension and keep the story flowing at a good pace. The book is very well written, gripping and tense throughout. You pick up small clues throughout the book only to find twists and turns along the way that will make you second guess yourself. This is a promising debut, and I eagerly look forward to the next installment! I received this as a free ARC from Bookouture on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Firstly I must state that I am stunned that this book is a debut. It is gripping read that has multiple mysteries. I feel that because there is so much going on, it could have been two books. That’s not a criticism – I didn’t have any difficulty in following the very well executed plot.

Personally I did find the book a little long. But once the pace and suspense picked up it was very difficult to put it down. There are some dark themes so it isn’t for the faint of heart.

I’m really looking forward to reading the next book in this exciting series.

This was a really great start to the Detective Lottie Parker series. The book pulls you in from the beginning and keeps you engaged throughout. I love the character development and the mix of characters is interesting and easy to follow.. I really liked lottie and look forward to reading more - this was an good plot with lots of speculation on my part and unexpected twists.

A fast paced thrill ride. I found it a bit long but still a page turner.

This book is too slow for me I had to give in. I think it will be ok for some people but if it doesnt grab me in the first couple of chapters its a no go

Well I have eventually finished this book. Honest review is that it wasn't my thing. I thought that there were too many characters and I rapidly became confused but I stuck with it. It may because I can only read for a few mins here and there but I was lost halfway through. The main Detective Lottie was quite difficult to take to as well. She had 3 kids and although police work is a demanding job, I thought that she didn't care as much as she should have about her family seeing as they had lost their father. Hopefully the 2nd book will be a little less complicated and I will definitely give it a go but I think that 3 stars for the debut book is fair.

Well let me just say first of all that I am not very liberal with my five star ratings. I pretty much only give them to books I would read again. This book fell into that category daily because it had so much great content and colorful characters. I couldn’t believe this was the author’s debut novel as it was as gripping and suspenseful as a veteran writer. I absolutely loved Detective Lottie Parker’s character and her relationship with her partner Boyd. I also really liked her kids and could identify with her having three kids of my own. This was the book that I could not put down. Without giving too much away, I hadn’t a clue as to how this was going to end. The book took some very big twists and turns and I found myself reading certain paragraphs over because I was in shock over what had happened. The book is neatly tied up in the end with no loose end. Absolutely fabulous, albeit sad, story. I can’t wait to read more Lottie Parker.

I'd like to thank NetGalley, Bookouture, and Patricia Gibney for my free copy of The Missing Ones in exchange for an honest review.

This was a debut novel by Patricia Gibney but you would never know it! The book was incredible, it was dark and scary, the writing was excellent and completely on point for this genre and I was at the edge of my seat the entire time I was reading it.

There were a lot of stories interwoven expertly throughout this novel, and it was fascinating to read how it all came together. I genuinely had no idea who the killer was until the very end!

Lottie is a detective, a very tired one. She is juggling being a single parent to her three teenagers after her husband passed away, and she has a supervisor at work who is the stuff of nightmares. On top of that, she has suspects who have very interesting secrets that they are keeping, co-workers who are quirky to say the least and a case that is causing her severe sleep deprivation. I love how Lottie is a real person that I, as a reader, can relate to. Loved the secondary characters as well.

This was a fantastic book and I can't wait to read the next one!

Highly recommended read.

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book. Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture.

A fantastic debut, great story line and characters, I really hope that there will be more in this series.

I probably would have given this book a better rating if it hadn't been so long. I liked the story and the characters but it went on and on and on. There were a lot of parts that I just skimmed over because it was repetitive and, in my opinion, unnecessary for the story's development.
I really enjoyed the plot of this story and enjoyed trying to figure out how everything and everyone was connected. The characters were well written and I felt that I had a good grasp on Lottie and how her mind worked. I wasn't thrilled that she seemed to leave her children alone most of the time, but I could understand that a demanding job would make this necessary.
The story seems to take a long time to take off but once it got going, it was almost hard to stop reading. I wish it had taken off a bit sooner though. I think that, because this is a first book in a series, the author did a lot of character setup and, for me, it took me away from the story a few times.
I would say this was a decent read but definitely not a great one...

Excellent book. Brilliant storyline and characters. I would highly recommend this book.

The characters are weird and any reason is vague, if addressed at all. It was all around confusing. Could not finish.

I was hooked from the first page, I wanted to know more especially about Lottie and Susan and whether they were connected and how if so.
I was intrigued by the story though I did find it a little dark at times but I just couldn't put it down. I had to know how it ended. The twists and turns kept the story going and not too pridictable. I would recommended this book.
Thank you for the opportunity to read it.

A fantastic debut novel, I cannot wait to read the next one!

What an absolutely fabulous book. Lots of action, great characters. This was one of those books I just couldn't put down. Can't wait for the next one. What a brilliant first novel.

Oh my giddy aunt I think I have found a new crime author to add to my "must read" list. The Missing Ones by Patricia Gibney? Has the makings of an outstanding crime thriller series. I find it incredible that this is the authors debut novel, as it's polished, well plotted and gripping.With a disturbing prologue and a "heart in your mouth" first chapter (which chilled me to the bone) I found myself absorbed in this dark and disconcerting tale. The author has a such a unique way of describing her characters and surroundings that you can conjure up the atmosphere and scenes with ease, in fact they were so well described at times I felt I was there amid the investigation.

The Missing Ones introduces Detective Lottie Parker who is called in to lead the investigation. When two people are found dead in very different circumstances. Both bodies have the same distinctive tattoo clumsily inscribed on their legs. It’s clear the pair are connected, but how? It's up to Lottie with the help of her partner Boyd to find out. Lottie Parker is pretty screwed up, yes like so many fictional detectives she has issues, a widow with three children she struggles to balance both her home and work life, she uses alcohol and pain medication as a crutch, but she's also very likeable, she's feisty, opinionated and determined, but her relationship with fellow team member Boyd shows her softer side.

As the investigation gains momentum the author weaves an intricate plot that makes it difficult to guess the perpetrator from a long list of possibles, which add a genuine sense of mystery and unease to the tale. Unusually for me I wasn't able to guess where the plot was leading but every time I thought I had it all figured out the author very deviously threw a curve ball, which is always a plus when reading a crime thriller. The Missing Ones deals with the uncomfortable subject of child abuse but the author manages to deal with the issues with a great deal of sympathy, and there are no particulars graphic scenes in case you were wondering. This book has many themes past sins, abuse, cover ups, and evil although highly used in crime thrillers the author still manages to add her own original slant to them, making for a engrossing read.

As the plot progresses the Investigation appears to be going no where, as it throws up more questions than answers Lottie's sense of frustration is palatable.There are plenty of "heart in your mouth" moments and enough twist and turns in this novel to keep even the most hardened crime thriller lover reading late into the night. The Missing Ones has chills and thrills galore, well plotted with multi dimensional characters, it's a promising start to a new series. I'm eager to see how Lottie's character will evolve. In my opinion Patricia Gibney has written a very accomplished debut crime thriller and one I would be more than happy to recommend this crime thriller

My review maybe altered slightly and edited prior to publication on my blog

4.5 stars. "I wonder which one of us will be next?" What a superb opening this story has! The atrocities that happened long ago at St. Angela's in a small Irish town come to light slowly as Detective Lottie Parker starts investigating a murder...or two or three.

I liked Lottie - with all of her flaws and insecurities on raising her children. Her and her partner, Boyd, seem to be a good match. This engrossing story pulls you in from the beginning and keeps you turning the pages with a good plot, strong characters and lots of twists. A terrific debut from Ms. Gibney! I will most certainly be on the lookout for future Detective Lottie books.

**Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley in exchange of an honest review.**

A great thriller, not the fastest paced book I have read but gripping all the same.

An excellent debut book. Looking forward to reading more.

The Missing Ones by Patricia Gibney is a great start to the Detective Lottie Parker series. The book pulls you in from the beginning and keeps you engaged throughout. There were many characters throughout the mystery, but very easy to keep track of & very relatable characters...especially Lottie. I loved Lottie and can't wait to read more Lottie mysteries. The plot keeps at steady pace and will keep you guessing.

ARC provided by Netgalley for my honest review.

Actual rating 4.5 stars

If I had to describe this debut thriller in just one word, I'd choose "engrossing." From the beginning, when three young children in a home for orphaned and abandoned children witness acts almost too horrific for them to understand, I thought I might have trouble putting it down. And as the often-gruesome story unfolded, I knew I was right.

This is the first in a series featuring small-town Ireland detective Lottie Parker, who gets the call to investigate when a murdered woman is found in a cathedral. Not long thereafter, another body turns up - this one a man found hanging from a tree outside his home. Identifying the woman presents quite a challenge, but the man is known; and when it turns out that both victims have what appears to be the same tattoo on their legs, it becomes apparent that the two murders somehow are related.

The real-time story takes place from around Christmas 2014 to just after the start of the new year, but readers also get flashbacks to 1971 and some of the scenes witnessed by the children at the home. Lottie and her team, including her partner and occasional sleepover partner Boyd, turn up clues suggesting that the now-abandoned children's home is central to the case. Now, it seems, the property has been sold to a developer who plans to turn it into a multi-million dollar hotel and golf course - plans that seem to have become lost somewhere in the local government bureaucracy.

Just when dwindling leads make solving the two crimes far less than a certainty, yet another body turns up - this time a priest who, Lottie and her cohorts are told, was sent to the local parish "to find himself." This death, though, could be the turning point; surely, three murders in this small community over the space of a few days can't be a coincidence (or, to put it another way, as did one of the characters in Ian Fleming's "Goldfinger": "Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. Three times is enemy action.") And so it is that Lottie really digs in, going deeper and deeper as the dots from past to present begin to connect.

After reading a ton of books "starring" female detectives, I've concluded that it's a requisite that they be flawed (think, for instance, J.D. Robb's popular Eve Dallas). Lottie is no exception; she lost her beloved husband to cancer and is trying to deal with a demanding career that includes a rather nasty boss (also a requisite, I think), three near-grown children and a mother she loves but from whom she effectively is estranged. What's more, Lottie has a long-ago connection of her own to the abandoned children's home - trauma that's never been resolved and that brings the possibility of harm to her own children as the current case moves to a surprising conclusion (a couple of them, actually - one very believable and the other, at least for me, not so much).

Now I've finished, and I'll say with no reservations whatsoever that I hope this book will mark the successful start of a series - if for no other reason than I want to follow along. Meantime, my thanks to the publisher for allowing me to read it in exchange for an honest review.