SLIGHT SPOILER ALERT

Had to get that little warning out of the way because oh my god, the twist! I didn’t see it coming, it took me a couple of chapters to wrap my head around it and then I didn’t guess any of the other surprises along the way.

Wrong Place, Wrong Time was an absolute powerhouse of a thriller. I can’t imagine being Gillian McAllister and having to sit down to write another book after that one! This doesn’t beat Wrong Place, Wrong Time for me (I’m struggling to find a book that does!) but this one is gripping, emotionally charged, and has you constantly on the edge of what’s right and wrong. Looking forward to the next one already!

I also have to say that the acknowledgements were very lovely too - I hope life as parents is going wonderfully for Gillian and her husband.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in return for an honest review. I promise I will keep all talk of the twist out of my Insta review too 😅

Another gripping read from this author. I didn't see the first twist coming, but was proud of myself for following the breadcrumbs and having an inkling of what the ending had in store. Julia is a well rounded character, with flaws and tough decisions to make in order to protect her family. But it comes at a price. I look forward to the next book from Gillian McAllister.

Another cracking read from Gillian McAllister. This book is really addictive! I honestly didn’t want to put it down as I seriously just wanted to know what had happened. The story has plenty of twists and turns that help make it a compulsive read along with great characters and a great storyline, Gillian McAllister is definitely on my list of must read authors.

I've read most of Gillian McAllister's novels now, but I've particularly enjoyed the more recent ones, which are more high concept and incredibly well plotted and written. I love the way that Gillian McAllister can get inside a character and show us their feelings and motivation so viscerally that it is impossible not to want to know their side of the story, however unpleasant it might seem.

The novel starts with a bang, and from the beginning right until the end, Just Another Missing Person is engaging to read and I often found myself thinking about it, wondering what I would do in a similar situation, even when I wasn't reading. I thought at one point that I knew exactly where the story was going, but the author completely blindsided me and it goes in a completely different direction! It's really intelligent and I loved being kept on my toes until the final page!

Just Another Missing Person has a number of narrators, including Julia, Lewis and Emma. In Lewis' section, the words seem to be directed towards someone but they are not named in the beginning. It did take me a while to get my head around who was who, but I enjoyed seeing what was happening from different perspectives as I tried to piece everything together.

I'm already looking forward to the author's next book!

I’d like to thank Penguin Random House, Michael Joseph and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘Just Another Missing Person’ written by Gillian McAllister in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

DCI Julia Day is investigating the disappearance of Olivia Johnson who enters an alleyway and doesn’t come out when a man in a balaclava threatens Julia that unless she plants false evidence in the woman’s flat he’ll reveal a secret only she and her daughter Genevieve know about. Julia is law-abiding, she’s never been tempted to take a bribe, but this is this secret that will damage lives if anyone else learns about it.

‘Just Another Missing Person’ is a complex police thriller of corruption, missing women and the lengths a person will go to protect their family. DCI Julia Day is my type of police officer as she removes her shoes to get more involved with the case and will pull her sleeves up and work just as hard if not harder that her team. It has a great beginning but then it starts to slow down and although I love the characters of Julia and Genevieve I’ve got very confused with the other characters and even keeping notes of who’s who didn’t help. It’s definitely well-written and has an immense amount of drama, suspense and twists and turns, with the last twists unbelievably shocking and completely unexpected, and although this hasn’t been my favourite novel from Gillian McAllister it’s pretty good nonetheless.

Wrong Place, Wrong Time absolutely blew me away when I read it last year – and I’ve pretty much been waiting for Just Another Missing Person since I read the last sentence of Wrong Place, Wrong Time! So I went into it with a bit of trepidation – can Gillian manage to make something as good again?

Yes. Yes she can!

I think we actually need a special 6th Goodreads star just for Gillian McAllister books because they’re just so special. The plot – enthralling, absolutely unpredictable, exciting and emotionally-charged. The characters – relatable, well-developed, full of history and ethical dilemmas. And the writing style – highly skilful so that you are gripped, you feel the dread and anxiety and end up waking up in the middle of the night thinking about what is happening to the characters and as immersed as if you’ve been watching a film in the cinema.

In Just Another Missing Person, Julia is a detective who lives and breathes her job and puts her role solving crimes and helping others ahead of her own needs, and her own family time. 22-year-old Olivia has gone missing - very mysteriously disappearing down a dead-end street. Committed Julia knows she just has to find Olivia and know what has happened to her, for her family and housemates.

Until she meets a hooded man who tells her she must not find Olivia, and she must frame someone she has never heard of for her murder, or else the secret she has been keeping to protect her family will be exposed.

Now Julia has to decide what to do to keep her secret safe whilst doing what she needs to do to find the truth and justice for Olivia.

I won’t say any more about the plot itself – but the story is told through the eyes of several key characters, including Julia – as we navigate the blurred lines between right and wrong, good and bad.

The twists and turns are absolutely marvellous – I don’t know how Gillian thinks of such wonderful ideas but they are revealed in such breath-taking ways. The first shock was absolutely thrilling and totally unexpected and then more and more things are revealed that just added together to make such a complex and stunning story that will stay in my mind for a long time. If I didn’t have more books to read and review, I honestly would have just gone back to page one and started the whole thing again, it was just perfection!

I received an E-ARC with a request for my honest review.

This tension filled crime thriller follows Julia, a detective who finds herself on a missing persons case.

Olivia has been reported missing by her housemates, soon there are a few suspects and Julia believes it may even be linked to past disappearances.

Suddenly Julia is threatened and must decide whether to go against her own work ethics to keep a secret hidden.

What is in Julia’s past? Will they find the missing woman?

This crime thriller has many mysteries weaved throughout as Julia not only works through the current case but is determined to make up for past mistakes.

You get to hear the side of a few of the different characters which adds to the mystery and makes it even more impossible to know who is telling the truth.

Overall, a tension filled crime thriller where the mystery of a missing young women leads a detective down an unexpected path.

Gillian McAllister's latest twisty thriller has her trademark intelligent, complex and gripping storytelling, but it does require you to be a little patient. It is related from multiple perspectives, has a wide cast of disparate characters, and you can trust me when I say very little is as it first appears, be prepared to have the ground rocked from beneath you with some shocking twists. It all begins with 22 year old Olivia Johnson who has been reported missing, but here is the strangest thing, CCTV records her entering a one entrance dead end alley, and she never comes out. What on earth could have happened to her? The dedicated and highly competent DCI Julia is in charge of police inquiries, with experience telling her what she is in for, but a spanner she is not prepared for is thrown into the works that shakes her to her very core.

Instead, Julia finds herself in territory that is to test her to her limits and challenge her sense of identity and picture of herself as a person of integrity and principles. The case drags her into the personal and home arena when she discovers a stranger is privy to her and her family secrets. His silence is dependent on her implicating someone totally innocent, something she would never have contemplated even the merest possibility of previously. The tension and suspense levels are sky high in this well plotted novel with its in depth characters, that examines mother and daughter relationships, asking the question how far would you go to protect those closest to you. How will Julia handle the moral dilemma she faces?

This is a dark emotive thriller where it takes some time before the different pieces begin to come together, and even when you imagine it has all come to an end, McAllister pulls out another surprising twist. Fans of the author are likely to love this, as indeed are new readers who encounter her for the first time. A terrific crime thriller that I recommend to those who enjoy the crime and mystery genre. It leaves me ooking forward with great anticipation with what McAllister comes up with next! Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

It’s difficult to find anything new to say about Gillian McAllister. She hit the ground running and subsequent publications have just got better and better. She’s one of a handful of authors who leaves me literally breathless. Just Another Missing Person is possibly her best yet…it’s fast paced, there’s twist after twist and then bang…you’re hit with the unexpected. Her plotting is absolutely superb and her characters are people you might meet anywhere. This is a very clever mystery thriller which I devoured in one frantic sitting and my only disappointment was the fact I’ve got to wait for another book now. Miss this at your peril; it’s a cracker.

Wow, Gillian McAllister has done it again! Just Another misisng Person is another impossibly twisty, impossible to put down, inventive thriller.
Julia lives for her job as a DI, a job that is taking its toll on her marriage. But she is also a mother and she would do anything for her daughter, even compromise all that she is, all that she believes, and that is exactly what happened a year ago. As a result she neglected her case, that of a missing girl, Sadie. Now there's another missing girl and this time Julia is determined not to mess it up. Only someone knows what she did last year and unless she plants evidence and frames the person they tell her to, they will report her - and her daughter. Julia will have to choose between letting down another family or destroying her own.
Gripping, clever and compelling. Highly recommended.

So after discovering Gillian McAllister as an author over the past few years she is now one of my auto-read authors. Needless to say that when an advanced proof of her latest title, out 3 August, landed with me you can imagine my excitement!

‘Just Another Missing Person’ introduces us to DCI Julia Day, the lead detective on a missing persons case. Olivia Johnson, 22, was last seen entering a dead-end alley on CCTV but never came back out again. When Julia is threatened whilst investigating the case she realises that her work life is going to become dangerously entwined with her family life with no easy way out. Well except by framing a seemingly innocent party for her murder, despite the absence of a body…

I LOVED every single part of this book, if you thought Wrong Time, Wrong Place couldn’t be beaten then you’re wrong, McAllister has done it again! The twist halfway through is one of the cleverest in any book I’ve read and you honestly don’t see it coming and you will be visibly astounded when it happens! Her inimitable writing style draws you in from the very first chapter, introducing and building the connection with each character seamlessly.

Without spoilers it is hard to say more and this is a book you NEED to read to enjoy the reveals yourself. I finished this book and just said ‘Wow’, there were no other words that summed up just how captivating it is. This is a definite recommendation to all, read and enjoy this amazing thriller. Thank you Gillian for yet another wonderful read and no pressure but can’t wait for the next one!

This is the third book by McAllister that I have now read and she continues not to disappoint!

In this book we follow DCI Julia Day searching for a high profile missing person. The story is told through Julia and through some parents of the young people involved in the investigation.

I couldn’t understand why I was hearing from the parent’s perspective until about half way through when the first major twist was unveiled!

I can’t say too much about the story without revealing spoilers but it’s brilliant! I read it in one sitting, I couldn’t put it down. I was kept in suspense, I was anxious for DCI Day and then I was ‘ooohhhing’ at all the twists and turns.

I was lucky enough to receive an early copy of this, it’s out 3 August and I would def recommend.

I have enjoyed previous books by this author but this one just did not live up to expectations..A slow burner which was convoluted at times. A good premise but is probably padded out too much for my liking.A few twists and turns which kept me reading. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it

Gillian McAllister is such a talented writer of emotionally highly-charged, multifaceted thrillers, and this one is especially good. In a thriller market populated by many female, slightly flawed detective inspectors with complicated home lives, McAllister’s DCI Julia Day nevertheless stands out because she is so well drawn and believable. In this novel, Julia is under pressure to solve the murder of a vulnerable female who goes by the name of Olivia. To Juia, Olivia is more than just another missing person. But when blackmail and the pressures of raising her own child get thrown into the mix, will Julia find that the lines between her professional duties and her fiercely guarded private life get blurred? Superbly plotted and expertly written, this is a thriller to look out for. I wish to thank the publishers and NetGalley for the complimentary ARC I received and confirm that all opinions expressed are my own.

A great detective stories there are loads of twists and turns and quite a few surprises to keep you guessing. Highly recommended.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4.25⭐️

Gillian mcAllister is always an author I want to read asap, the books can be mixed for me, but there’s some real gems, so I was excited to read

Julia is a long serving detective, here she has a missing person’s case to solve. Only the criminal she needs to fear knows her worst secret, to protect her family she is told that she must not find out what happened to missing 22yr old Olivia. I’ve read a few books recently (Jack Jordan) about moral, and legal dilemmas for people in positions of power, so was interested to see how McAllister would handle it.

Bullet points for Just Another Missing person
📕moral, ethical and legal dilemma
📕what lengths will a parent will go to to protect their child
📕make a character list to help keep track
📕complex multilayered plot


We have several POV, lots of characters and multiple layers. The common theme seems to be parental love, and the lengths a parent will go to to protect their child. I was forewarned that there are a lot of characters, so I made a list, but there’s too many for my brain, To add to confusion the detectives are sometimes referred to by first, or last names, but it doesn’t seem both at the same time to be able to clearly identify who is who. A list of who’s who might help.

It is a complex plot which the author makes even more complicated by using a red herring. Neither does the author readily give up the clues which link things together. The reader is kept in the dark,

Julia is caring, totally dedicated and loves her job, she comes over as very likeable. I feel for Art, that Julia is so blindly unforgiving. He seems like a decent guy.

With the amount of characters it took me some time to settle into the book, but it’s got a good plot complexity. I really enjoyed it when things started coming together.

Don’t start this book unless you are prepared to spend all day with it - completely addictive! A wonderfully gripping and twisty thriller. Settle down for a rollercoaster of a ride.

I’ve just finished this book and am undecided whether it was utterly brilliant or totally confusing! I think I’ll be reading it again another day just to be able to make sense of all the twists and turns that just seem to keep coming at you. I found it difficult to keep up at one point and felt I’d drifted into another universe/book!

It’s a 3* this time round but could quite well end up being a 5* when i
re-read it in the future

Thank you to the author, publishers and Netgalley for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review

What a writer! This truly encapsulated the grey area in the world, between being a good person & doing the right thing for genuine reasons. I noticed a huge subplot on family & parenting in how each parent was protecting or doing things for their children. It was so well written & put together, you can tell there is so much emotion & thought put into every single new revelation!!

Gillian McAllister is truly an auto-buy author at this point, every book I’ve read has kept me glued to my seat & excited to get to the twists! Not only that the people she invents are just so REAL in the sense that you truly understand why they’re doing what they’re doing…it’s truly magical.

This detective thriller has all the things I like: a flawed DCI with a secret on the trail of a missing girl; twists and turns; great characterisation; plenty of suspense.
It has quite a complicated plot - sometimes it’s a bit hard to keep up with it - but it’s clever and I didn’t see all the twists coming.
Above all, it’s just really gripping. I looked forward to reading it and didn’t want it to end: what better endorsement is there of a good novel.
Recommended - policing meets a thriller: a perfect combination.