An intense, moving story with lots of unpredictable twists and turns, intrigue and personal sub plots that keep you riveted to the very end! Wonderful characters in this start to a new crime thriller series! Det. Lauren Pengelly is called to a scene where bones of a woman are found. Then there are 3 little girls who seemingly disappear into thin air from 3 different nursery schools, one of them being new Det Matt Price's daughter. Are these cases related? A really wonderful read! A real page turner and a must must read!

This was a slow burn for me. While there are two mysteries going on in the beginning, it felt like it took a while to get going and really capture my attention. In the end I really liked the book and watching all the pieces fall together. This is told from a few view points, which makes it fun to read! I really enjoy reading multiple sides to a story!

DI Lauren Pengelly has finally decided to take a much needed vacation, but before her vacation can even begin, bones are dug up in the garden of an estate. She decides to forego her time away to lead her team of investigators and find out who the bones belong to and whether or not it is a murder. Then, a little girl goes missing from a local daycare. Now Lauren and her team have another case to solve. When the investigation hits too close to home, everyone must work quickly before things escalate further.

This is an excellent book! I loved it. I figured out the twist but not until just before it was revealed. It didn’t matter; the investigation process was amazing, and the characters are very likeable. This book kept my interest on every page with there never being a dull moment.

I'm not sure if this is the first in a new series, but I sincerely hope it is. I would love to see the progression of the characters and read more mysteries solved by this team of investigators. This was a 5/5 stars for me.

Love the title. Lost girls. The characters are intriguing. The story moves quickly. This talented author has written a cannot put down novel. Rugby is gifted at weaving a story. I look forward to more books in this series. Trying to determine the ending was not easily accomplished. Weaving two mysteries on one…Thanks Netgalley.

Thank you for giving me the chance to read this ARC in return for my honest opinion

I had not read any books by this author before so had no idea of her style of writing.
I therefore had no idea that Matt had appeared in a previous series and so his backstory might have been more in context

I enjoyed this book - it was well written and had many a twist and turn.

I think as a mother it was heart churning imagining what had happened and why. I did think I knew the protagonist by the end and perhaps why they did what they did - I had not anticipated the callousness. I had eventually seen how the two apparently different storylines were interwoven.

The main detective - Lauren Pengelly, perhaps was not particularly likeable though she seemed to have her own ideas about how her team of officers should work together forgetting they are human with human foibles.
Her second in command had his own back story - personally I would have liked to have known why he had a limp much earlier in the book. In fact I spent much needed reading time flicking back through the e-book to see if I had missed something only to find the reason right at the end. I suppose that's the joy of a real 'hard' copy book?

The book seemed well researched in terms of the police procedure and policy and was well written and easy to read.

I enjoyed this book and would look out for any further ones in the series

Detective Lauren Pengelly's leave was cut short when some children discovered human bones in the grounds of an abandoned building, and Detective Matt Price, Lauren's new 2IC, was first on the scene. While waiting for forensics to arrive, investigations began. Learning the bones were of a woman, and were approximately 20 years old, Lauren and her team at the Penzance Police Station swept into action. But when they received the call to say a three year old girl had vanished from a childcare nursery, the horror trickled down their spines - a cop's worst nightmare had begun.

With the two cases running side by side, the search for little Isla was paramount. But she was nowhere to be found, and when a second child - three year old Violet - also vanished from a different childcare nursery, panic set in. Lauren and Matt knew the first few hours were vital, but soon it was forty eight hours and they had no clues. Would they find the children before it was too late? And would they identify the bones that had been discovered?

The Lost Girls of Penzance is the 1st in the Cornwall Murder Mystery series by Sally Rigby and it was excellent. A fast paced police procedural with a spiky, no-holds-barred boss, combined with a new Detective who had trouble handling anything in the morgue, and Lauren's talented team working their places, The Lost Girls of Penzance is one I recommend highly. I'm already looking forward to book #2.

With thanks to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for my digital ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.

The Lost Girls of Penzance is book 1 in the Cornwall Murder Mystery by Sally Rigby.
This is an excellent start to the new series. A very absorbing story. So much detail that it was easy to gret involved. Some really good characters and an edge of the seat atmosphere.
A tense and gripping first book in this new series that I literally couldn’t put down and I cannot wait to read more in the future.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank You NetGalley and Storm Publishing for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Excellent book loved it,the story is gripping with great characters that go so well together and bring alive the book I look forward to more from this author 5*

Thanks to netgalley for providing an advanced copy for the purpose of review

This was a really enjoyable mystery. It was full of twists and turns which kept the story interesting and it was well written with some great characters. Looking forward to reading more.

This is my first time of reading anything by this author but I loved it and will look out for her books in the future. Set in Cornwall it’s about a team of detectives who have just got a new sergeant who’s joined the team. Matt Price has to hit the ground running when on his first day the human bones of two bodies are discovered and then a young girl is taken from her nursery school. With so much going on the team has to work hard and fast together before really getting to know each other. Things take a turn for the worse when another two young girls are also taken from their nursery schools too. Everything turns personal for Matt when the third little girl turns out to be his daughter. There’s a lot going on in this fast paced read and I highly recommend this book. How will they cope with two different cases to deal with in a small town and with a new arrival in the team. You need to read this to find out I will definitely be reading the next book in this series ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Detective Lauren Pengelly book 1.

This is a brilliant start to a brand new series.

Detective Lauren Pengelly has only been part of the Penzance police force for less than two years, but that’s enough time to know that the sleepy Cornish town doesn’t see many murders. So, when the bones of a woman with a hole in her skull are discovered behind a derelict cottage, she immediately assumes the worst.

Meeting her new Sergeant, Matt Price, at the scene they don't exactly get off to a brilliant start.

But soon all that's forgotten when a call comes in saying a young child has gone missing from a local nursery. Have they innocently wandered off or is something more sinister going on?

I was hooked on this book from that chilling prologue. This has a great plot and fascinating characters who I look forward to reading more about in the next book. Loved it.

If you are a fan of Inspectors Wexford, Banks and Frost you should give this new series by Sally Rigby a try because I think it could be the best new police procedural I have read in quite some time. The author has only touched on the personalities of the team of detectives but I'm already clamouring for more insight into what makes them tick. There are two seemingly separate cases for investigation, one a historic murder and the other a child abduction and they are equally exciting. The author really ramps up the tension around the abduction while the skeletal remains case is a bit more of a slow burn but the climax to both cases left me stunned. Hopefully it won't be too long before the next book is published. In the meantime I'll just have to look at the author's back catalogue.

The Lost Girls of Penzance is book one in the Cornwall Murder Mystery by Sally Rigby. Detective Lauren Pengelly caught two cases: a historical point of a woman found behind a derelict cottage and the kidnapping of a young girl from nursery. Are the two cases connected? On top of the two murder cases, Detective Lauren Pengelly also had to put up with a new member of staff, Detective Sergeant Matt Price. The readers of The Lost Girls of Penzance continue to follow Detective Inspector Lauren Pengelly to discover what happens.

The Lost Girl is the first book I read by Sally Rigby and the first in her new Cornwall Murder Mystery Series. Wow, I am so pleased that I read this book and had no problem engaging with the characters and the story. I love Sally Rigby's portrayal of her characters and the way they interact with each other throughout this book. The Lost Girls was well-written and researched by Sally Rigby. I like Sally Rigby's description of the settings of The Lost Girl, which allowed me to imagine being part of the book's plot. The readers of The Lost Girls will learn about the consequences for parents after their children go missing. Also, the readers of The Lost Girls will learn about the role of a nursery nurse.

I recommend the book.

I’d like to thank Storm Publishing and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘The Lost Girls of Penzance’ written by Sally Rigby in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

DI Lauren Pengelly of Devon & Cornwall Police cancels her two weeks’ cycling holiday when long-buried human bones are discovered. The following day a three year-old girl is taken from Acorn Childcare Centre and it isn’t long before her new DS Matt Price is even more involved in the investigation than Lauren and the team anticipated.

‘The Lost Girls of Penzance’ is the first in a new series entitled ‘A Cornwall Murder Mystery’ and is a well-written thriller with a carefully thought-out plot full of drama and suspense. I didn’t initially like DI Lauren Pengelly who came over as abrupt and authoritarian, refusing to listen to others and believing that her own opinion was the correct one, but thankfully as the story progresses her character has become softer and more agreeable. This bodes well for future books in the series and I look forward to seeing how her personality develops as well as her interaction with DS Matt Price and the team.

An exciting thriller which had me gripped from the first page. The worst possible start to her new career in Penzance Dectective Lauren Pengelly finds herself investigating the disappearance of a young girl from her nursery. A great start to a new series.

The start of a new series featuring DI Laura Pengelley and her partner Sergeant Matt Price. Children are being abducted from nurseries in plain sight and a cold case has reared its ugly head. A gripping read that kept me reading late into the night. Peppered with red herrings, packed to the rafters with tension and suspense and so much more. A really good start to this new series and I can't wait to read more.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the Arc in return for an honest review.

This is a police procedural set in Cornwall. It was ok , though the story had little depth and the characters are not particularly well portrayed either. I did not like Lauren in the beginning and by the end she was only ok Matt was ok . The backstories are plausible I suppose, though the implied attraction later on in the book seemed a bit far fetched.
The investigation was also not really well grounded in places.
All in all, not bad, but could be better . Thanks to Net Galley for the ARC

The Lost Girls of Penzance by Sally Rigby is a highly recommended police procedural.

Detective Lauren Pengelly of the Penzance police was supposed to be on leave when she learns that a skull has been found and rushes to the scene. Detective Matt Price, second-in-command to Pengelly, is guarding the scene. This is his very first day and he has never met Pengelly so he doesn't allow her on the scene until the medical examiner vouches for her. There are other bones, obviously not recent, so the site must be seriously examined.

Then the station receives a call about a little girl disappearing from her nursery/preschool. The team rushes over to search for her and check out the staff and buildings security. Pengelly and Price quickly begin to investigate and seemingly have a suspect, but then another little girl disappears from a different nursery/preschool and it is clear that they need to reexamine the facts. The search for the missing girls is intense while the identification of the bones is also being investigated.

Since this is the start of a new series, any development of the characters is beginning with this first novel. The good news is that readers are provided with an excellent foundation for future development. The backgrounds and personalities of both Pengelly and Price are presented as realistic, believable characters with individual personalities and depth. Pengelly is not immediately a likeable character, she is stern and tough, but there are a few hints and a scene late in the novel that show a hidden side of her personality. Price has a heartbreaking backstory and he is immediately likeable.

The narrative moves quickly as both investigations are underway. The missing little girls is the more compelling of the two but both investigations are brought to a conclusion. The action and clues provided will hold your attention. This is a fast read. While there is a twist, The Lost Girls of Penzance excels in presenting a straightforward police procedural where the investigation logically leads to a conclusion.
Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Storm publishing via NetGalley.
The review will be published on Barnes & Noble and Amazon

This one was just ok for me. I loved the plot idea. Or at least part of the plot. The missing children. The other simultaneous story I wasn’t a fan of. It detracted from the parts I liked. I wasn’t a huge fan of the character development and didn’t really grow to like the characters. I didn’t feel like I knew them. I also found the pace a little choppy. It didn’t flow as nice as it could and it was hard to gauge time.
However. I did enjoy the plot. The pace was good and over all it came together ok.
I’m glad I got a change to read it and I think it was a decent read to recommend.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Storm Publishing for an advance copy of The Lost Girls of Penzance, the first novel in the Cornwall Murder Mystery series featuring DI Lauren Pengelly and DS Matt Price.

Lauren gives up her leave when she hears that a woman’s skeleton with a hole in the head has been unearthed near some derelict cottages. She quickly learns that the bones are twenty years old and that gives her time to turn her attention to another more pressing issue, a three year old girl has disappeared from her nursery. Initially she and her new sergeant, Matt Price, concentrate on the girl’s father and his unusual behaviour, but have to start again when another girl goes missing in similar circumstances.

I enjoyed The Lost Girls of Penzance, which is a fast moving read with plenty of incidents and a neat twist in the conclusion. There is a fair amount of serendipity in the novel, but as it is plot driven with plenty of forward momentum I’m not going to quibble over a few lucky coincidences, especially as it held my attention throughout. I think this is due to the author’s writing style, which draws the reader in and creates enough questions to keep the reader occupied and engaged.

I must admit that I disliked Lauren Pengelly on first acquaintance. She’s way too task orientated and she’s all about doing a good job to get promotion. Her team don’t like her and she has no friends. It’s all work, work, work. As the novel progresses she starts to show a more human side, but she’s definitely a work in progress. Having said all that, she’s a good leader and has a calm pragmatic approach to her work. I think that her partnership with Matt will do wonders for both of them.

The Lost Girls of Penzance is a good read that I can recommend.