The Missing is a well paced story that will get under your skin. I devoured it over the course of a day, mainly on my commute and was amazed I didn't miss my stops at any point.

A plethora of people hiding something, makes for murky waters to navigate through in this thoroughly engrossing tale.

There's a missing son, a host of characters and suspects and some mysterious texts leading the way through the confusion. Where is Billy? What happened the night he disappeared? Does anyone know his true fate, especially members of his family? I found this a solidly written read, which really cranked up in the final furlong. If you're looking for a good distraction read, this is it, though don't think that means it makes for easy reading. Unsettling is not the word. This book sends you hurtling through the uncomfortable side of family relationships and questions how well you think you know your nearest and dearest.

A fabulous read that kept me enthralled throughout. Brilliantly written, with the many twists and turns I have come to expect from this author. Loved it!

A fabulous 4.5 stars.

Excuse me whilst I fangirl over C.L. Taylor. I love her work!! I have read all 3 psychological thrillers that she has published, and I have not been disappointed in any of them. In fact, my only criticism of her work is how tired I am when reading her books as I can’t put them down and sleep!

Another creepy cover that hinted before I opened the first page that I was in for another roller coaster dark and gritty plot which was exactly what this turned out to be. As usual with the authors work things are not straight forward and as you read you wonder what parts to believe and what to question. Like many books in this genre the story revolves around a child that is missing. In fact, they have been missing for six months as we meet the family and it is certainly every parent’s worst nightmare. So it no surprise that the family are feeling scared, devastated, guilty and dumbfounded. But like lots of families, all is not what it seems on the surface, and there are questions to be asked.

Claire is the Mum and main character in this book. Much of what we see is from her perspective. However, what can we believe and who is she really? Suffering from blackouts and memory lapses there are situations that just seem odd and make no sense to her or others around her. Is she insane or ill?

The story is also interspersed with text messages between two people, but we don’t know their true identity as they use alias names. How much of a bearing do these messages have and who are behind them?

I know this book has had a mixed reception, but to me it was a tense page turner that kept me engrossed from start to finish. As with the authors other work, this plot has twists as well as casting doubt on many of the characters. What happened? Who was involved? Where is it all leading? I love books that are not always what they seem, and I enjoy the challenge of trying to suss everything out, so this was right up my street.

I would definitely recommend this fast moving, engrossing tense thriller and am looking forward to reading The Escape when it is released later this week.