The Missing Ones

Detective Lottie Parker, Book 1

By: Patricia Gibney

Narrated by: Michele Moran

The hole they dug was not deep. A white flour bag encased the little body. Three small faces watched from the window, eyes black with terror.

The child in the middle spoke without turning his head. "I wonder which one of us will be next?"

When a woman's body is discovered in a cathedral and hours later a young man is found hanging from a tree outside his home, Detective Lottie Parker is called in to lead the investigation. Both bodies have the same distinctive tattoo clumsily inscribed on their legs. It's clear the pair are connected, but how?

The trail leads Lottie to St Angela's, a former children's home, with a dark connection to her own family history. Suddenly the case just got personal.

As Lottie begins to link the current victims to unsolved murders decades old, two teenage boys go missing. She must close in on the killer before they strike again, but in doing so is she putting her own children in terrifying danger?

Lottie is about to come face to face with a twisted soul who has a very warped idea of justice.

©2017 Patricia Gibney (P)2017 Bookouture

Great story, needed a great editor

I didn’t like the protagonist - flawed is one thing, unlikeable is another. Parts of the book were unrealistic but felt like lazy editing to me. One example is when the detective, Lottie Parker sees a light in a window which sets her and her partner onto a path and then later “realizes” she couldn’t have seen it based on the description of the building. That’s a lazy fix. Go back and undo seeing them light and come up with a different trigger for going in.

Another example of unrealistic the detective being attacked, her children threatened but she opts not to call anyone for help. What!?

I liked the twist at the end, which I won’t reveal. But there were multiple characters lacking depth - her boss, some of the people they interrogate. This is the job of the editor - to take an otherwise GREAT storyline FULL of gripping moments - and make sure they aren’t ruined by undeveloped characters or a main character no one is really pulling for.

It also felt like an afterthought to add flowery language which was completely unnecessary. This isn’t a literary work so don’t try to make it one. If they felt pain, show the pain. Don’t add metaphors and big words just for the hell of it.

I DID think the plot was great, the narrator was fantastic and the flashbacks were very clear. It was just let down by releasing it before a final round of clean up happened.

Sooooo slow

I agree with the other reviews of this book. The pacing is so slow and it never gained momentum and None of the characters are likable. If the main character is supposed to be acerbic and sarcastic, they need to have some redeeming qualities and Det. Lottie does not. Every time I looked at the book counter, I’d swear it got longer and longer each time. This book was a slog to get through and I couldn’t wait for it to be over. The narrator was good though, I would listen to other books from her, but not this author.

Not very good

I did not enjoy this book or the lead character. I listened to the entire book, hoping it would actually get better, but I would not recommend it.

intense

This story is gripping, interesting and sad. A good mystery snd tale of relationships

Good Story with a Great Modern Gothic Feel

This is an excellent mystery where coming home sometimes may not be the best thing, but it always thrills us gothic loving, mystery solving, a-little-bit-Miss-Marple readers!! 👁️🦴🦷💀🔪