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georgilvsbooks's review against another edition
5.0
I just love this author!! She is amazing at grabbing your attention from page 1.
So additive!
So additive!
susani_'s review against another edition
2.0
Just quickly jotting down my thoughts on this book
Pros:
- the agony of the mother was well written. You could really feel her guilt, sense of hopelessness and anguish over her missing son.
- the family dynamics with a missing son was well written. You can imagine that everyone would feel regret for their last moments and it was well written.
- it is was different to read a book to focuses on a missing son instead of daughter. Often in books like this it is the daughter that is always missing.
Cons:
- as I continued to read this I felt less and less warmth and caring towards the missing boy. As a person he seemed like an ass and a bit messed up.
- the ending was underwhelming. Actually, I wasn’t a fan at all. It just felt bleh at the end.
I think it was an okay book but Billy (aka the missing kid) was in my opinion an ass that I didn’t feel anything for him. I felt bad for his family as they had to go through such agony. Also, I think I have been reading a lot of thrillers, mystery crime books which all have been underwhelming.
2.25 stars
Pros:
- the agony of the mother was well written. You could really feel her guilt, sense of hopelessness and anguish over her missing son.
- the family dynamics with a missing son was well written. You can imagine that everyone would feel regret for their last moments and it was well written.
- it is was different to read a book to focuses on a missing son instead of daughter. Often in books like this it is the daughter that is always missing.
Cons:
- as I continued to read this I felt less and less warmth and caring towards the missing boy. As a person he seemed like an ass and a bit messed up.
- the ending was underwhelming. Actually, I wasn’t a fan at all. It just felt bleh at the end.
I think it was an okay book but Billy (aka the missing kid) was in my opinion an ass that I didn’t feel anything for him. I felt bad for his family as they had to go through such agony. Also, I think I have been reading a lot of thrillers, mystery crime books which all have been underwhelming.
2.25 stars
loz232's review against another edition
2.0
standard meh mystery.
(spoilers...)
Felt like it was kind of cheating with the very well-timed 'blackouts' of the main character.... also the reveal at the end of what actually happened was so disappointing. It was a page turner to begin with but didn't really go anywhere
(spoilers...)
Felt like it was kind of cheating with the very well-timed 'blackouts' of the main character.... also the reveal at the end of what actually happened was so disappointing. It was a page turner to begin with but didn't really go anywhere
saltycorpse's review against another edition
3.0
CL Taylor definitely writes movie-adaptable stories, and this was no different. The pacing is excellent, the way the plot rolls out is great. However I thought the sheer amount of shit dumped on Kira (victim blaming, etc) was a bit ridiculous, and the husband, Mark, was a COMPLETE assbutt. In the end, the narrator, Claire, is trying to decide if she should "forgive him" for attempting to kiss another woman. But like...he CONSISTENTLY talks down to her, manipulates the entire family, plays the victim when he's called out on his shit, and as an all-around douchebag, but she is torn over forgiving him for drunkenly ATTEMPTING to cheat on her? Bitch, please. You married a complete clown. Leave him for being an all-around dick.
amakaazie's review against another edition
4.0
Well written story about Billy, a 15 year old boy who disappears and how his family copes with it. There are enough twists and turns to keep one intrigued. There are also emotional highs and lows. My only negative is I had no sympathy for Billy whatsoever so I didn't mind at the end what happened to him, which is sad in a way. Overall a good read. I definitely recommend 😄
niahristova's review against another edition
4.0
i read this book a while back so i don’t remember everything but all i have to say is that billy is a disgusting human being, how can a 15yo be that insufferable (not that he deserved what happened but he did deserve some jail time and tons of therapy imo <3)
k_west1984's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed this book but thought it took a long time to start getting exciting. The ending was good just dragged on for my liking
kbranfield's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 stars.
The Missing by C.L. Taylor is an incredibly fast-paced and suspenseful mystery about a missing fifteen year old and his mother's attempts to locate him.
Six months after their son Billy vanished without a trace, Claire Wilkinson and her husband Mark are making a another media appearance in hopes of uncovering new information. When their appeal is derailed by their nineteen year old Jake's drunken behavior, the family becomes even more fractured than before. Jake turns to drink to help him cope, his girlfriend, Kira Simmons, who lives with the family, loses herself in her college classes and Mark continues traveling for work. However, Claire begins experiencing inexplicable episodes of amnesia that while deeply troubling, do not distract her from her increasingly frantic efforts to locate Billy.
Written primarily from Claire's perspective, her anguish and worry are palpable as she remains convinced Billy will safely return home. In the aftermath of her first terrifying fugue state, she is of course very concerned about what happened to her, but she does not allow this to keep her doing everything possible to unearth new leads about Billy. Her desperation leads to some very questionable decisions that put her into potentially dangerous situations. Claire refuses to give up hope that Billy is alive and as she tries to find out the truth about what happened to her son, she gradually realizes that she does not know her loved ones as well as she thought.
The unfolding story is interspersed with message exchanges between two unknown people that take place during the months leading up to Billy's disappearance. While it is somewhat easy to surmise one of the authors of the messages is most likely Billy, the other person's identity remains shrouded in mystery. These messages offer a distressing snapshot of Billy's activities with this person and they also provide an intriguing peek into his strained relationships at home.
The Missing is an absolutely spellbinding mystery with a clever plot and a sympathetic yet increasingly unreliable narrator. C.L. Taylor brilliantly keeps readers guessing about whether or not Billy is alive and who might be responsible for his disappearance. The message exchanges are thought-provoking and provide fascinating insight into Billy's life in the months before he vanished. However, the truth about what happened to him is cunningly concealed until the very dramatic and positively stunning conclusion. I highly scintillating psychological thriller to fans of the genre.
The Missing by C.L. Taylor is an incredibly fast-paced and suspenseful mystery about a missing fifteen year old and his mother's attempts to locate him.
Six months after their son Billy vanished without a trace, Claire Wilkinson and her husband Mark are making a another media appearance in hopes of uncovering new information. When their appeal is derailed by their nineteen year old Jake's drunken behavior, the family becomes even more fractured than before. Jake turns to drink to help him cope, his girlfriend, Kira Simmons, who lives with the family, loses herself in her college classes and Mark continues traveling for work. However, Claire begins experiencing inexplicable episodes of amnesia that while deeply troubling, do not distract her from her increasingly frantic efforts to locate Billy.
Written primarily from Claire's perspective, her anguish and worry are palpable as she remains convinced Billy will safely return home. In the aftermath of her first terrifying fugue state, she is of course very concerned about what happened to her, but she does not allow this to keep her doing everything possible to unearth new leads about Billy. Her desperation leads to some very questionable decisions that put her into potentially dangerous situations. Claire refuses to give up hope that Billy is alive and as she tries to find out the truth about what happened to her son, she gradually realizes that she does not know her loved ones as well as she thought.
The unfolding story is interspersed with message exchanges between two unknown people that take place during the months leading up to Billy's disappearance. While it is somewhat easy to surmise one of the authors of the messages is most likely Billy, the other person's identity remains shrouded in mystery. These messages offer a distressing snapshot of Billy's activities with this person and they also provide an intriguing peek into his strained relationships at home.
The Missing is an absolutely spellbinding mystery with a clever plot and a sympathetic yet increasingly unreliable narrator. C.L. Taylor brilliantly keeps readers guessing about whether or not Billy is alive and who might be responsible for his disappearance. The message exchanges are thought-provoking and provide fascinating insight into Billy's life in the months before he vanished. However, the truth about what happened to him is cunningly concealed until the very dramatic and positively stunning conclusion. I highly scintillating psychological thriller to fans of the genre.