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Crime by the Book

A girl investigates crime fiction from around the world, by the book.
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the cbtb blog

One girl's ongoing investigation of the crime fiction genre.

Review: ALL THE MISSING GIRLS by Megan Miranda

March 20, 2016

ALL THE MISSING GIRLS by Megan Miranda

CBTB Rating: 2/5

THE VERDICT: skip this one

I so badly wanted to like this book. It has such a striking cover, is being marketed as a thriller in the vein of THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN, and is written with a seriously unique twist: the mystery is told backward. Unfortunately, this book really fell flat for me. Despite (or perhaps because of) its unique plot structure, the mystery aspect of the story was sorely lacking, and I struggled to finish it. Fans of Megan Miranda’s YA books might still enjoy ALL THE MISSING GIRLS, but for readers looking for an edge-of-your-seat thriller, this isn’t the book for you.

ALL THE MISSING GIRLS is a story of, you guessed it, missing girls. When Nicolette left her hometown 10 years ago, she was desperate to escape the tragic disappearance of her childhood best friend, and she successfully created a whole new life for herself. Now, called back to her hometown to care for her aging father, Nicolette once again comes face to face with the ghosts of her past. When another girl in her town disappears, Nicolette is afraid that the events of her past are repeating, and she struggles to understand both past and present crimes in the hopes of preventing another.

This book’s plot sounds intriguing enough, but what really drove me to read it was its main hook: the story is told backward. I had never read a mystery told backward before, and I was totally excited to experience this unique plot structure. So how does it work, exactly? The book’s first chapter is essentially an introduction: the reader meets Nicolette, gets background information on her childhood, and learns about her current life, leading up to the new tragedy that strikes her hometown. Then the chapters are presented in reverse order: starting with Day 14* (14 days into the new investigation), counting down to Day 1. I still think this is an incredibly original and bold strategy for mystery-writing, and I commend Megan Miranda’s effort. Sadly, this plot structure just didn’t work for me.

My experience reading ALL THE MISSING GIRLS was seriously undermined by the very thing that had excited me most about this read – telling a mystery backward. In my opinion, this plot structure essentially dooms the quality of mystery you can write. What do I mean, exactly? Think about the best mystery you’ve ever read – one that puzzled you, kept you on the edge of your seat, and had you totally immersed in solving the case. There is a certain amount of complexity and urgency inherent in any good mystery, and a lot of that depends upon the author’s ability to create a story that you can follow logically, but that still manages to trick you. Telling a story backward totally excludes the reader from the mystery-solving process, and that made this book almost unreadable to me. The twists and turns of this story were lackluster and illogical, and I didn’t feel at all invested in figuring out the story’s conclusion, because there was no possible way that I could. The story’s “twists” seemed random and haphazard, and it was totally lacking in suspense and plot development. 

Fans of Megan Miranda’s YA books and readers looking for a young adult/crime crossover will very likely thoroughly enjoy this story - it does have a love triangle and occasional moments of moderate spookiness and suspense. But if you’re looking for a truly suspenseful, gripping adult thriller, I can’t recommend this one. 

*Correction: Day 15 rather than Day 14.

In Book Review Tags Books, Book Review, Simon and Schuster
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Hunting Game (An Embla Nyström Investigation)
By Helene Tursten

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May this cute little bear latte art brighten your day as much as it brightened mine. 🥰🙌🏻 •
So... guess who finished her latest read in just about 2 sittings...?! 🤔 It’s been just about forever since I binge-read a book quite as quickly as I did HUNTING GAME by Helene Tursten. And the greatest irony of all? I thought this was going to be a really slow-burning read that would take me a little while to get through. 😂 Here’s the thing: HUNTING GAME *is* a slow-burner of a story, but it’s also delightfully readable. This is a quiet sort of mystery; it’s grounded in reality and focused more on atmosphere-building & character development than flashy twists or gory violence. It’s got a fantastic premise that feels inspired by the “locked room mystery”: a group of hunters in rural Sweden are struck by tragedy when two of their own go missing, and suspicion falls on the group. 🔎 Tursten does a fantastic job crafting an immersive mystery that will keep you engaged with steady pacing, spare prose, and compact chapters. If you’re a fan of classic detective novels, it will be RIGHT up your alley. 👌🏻 •
Who here loves a good classic detective story?! 🕵🏻‍♀️ What are some of your favorites?
Wintry Nordic mystery with a strong female protagonist? Sign me up. 🕵🏻‍♀️🖤 Many thanks to Soho Press for my review copy of Helene Tursten’s HUNTING GAME, on sale February 26th! 🔎
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One of the questions I get most often is “don’t you ever get tired of reading crime novels?!” And the answer is, invariably, no - because the crime genre encompasses SO much. 🙌🏻 My personal trick that helps keep things fresh for me as a reader = I mix up the sub-genres I’m reading back to back. SO because my last read (THE WOMAN IN THE DARK) was a fast-paced psychological suspense novel, I’m opting to make my next read something more atmospheric & slow-burning - and Helene Tursten’s HUNTING GAME looks just the thing to suit my mood. 👌🏻🖤
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A little backstory: Helene Tursten is best known for her Irene Huss series, which has been translated into 18 languages (!) *and* adapted into a television series. BUT with her new book, HUNTING GAME, she launches a brand-new series featuring a totally new protagonist: Detective Inspector Embla Nyström. 🕵🏻‍♀️
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Embla Nyström is a 28-year old detective working for the police in Gothenburg, Sweden. Plagued by chronic nightmares and anxiety for as long as she can remember, Embla has learned to channel her emotions and anxious energy into her work, and into sports - she is both a talented hunter and a prize-winning welterweight boxer. 💪🏻 When readers meet her in HUNTING GAME, Embla is taking a vacation from her high-stress job, traveling to her uncle’s cabin in the countryside with a group of fellow hunters. But when a string of unsettling incidents occur, culminating in the disappearance of two of the group, Embla takes charge, delving into the dark past of her traveling companions in search of a killer. 🔎
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🕵🏻‍♀️ FRIDAY GIVEAWAY 🕵🏻‍♀️ I’m so excited to team up with @Minotaur_Books to give away 5 hardcover copies of THE RECKONING, the brilliant new book by Yrsa Sigurdardottir! 🔎
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Yrsa Sigurdardottir (aka Iceland’s Queen of Crime 🇮🇸) is one of my favorite authors. 👌🏻 If you’re a fan of Nordic Noir, her books belong on your TBR! 🤓 This week, Yrsa’s newest book THE RECKONING went on sale in the US, & today on the blog I’m sharing a Q&A with Yrsa giving you a behind-the-scenes peek into the read! 🔎 In our Q&A, you can learn about the characters central to this story, the inspiration behind the book, how dangerous Iceland *really* is, & a whole lot more!! Direct link in my IG profile 🕵🏻‍♀️🖤
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SO to celebrate this book’s release, I’m teaming up with Minotaur to give 5 lucky readers a copy! 🤓 Enter below! •
GIVEAWAY RULES: 🔎 Giveaway closes 2/22
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GOOD LUCK! 🕵🏻‍♀️🖤
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Wishing I could be at this pretty little coffee shop this afternoon with my current read ♡ •
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THE WOMAN IN THE DARK follows a married couple whose life is shattered by the passing of wife Sarah’s mother. Mired in grief and depression at the loss of her mother, Sarah begins to lose a grip on her life. Her husband, Patrick, is desperate to help his wife process her grief and find her footing again. To give the family a fresh start, he moves them to the idyllic beachside home where he grew up. The only problem? The house has stood empty for 15 years, ever since the previous occupants were murdered within its walls. Patrick has faith this can be their dream home... but with the locals whispering that the house is haunted, Sarah can’t shake the feeling that something isn’t right. Not with the house, not with the town, and not even with her beloved husband, whose stories of his childhood aren’t adding up... can Sarah uncover the secrets of the Murder House before another family is destroyed? 😳
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Feeling so pampered today & I’m loving it. 😉 I swapped out this latte ☝🏻 for a glass of wine 🍷 at my favorite hair salon this afternoon where I’m currently getting my hair done 😍 I haven’t had a real haircut in AGES and I’m feeling like a new woman already. 💁🏻‍♀️ PLUS I’ve got a great book to read while my hair dye processes, so that’s an added bonus. 🤓
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Fact: Central Park is beautiful in every season. 🖤🙌🏻
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If you could interview ANY author out there... who would you pick?! 🤔
Not enough coffee in the world today guys. Not enough coffee in the world. ☕️😂 •
It’s been one of those “busy all day but what did I accomplish” kinda days today. 🙈 all I know is: at the end of a day like this, I’m SO glad I can look forward to going back to my apartment & digging in to an engrossing book. 🤓
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Do you guys tend to prefer darker, more intense crime stories? Or are you a fan of lighter suspense reads? 🕵🏻‍♀️

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