Book Info

Title: The Missing

Author: Melanie Florence

Series: Standalone

Genre: YA Fiction

Language: English

Pages: 192

Publisher: James Lorimer & Company

Date of Publication: September 1, 2016

Plot

After a girl she knows from school goes missing and is found dead in the Red River, Feather is shocked when the police write it off as a suicide. Then, it’s Feather’s best friend, Mia, who vanishes — but Mia’s mom and abusive stepfather paint Mia as a frequent runaway, so the authorities won’t investigate her disappearance either. Everyone knows that Native girls are disappearing and being killed, but no one is connecting the dots.

Using as its background the ongoing circumstance of unsolved cases of missing and murdered Aboriginal women, this fictional thriller set in Winnipeg explores one teenager’s response to a system that has long denied and misrepresented the problem.

Will Feather find Mia . . . alive?

My Take

Set against the backdrop of the plight of Aboriginal women in Canada and the general indifference of the local authorities, the book makes a compelling and heart-breaking case of the issue. The story is written in first person, and alternates between the protagonist and the sick mind of the antagonist. Narration is on-point and keeps you glued to the story. The story also touches the various problems faced by the teenagers, including the vicious rumor factory, life at foster care, molestation, racism,  homosexuality, etc., highlighting the importance of a good, supportive family.

One thing I found frustrating is the lack of a common sense and awareness of how technology can be used. When the best friend goes missing, the abductor does not not turn off the phone of the victim, and it rings multiple times. Yet, nobody gets the inspiration to trace the location. Success is not guaranteed, but it pains me to see that nobody even tried to follow the obvious path.

Despite this obvious loophole, the story is entertaining and with keep you engrossed.

Favourite Quotes:

“…and they didn’t deserve the firestorm of attention they were getting just because the jackals at school needed to update their Instagram feeds with something new.”

My Rating : 3.5/5

(-0.5 for what I found to be the loophole)

Recommended for:

YA Fiction readers.

Thank you for reading!

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