2021-02-04

Lisa GARDNER : Before she disappeared

Frankie Elkin is an average middle-aged woman, a recovering alcoholic with more regrets than belongings. But she spends her life doing what no one else will--searching for missing people the world has stopped looking for. When the police have given up, when the public no longer remembers, when the media has never paid attention, Frankie starts looking.
A new case brings her to Mattapan, a Boston neighborhood with a rough reputation. She is searching for Angelique Badeau, a Haitian teenager who vanished from her high school months earlier. Resistance from the Boston PD and the victim's wary family tells Frankie she's on her own--and she soon learns she's asking questions someone doesn't want answered. But Frankie will stop at nothing to discover the truth, even if it means the next person to go missing could be her.
 
 

I've been claiming it for years : Lisa Gardner is my favourite thriller author. I have read all her novels, so book buying ban or no book buying ban, when she published a new novel, my life takes a step back while I read it. 
 
This is a standalone, she hasn't released one in years. What I absolutely adore with this author is that her female characters are strong, maybe not always well-balanced, usually with a troubled past that they can't get away from even if some try their best to. In a world filled with conformism, her women are always misfits, flawed, unperfect. Frankie Elkin is one of them, I loved how her own story was revealed bit by bit. I said it's a standalone but who knows, the possibility of a series is open ?... I'd love to.

Another thing I loved here in this novel and that the people in there are diverse, human, less human, a whole set of characters brought to life, the Haïtian community, a whole neighborhood. This book deals with social, racial subjects that we hear about in the news without any preaching : she simply shows people and it's more effective than any long talk. There are different layers, different possibilities, the chemistry between Frankie and Lotham is irresistible - they love to agree to disagree. This book is gritty, filled with energy and suspense, that too is irresistible. Highly, highly recommended !

14 comments:

  1. I love Lisa Gardner books, I think I've read most of them over the years so I was happy to read that you loved her new release. I hope to try it soon.

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  2. Your description makes this sound like a rather original plot, which is rare in mysteries these days! Interesting review.

    be safe... mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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    1. It is original, I think Lisa Gardner herself didn't know this type of person existed until she heard about one, then she researched, then she produced the book - good for us. And how many books from worldwide famous authors are written about the Haitian community ? Not many, I guess...

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  3. Yep, there are two authors that I will always buy their books no matter how many I have on the shelf already. Looks like her latest was a smash hit and I hope there are more of this very different heroine's mysteries for you. Neat that it is set in a Haitian American community. I learn so much when author's enrich their stories with diverse groups like that.

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    1. Yes, I loved this community, even if I wouldn't go walking there by night ! And it definitely made me want to taste some Haitian food :)

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  4. I really want to read this one. Lisa Gardner is such a good writer.

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    1. Oh yes she is ! Each time I wonder if I'll be disappointed, each time I'm not :)

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  5. I've been hearing really good things about this one.

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  6. I haven't read any of her books but I'm happy to see that I can borrow them from the library - when they open up again. It sounds like I'm in for a treat.

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    1. I hope you love her books. Of all those she wrote, there's only two I liked less :)

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  7. Lisa Gardner is an absolute favorite of mine, too! I hope we get more of Frankie in the future too, but I'll read anything Gardner wants to come up with next. :)

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    1. I fully agree with you, I think we might read more of Frankie since her other series have been going on for a long time, but I'm in for anything !

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