Book Review: The Missing Hours by Emma Kavanagh

When Selena Cole vanishes, apparently abandoning her children in the park, the police and her family fear for her safety. But when Selena appears 20hours later safe but with no memory of what happened during those lost hours suspicions being to stir. And the discovery of a dead body nearby raises even more questions. Is Selina's amnesia genuine or a clever deception?

​Regular readers of my blog will know I am a big Emma Kavanagh fan. I first reviewed her debut novel Falling back in 2014 and Emma has also writtenguest posts for my blog as part of her book launch tours. So this book had big shoes to fill...

Thankfully the Missing Hours does not disappoint.

Emma has mastered the art of writing from multiple viewpoints. We mainly hear from the lead Detective on the missing persons case, DC Leah Mckay, who is forced to close the case early but is convinced there is more to Selena's disappearance, and her brother, newly promoted Detective Inspector, Finn who is leading the murder inquiry of a solicitor. Interspersed between the progress of the two cases we are introduced to the world of Kidnap and Ransom (K&R) through a series of reports, newspaper clippings and essays featuring The Cole Group - Selena's K&R consultancy company formed with her late husband Ed who died in a terrorist bomb blast. This is the main drive of the story and while Leah and Finn are likeable the real tour de force is this element which I found fascinating. K&R is an unknown world to most of us and as an industry it is very closed lipped, so to have a peek into this high stakes world was an interesting and usual premise for a novel. 

From a relatively slow start the storylines gradually builds and gains momentum as the lines between the cases start to blur and the tension builds. Emma's police and military background again lend an edge to this genre which is so lacking in other thrillers. The finale brings all the voices together with a satisfying twist.

​A great read maintaining the high standards expected from Emma. 4/5

Linking up to #readwithme, #pocolo and #twinklytuesday