Everything from the past comes back to Frankie when remains are found that are believed to be those of her best friend, Sophie, who disappeared eighteen years ago. Sophie's brother, Daniel, asks her to come back to their small coastal town, to help him identify the remains and see if they can try one more time to find out what happened. Sophie was believed to have fallen off the pier, and the police have ruled it an accident. But Daniel and Frankie don't believe that.
Sophie narrates the story from eighteen years prior, starting a few months before her disappearance. She is falling in love with Leon, and Frankie is convinced he's bad news.
Frankie visits Leon in the present, and he indicates that he "knows" about Frankie's secret. Frankie wonders if Sophie told him about his cousin James' death back when they were teenagers. Frankie and Sophie were also involved in that, and their secret was supposed to be safe.
There's a lot going on in this one, but it doesn't get confusing. Local Girl Missing is tightly plotted and events unfold quickly enough to keep you guessing. I believed, at times, that Frankie is an unreliable narrator, given the weird things that are happening to her. I won't tell you if that is really the case or not.
The less you know about the plot the better. I thoroughly enjoyed this mystery, that takes place on the British coast. There are a lot of "Britishisms" that were entertaining to me (dustbins?)
This story is totally accessible to teens also. Those who like twisted mysteries will enjoy Local Girl Missing.
Published by Harper, July 4, 2017
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
352 pages
Rating: 4.5/5
This sounds vaguely reminiscent of Lovely Bones, which is a good thing. I'll definitely add this to my list!
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