Book Review: The Girl Who Disappeared Twice by Andrea Kane

BLURB

She couldn't stop it.Not then.Not now.

If she'd only turned her head, she would have seen the car containing her daughter, struggling to get out. Struggling to escape her kidnapper.

Despite all her years determining the fates of families, veteran family court judge Hope Willis couldn't save her own. Now she's frantically grasping at any hope for Krissy's rescue. Her husband dead–set against it, she calls Casey Woods and her team of renegade investigators,Forensic Instincts.

A behaviorist.A techno–wizard.An intuitive.A former Navy SEAL. Unconventional operatives.All with unique talents and personal reasons for being part of Casey's group, they'll do whatever it takes.

Able to accurately read people after the briefest of encounters, Casey leads her crew to Krissy's home. There, she picks up the signs of a nervous spouse, a guilty conscience, a nanny that hides on her cell. She watches as secrets beg to creep into the open.

Forensic Instincts will dig through each tiny clue and eliminate the clutter. But time is running out, and even working around the clock, the authorities are bound by the legal system. Not so Casey's team. For they know that the difference between Krissy coming back alive and disappearing forever could be as small as a suspect's rapid breathing, or as deep as Hope's dark family history.

REVIEW

I have this book in my shelf for almost a year now. It has always been in my TBR list but I couldn’t manage to read it. Finally, I managed to finish it now. Though I already forgot my reason why I picked this book up. Maybe because of its title? Its cover? Or maybe because it’s really really cheap? That’s true.

Let’s get to reviewing now.

First thoughts, I wonder why it was entitled The Girl Who Disappeared Twice. Was the girl got kidnapped twice? As I was reading the book, I was really ready to solve some more crimes because I have read this book right after I was done reading the book The 5^th Horseman and that book got me into a roller coaster kind of mystery adventure. So I was excited when I started reading this. Hoping to find the same amount of thrill and adventure I found on the previous book if not more. I think I’m in between disappointed and satisfied.

When I read it, I already got the picture while I was still on the 4^th or 5^th chapter of it. I quite got the main plot of it. There was a disappearance in the past and then another in the present. And they’re solving the mysterious disappearance of the present and got to the conclusion that the disappearance of the present is somehow connected to the past. I got that part crystal clear.

I also manage to solve the identity of the kidnapper of the present when I was still around 10^th chapter or so. I already know who kidnapped the girl who disappeared on the present. It was a piece of cake. Even the way she was kidnapped, I know how the kidnapper did it. My, my. The present case kidnapping was a no brainer. And no, I’m not being arrogant or boastful or something. I’m just being honest. If you’ve read this book and already has a lot of background watching and reading lots of mystery books, you’ll figure it out without sweat.

As for the connection of the past and present disappearance, I don’t what it was until it was revealed. Also, I didn’t know who the kidnapper on the past kidnapping case was until again it was revealed. Even though I already know who the kidnapper and how. I still didn’t stop reading because I still want to know how it was connected to the past. And the connection was the thing that brought to a mystery adventure. And I would say adventure because I was there all throughout the collecting of evidence, down to breaking and entering just to get more evidence, processing the evidence and a lot more. In short, I was there with the detectives solving the case. That’s how the book was narrated.

The book is in third person point of view but it was no way hard understanding the story. The clues are given out to the reader in a large neon sign so the mystery isn’t really hard to solve. It was also good that there were parts that described Krissy’s point of view and the kidnapper. Seriously, there’s no blind spot in this book when it comes to the narration part. It was that good. I think this kind of writing style is harder than the ones I usually read.

Also, this book is the kind of book that is really hard to put down once you started reading it but also really hard to get back to once you stop reading it. Whenever I read it, I’ll be flying through the pages and chapters of the book. It was that hard to stop reading. But whenever I had the chance to stop, there’s no pull to read it back again immediately. But then, like I said, this book is hard to put down, it’s the main reason I finished it fast despite being bombarded with school stuff.

The characters are way different from each other. I mean, there are no character that has the same personality with the other, even a little. All of them are different. And because of that, I idolize Andrea Kane more for writing this book. It’s hard to create characters and let them stay static but I think it’s harder to create characters that there’s no hint of similarities from each other. My, so heterogeneous.

There are a lot of protagonists in this book. So you won’t be worrying that your favorite character might die in the future chapters. I think, everyone that had their name repeated in more than five times were already considered protagonist. There were also surprise relationships though. Like, I seriously didn’t expected Casey’s, the leader of the Forensic Instinct, one of the lead group who solved the case and probably the most trusted group Hope hired, boyfriend at all. I didn’t even know they were a couple. They were so professional that they separate business and pleasure.

The ending was good. Not the type that you want to read more of Andrea Kane’s books but enough to close a book. Everyone was happy. The Forensic Instinct, LLC family got bigger in the end. I guess they were the happiest in the end.

Like I said, the ending isn’t the type that would make you want to read more of the author’s work. But the whole story got me wondering what happened to Forensic Instinct, LLC after they solved Krissy Willis’s kidnapping case. And now that from a group of three people they’re now six members, I will seriously read the rest of the Forensic Instincts Series.

If you love mystery books the way I do, this book if definitely perfect for you. Read it and let yourself be the judge of it. Don’t let my review influence your urge to read it. We all have different opinions towards the same thing.

P.S

I didn’t mean to write my review this long. Lol.

RATE: 4.2/5

About the Author...

ANDREA KANE's psychological thriller, The Girl Who Disappeared Twice, became an instant New York Times bestseller, the latest in a long string of smash hits. With her acclaimed signature style of developing unforgettable characters and weaving them into carefully researched story lines, Kane has created Forensic Instincts, an eclectic team of maverick investigators. Recruited because of their special talents and dynamic personalities, the high-energy members thrive on blatantly disregarding authority. Armed with skills and talents honed by years in the FBI and Special Forces, and with training in behavioral and forensic psychology, this unstoppable team solves seemingly impossible cases while walking a fine line between assisting and enraging law enforcement.

With a worldwide following and novels published in over twenty languages, Kane is also the author of numerous romantic thrillers and historical romances. She lives in New Jersey with her family, where she is busily crafting a new challenge for Forensic Instincts.

Check out her website here.

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