With cool breezes setting in and crispy leaves falling to the ground, fall is the perfect season to cozy up with a good thriller. Two thrillers that I read in October are Just Another Missing Person by Gillian McAllister and One of Us is Back by Karen McManus, both 2023 releases.
Just Another Missing Person
In Just Another Missing Person, police detective Julia is assigned the case of 22-year-old Olivia. Julia has worked this job for years and has dealt with many missing person cases. She knows how to handle them; find security footage, interview the people close to the victim, search the location. Simple.
The case gets a bit more complicated when Julia is threatened by a man in a mask and told to frame a neighbour of Olivia’s who, to Julia’s knowledge, has nothing to do with the case. Julia is not a bad cop, and this goes against everything she knows. But she also has a secret that could ruin everything the masked man knows. Now, Julia must decide between going against her morals and arresting an innocent man, or letting the world find out what she did.
Just Another Missing Person is fast-paced and keeps you wondering what happened to Olivia, how it’s connected to Julia and what Julia will do. It covers all the features of a well-plotted and intriguing mystery while also covering more complex moral questions surrounding corruption in the police force and what we would do for the people we love.
For me, Just Another Missing Person was a four-star read. The mystery was unique, and it didn’t follow an archetypal plot with an easily guessable ending like many thrillers do. It was hard to put down once I got into the flow of the story, which was almost right away.
The story flips between the perspectives of different characters but is mostly from the perspective of Julia. This was a great choice, as it allows the reader to see what’s going on in Julia’s head while she’s forced to make difficult decisions, making it easy to have sympathy for her.
Just Another Missing Person is a great book for anyone looking for an exciting new mystery to read.
One of Us is Back
If you’re looking for something that’s not quite as serious and morally intense, One of Us is Back is a young adult thriller that’s slightly more character-focused. This is the third book in a series, so, if you haven’t yet, I recommend starting with the first book, One of Us is Lying.
One of Us is Back follows Nate, Addy and Phoebe after mysterious advertisements start showing up on billboards. The displays seem innocent enough at first, until kidnappings start to occur and a student is found dead.
At the same time, Addy’s ex, Jake, is out of prison and is back in town. Is Jake involved in this deadly new game? And will the protagonists become targets?
This one was a three-star read for me. While the mystery was interesting, I thought that there were quite a few irrelevant scenes that could have been cut out.
Besides the mystery, we also get more insight into the characters’ relationships and personal struggles. Nate grapples with trusting his dad who is recovering from addiction, Addy questions her sexuality after a confusing experience with her best friend Keely and Phoebe worries about her younger brother after his involvement in the murderous scheme that took place in the previous book. The characters’ internal struggles as well as their friendship and relationship drama add a lighter side to the book.
Throughout the book, characters chase leads and often get themselves into sticky situations, and while this adds to the intensity of the book, it can sometimes be hard to get past the unrealistic decisions that the characters make. The climax felt like it came out of nowhere, and, while it was exciting, I didn’t find the ending satisfying. The book had lots of twists and turns and it definitely kept me reading, but I found it to be more of a light and entertaining story that didn’t make me think too much.
While I wouldn’t rave about this book’s immaculate writing or submit it for any awards, it was a fun read and I would still recommend it as an easy one to get through when you need a break from studying for midterms.
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