A Heart-wrenching Tale of a Missing Little Girl

Review by Ronica Wahi

Missing: Gone but not Forgotten

By Kathleen Walls

First published: October 20, 2020, Global Authors Publications.

Kindle Edition Pages: 150.

ASIN: B08JCTTFFG

Missing: Gone but not Forgotten by Kathleen Walls is a tale of a little girl – named Starr Shatner - who goes missing and is not found. As the cover itself says, it is “Based on an actual unsolved case”; this actual case was of a girl who went missing the same year as Starr here, i.e., 2009, and was neither found nor had justice.

The Dedication says, “To all the children who have gone missing and are never found.” It is of importance indeed that Walls has written this book – for it speaks of the tragedy of any kid who suffers for no fault of his/her own and the tragedy of those who love that kid.

Without being dramatic at any point, it narrates simply the sequence of events as the long-stretching investigation takes place. One of the writer’s achievements is that without talking at great length about how chilling or heart-wrenching the situation is, she makes the book chilling and heart-wrenching.

In addition to the issue of the missing girl, multiple issues that plague society are picked up. There is the disturbing factor of youngsters engaging in criminal activities and of taking to the sad road of drug abuse. There is the aspect of dysfunctional families, wherein parents are not the right sort of guides or examples for their kids – such as the parents of Autumn Daily, one of the prime suspects here. Sexual exploitation, rape, racial discrimination, parental negligence that leads to tragic situations, theft, deception find space here.

As already mentioned above, the narration is simple. It is realistic. The main characters – the detectives at the forefront and the prime suspects – are drawn reasonably well. That surely is owed to the fact that Walls is armed with a dual B.A. in Anthropology and Sociology, and years of experience in writing. She has written a number of books, worked as a reporter previously, done travel writing – and owns an online travel magazine too, besides other creative stuff that she’s done.

Walls’s different engagements have given her insights into life and human behaviour, insights that she has effectively made use of in shaping characters and creating the web of stories that the various involved parties in Missing relate at distinct points during the course of the investigation. Legal and other matters that are crucial to the story are researched and presented well too. Overall, it’s a fine work that keeps the reader engaged till the end, despite the fact that the crux is already known.

A must-read!

 

Do check out the book here:

Amazon India link for Missing (Kindle): https://amzn.to/3KmEVeG

 

 

DISCLAIMER: Ronica Wahi is a participant in the Amazon Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon. If you make a purchase through any of the Amazon links provided by Ronica here, she may receive a small commission, without any extra cost to you.