Saturday, June 23, 2012

Gone Missing by Linda Castillo


First Line: Becca had always known her life would end in tragedy.

From its heartbreaking beginning to its chill-inducing ending, this book is all about "kids, our most precious resource, and the way we treat them." 

Once Amish herself, Painters Mill, Ohio, Police Chief Kate Burkholder is a perfect choice to act as a consultant with the Bureau of Criminal Investigation as they look into the disappearances of two young Amish girls. Not only will she be able to work with John Tomasetti again, but the case will hopefully put her out of range of the town mayor. (He wants Kate to turn a blind eye to the extremely illegal things for which his son was arrested.)

As Kate and Tomasetti start looking into the lives of the missing teenagers, they begin to discover links to cold cases that go back several years. Bodies also begin to turn up, and the investigation becomes a race against time to save those young girls who are still missing.

Amish areas are small and insular, so I wondered how author Linda Castillo was going to prevent "Cabot Cove Syndrome" (the constant appearance of dead bodies in a rather sparsely populated area). Solution: Loan Kate Burkholder out as a consultant in other areas of the state when investigators need an "Amish expert."  In Gone Missing, this has her working with Agent John Tomasetti-- the spice in her gumbo-- which keeps the romantic tension flowing.

A very likable character, Kate is well-respected in the law enforcement community, but she's also very conflicted about many things in her past and present. Since she's no longer Amish, she has a strained relationship with her family, as well as a tendency to empathize with any rebellious Amish youth.

The beginning chapter, which deals with the heartbreaking suicide of a young Amish girl sets the book up perfectly. The girl says just enough to let us know that there's one Amish homestead that isn't picture postcard perfect. In fact, in that one short chapter, Becca makes such an impression that I kept waiting for the tie-in with these present day disappearances. When that tie-in comes, it's much more than I was expecting-- leading up to a spine-chilling conclusion.

I'd only previously read the first book in the series, but not having the information from books two and three did not prove confusing. Castillo gave me just enough information to fill in the blanks, and to whet my appetite for the two books I have yet to read.

For some reason, the Amish hold a fascination for many of us. I grew up very close to an Amish area and visited often with my grandparents when they'd go to the butcher shop, cheese shop, and a grocery store that sold homemade pies, breads, and jams. Castillo's Amish ring true, and even though you may find yourself wondering if things like this really do happen in Amish settlements, she's such a storyteller that belief is willingly suspended as the pages of the book turn. If you've never read a Kate Burkholder mystery, I highly recommend them!

Gone Missing by Linda Castillo
ISBN:  9780312658564
Minotaur Books  ©2012
Hardcover,  288 pages

Genre: Police Procedural, #4 Kate Burkholder mystery
Rating: A
Source: Publisher

8 comments:

  1. Wasn't this a good book? I really like this series and always look forward to a new book about Kate and company. I was pleased with the idea that Kate would consult with the state police. Good solution to the "Cabot Cove" problem.

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    1. It definitely is. There's only so much crime a small rural area can have!

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  2. I'm one of those fascinated with the Amish so I really want to try this series.

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    1. This would be a good series to learn more about the Amish, Kathy.

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  3. I really loved this too -- it was my first one in the series and I didn't feel lost at all. I listened to the audio.

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    1. Denis does almost all his reading (and he reads a lot more than I do) by audiobook. He's #23 in line at the library for this one.

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  4. Cathy - I like this series a lot actually. I grew up not in Ohio but in Pennsylvania, not far from the Amish community there, and I think Castillo does an excellent job of portraying the Amish. And I like the Kate Burkholder character very much. Just out of curiosity, what (if any) is the "ick" factor in this one? Is there a lot of gore?

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    1. There's not a lot of gore in this one, Margot, except for a large blood pool at one crime scene. Most of the Ick Factor is psychological, which-- in my case-- is much more effective.

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