BOOK REVIEW: The Missing by C.L. Taylor

You love your family.
They make you feel safe.
You trust them.
But should you...?
When fifteen-year-old Billy Wilkinson goes missing in the middle of the night, his mother, Claire, is distraught, blaming herself. She's not the only one. There isn't a single member of Billy's family who doesn't feel guilty.
But the Wilkinson's are so used to keeping secrets from one another that it isn't until six months later, when an appeal for information goes horribly wrong, that the terrifying truth begins to surface.
Claire is sure of two things: Billy is still alive and her family had nothing to do with his disappearance. A mother's instinct is never wrong. Or is it?

Publisher: Avon

Pages:472

I was so pleased to receive The Missing by C.L. Taylor to review as I had read a lot of glowing reviews for her previous books. After reading this one, I can understand why.
Claire's son Billy went missing over six months ago and her family has been torn apart. All members of the family feel guilty but it is a new appeal that draws out the truth and Claire in particular is left questioning everything she has ever believed in and held dear.
C.L. Taylor presents every parent's worst nightmare in this book, the idea of your child going missing is completely terrifying. Through the character of Claire, the aut
hor explores the wide spectrum of emotions; fear, anger, guilt and loss. Claire struggles to know what to do; it is six months on and the police are no further on in their investigation. A new appeal unearths fresh information and Claire is determined to explore all the new leads herself.
The Missing is brilliantly plotted and realistic. It would make an excellent TV programme; there is just the right balance of gritty reality and raw emotion.
C.L. Taylor is excellent at maintaining the suspense; the book is interspersed with Whatsapp conversations but it is not revealed who the people are until the very end; all we know is that they are related to Billy's disappearance.
The Missing by C.L. Taylor shocked and surprised me, I will definitely be catching up with this author's other books now.

Many thanks to Avon for sending me a review copy of this book.