Book Review: Missing, Presumed

(Some spoilers ahead) On paper, Susie Steiner's Missing, Presumed brims with potential. The idea, so intriguing - that of a sudden disappearance of a twenty-something Edith Hind leaving everything behind, her family, her handsome lover and even her phone (really?). The door to her home is ajar and the kitchen floor is blotched with blood, suggesting a kidnap? An assault? To top it all, the mystery unfolds in what's one of my favourite settings, England. One wonders, with the backdrop thus having all the makings of an excellent whodunit, what could possibly go wrong? Apparently everything, going by this book. Halfway through the novel, I was barely interested, the mystery that's not so much a mystery as it's a far-fetched story stringed together by half-baked subplots and homosexual love shoehorned as a twist. The characters are uniformly forgettable, featuring a protagonist so needy and childish that I am surprised she made it this far in her life. I wouldn't be entirely dismissive of Missing, Presumed, for Steiner may very well be just setting up backstories given this is the first of what's to become a series. Still this mystery fiction debut of hers is more unsatisfying than thrilling. Skip!