12.24.2016 - And Then She Was Gone

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This is a prequel to a series already in print - I might have enjoyed it a bit more had I read those other books and felt more involvement with the characters. As it stands, it's an interesting mystery and can certainly be read by itself.

The main character is Jack, a 17-year-old who is passionate about becoming a police officer. He had a rough start to his life and was abandoned by his birth mother. However, he had a great foster mother and was then adopted by wonderful parents. Jack has a path all laid out for himself - join the Army to get college money, then go to the police academy.

However, he gets involved in trying to solve a mystery of a young pregnant woman who goes missing. When she is found murdered, Jack can't let the investigation of her death go, even when it might lead to an interruption of all those carefully planned life steps.

While I enjoyed the mystery and this read, the fact that Jack as a teenager was able to do all this murder investigation seemed to stretch the lines of reality a bit much. There were some interesting thoughts about racial profiling and prejudice - certainly relevant in today's headlines.

A good read - probably better if you are already invested in this series and these characters and this just provides a good back story.