AMONG THE MISSING

Author: Morag Joss

Genre: Fiction, Standalone

Published: 2011

Personal Rating: 3.5/5 (good)

Format: Book

Yearly Count:  45

Amazon Product Description:

An accident can end a life.
The same accident can begin one.


Three lives collide in the wake of an unforeseeable tragedy. When a bridge collapses in the Highlands of Scotland, dozens of commuters vanish into the freezing river below, swept by the currents toward the sea, and only an amateur video and the bridge’s security camera record their last moments.


A woman tourist, whose car was filmed pulling onto the bridge seconds before it fell, is assumed to be among the missing. But in desperate need of money, she had sold the car only hours before. Now she can begin life over. Her path leads her to a spartan cabin on the bank of the river where, as Annabel, she is reborn, free from her past. Here she lives with Silva, an illegal immigrant whose predicament is compounded by the disappearance of her husband and their child. She waits for them each day, clinging to hope against overwhelming evidence.


The two women are befriended by the boatman Ron, and together they create a fragile sanctuary in the shadow of the bridge that has changed their lives. They keep secrets from one another, yet also connect in ways none of them expects. Lost souls all, they struggle to survive, to trust, and to love even as the consequences of the past prove inescapable.

Joss definitely has a style of her own. It has a cloudy, ominous feel to it, and I'm not always sure of the exact intentions of her characters. I like that about her writing; however, it tends to be a little on the depressing side, and the pace can be a bit slow. Even though suspense is being built throughout, the gloominess tends to rule the emotions. At each new chapter I had to figure out who was speaking due to the first person narrative (2 of the 3 main character). I did not like that at all. I just wanted to read, not work at it. Overall, I thought it was good.

*Note of caution:  If you are expecting or have young children, reading this book may cause unnecessary distress.

My thanks go to Delacorte Press and LibraryThing for sending me this ARC.  Among the Missing will be published on June 21, 2011.