Suspense

I for one is grateful this series arc is over.

The Lost Girls is the eleventh book in the Lucy Kincaid series. I love the mystery, the dynamic of the FBI team, Sean working with his brother and RCK. Allison Brennan sets up a great procedural that keeps me guessing. There are some tense, nail-biting moments. The core mystery is excellent. If the author stuck with this, it would be a big 5* book for me.

I hate the "secret" child trope. I rarely find an author who justifies this scenario. Madison is a selfish woman. She is more concerned with her father than her child's father. Twelve years is a long time to lie to a child and the lie would have continued if Madison didn't need a favor from Sean. The longer it takes to be honest with a child, the more likely the child is going to suffer when the truth is revealed. Sean is a good man and withholding his child is cruel.

What really made me reduce my rating is Sean’s lack of growth. I hate that Sean still keeps secrets from Lucy. The blurb made it clear that this is part of the story. I prepared myself hoping it would not rub me the wrong way--IT DID. The author did a good job of trying to justify Sean's actions. If this were the first time he played this game, it would work for me, but this is the third or fourth time. That is too much. He always promises not to do it again, but he does. Sean is lacking trust.

What added to my anger was Sean's internal justification, and Lucy's easy forgiveness. For a short minute I thought Lucy was going to help Sean learn a lesson by walking away for a break. Unfortunately, she does not. Her reason was sweet, but not enough for me.

I recommend The Lost Girls if you are reading the series. I don’t recommend it as a standalone. There is too much backstory and a reader needs to understand the people involved.

The mystery alone is worth your reading time. Take Lucy and Sean’s relationship with a grain of salt. I expect to cross this bridge again in the future. ( )

Photojournalist Siobhan Walsh has spent the last two years hunting for two missing sisters. False leads frustrate her until someone leaves a baby at a local church; her picture and phone number are in the locket left with the infant. Events surrounding the apparently-abandoned baby spark a hunt that draws Lucy Kincaid and Noah Armstrong into the case. As the investigation unfolds, a horrific human trafficking/baby selling scheme emerges. Bodies begin to pile up as the perpetrators, desperate to cover their tracks, add to the mayhem.

At the same time, Sean Rogan receives unexpected news and struggles with choices he must now make. Despite their only-weeks-away wedding, will Sean and Lucy find their relationship destroyed by secrets and a lack of trust?

Gritty and emotional, this story’s true-to-life characters exhibit the strength, vulnerability, and determination that readers have come to expect from a Lucy Kincaid/Sean Rogan tale. The complex plot twists and turns as it weaves its way toward pulling the two main storylines together in an unexpected way. Readers will find it difficult to set this one aside before turning the final page.

Highly recommended. ( )