What do you think?
Rate this book
Missing: The Oregon City Girls: A Shocking True Story of Abduction and Murder
When local police and federal agents fail to find two girls, a frustrated Pond family turns to one of their own: Linda O'Neal. O'Neal, step-grandmother to Ashley Pond and a private invenstigator, is sent on a wild chase after clues and suspects. But after stake-outs and fact-finding, her hunches all lead to one culprit — a supsect police aren't looking at. Now, O'Neal must do whateaver it takes to bring the perpetrator to justice and find the truth behind two missing girls.
337 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2006
35 people are currently reading
1052 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 79 reviews
June 14, 2017
There was a glimmer of a good true crime story here, but it went off the rails with too many details of the co-writer/private investigator's personal life. I would have loved to learn more about the girls who went missing, and what their lives were like before they disappeared, rather than the investigator's sex life and her ailing mother.
Which may be a tale worth telling, but not in this book.
Which may be a tale worth telling, but not in this book.
September 12, 2015
Just saw this book under New Books in the library. Living near Portland, I remember this very well - when the girls went missing, the outcome. I thought the book would have some new insights. I read about the first half of it, then just flipped through. It wasn't interesting. The author (married to a man who would very loosely be described as one of the victim's stepgrandfathers - I don't believe a child born to your ex-wife with another man after your marriage has ended is your "stepchild") told too much of her own story which had nothing to do with the murders of these two young girls. Would have been better separated into two books - or just mentioning the family relationship without going into her mother's illness. I came away with the impression the author used this tragedy for her own gain.
February 6, 2016
This one covered the basics of the case but didn't exactly change my life. Not enough on the characters involved, how these murders affected the families or the community.
May 12, 2016
This book was TERRIBLE! It doesn't read like a book, it reads like a Lifetime made-for-television mini-film pile of crap.
September 14, 2015
Loved this book, the fact that it is written by a relative makes it personal.
August 24, 2021
A friend and co-worker of mine lent me this book. I love true crime, and had not heard of this particular case before.
What a sad, tragic story about two girls murdered in Oregon. Unfortunately if it wasn't for a third teen being raped, the murderer wouldn't have been discovered. I cried a couple of times. As a mom, it was tough to read about. The abuse and savage murders were too much for me. The manipulation and head games disgusted me to my soul. I had to put the book aside so many times.
The writing felt like reading a news report at times. Not throughout, but enough to sometimes be a snooze fest. It was the only downside to reading it. It also added to me taking a bit to read it.
I love true crime though. Reading facts and real stories excite me like reading a horror novel. I'm sure I'm not alone either, so pick his one up.
3.5/5
What a sad, tragic story about two girls murdered in Oregon. Unfortunately if it wasn't for a third teen being raped, the murderer wouldn't have been discovered. I cried a couple of times. As a mom, it was tough to read about. The abuse and savage murders were too much for me. The manipulation and head games disgusted me to my soul. I had to put the book aside so many times.
The writing felt like reading a news report at times. Not throughout, but enough to sometimes be a snooze fest. It was the only downside to reading it. It also added to me taking a bit to read it.
I love true crime though. Reading facts and real stories excite me like reading a horror novel. I'm sure I'm not alone either, so pick his one up.
3.5/5
July 30, 2019
These girls would still be alive if the FBI and Portland PD had done their jobs, got off their fat asses and actually conducted some actual detective work. Great book, by the way, that explains exactly why said agencies failed these girls. It seems the man who murdered Miranda Gaddis and Ashley Pond has a family history of extreme violence to the opposite sex. Now, hot off the presses, Francis Weaver carries on the family tradition for a third generation in 2019 by committing homicide himself. I'm going to go ahead and say that all women in the Portland area should be wary of men with the last name Weaver, at this point.
November 4, 2009
The story of these crimes was naturally interesting, however, the writing was not so good.
March 1, 2017
With all due respect to the victims, the way it was written wasn't interesting to me. I felt as if I was slogging through much filler.
April 29, 2017
It's a good thing that Linda O'Neal didn't give up investigative work to become an author. I feel like all the information given in this book I could have just gleaned from Ashley and Miranda's Wikipedia page, and even most of O'Neal's sources were from Oregonian news articles written long after Weaver's sentencing.
The story was clunky, with too much attention to details that didn't have to do with the case, extremely forced and unrealistic dialogue, and constant repetition of the same established facts over and over.
In chapter 5, O'Neal writes that she burst into tears when she heard that Miranda Gaddis had gone missing and claimed to have said, "if I had really worked on the Ashley Pond case, I might have prevented this. She was so lovely, so spunky. A third girl is not going to disappear if there's anything in the world that I can do to prevent it." REALLY. You said that through all your tears for a girl you had met once for 3 seconds in an interview???
O'Neal's writing felt fake to me throughout the whole thing. If anyone is looking to learn more about the case, skip this book and read the wiki page, or do what Linda O'Neal did and just read the Oregonian articles from 2002.
The story was clunky, with too much attention to details that didn't have to do with the case, extremely forced and unrealistic dialogue, and constant repetition of the same established facts over and over.
In chapter 5, O'Neal writes that she burst into tears when she heard that Miranda Gaddis had gone missing and claimed to have said, "if I had really worked on the Ashley Pond case, I might have prevented this. She was so lovely, so spunky. A third girl is not going to disappear if there's anything in the world that I can do to prevent it." REALLY. You said that through all your tears for a girl you had met once for 3 seconds in an interview???
O'Neal's writing felt fake to me throughout the whole thing. If anyone is looking to learn more about the case, skip this book and read the wiki page, or do what Linda O'Neal did and just read the Oregonian articles from 2002.
December 29, 2023
I admit I'm not that far into the book (have only read about 85 pages so far) but I'm having a hard time getting through it.
Whereas most of the true crime books I've read have focused almost exclusively on the perpetrator and victims (and occasionally the cops and DA, maybe) THIS one, at least so far, focuses too much on the daily life of one of the authors -- Linda O'Neal, a private investigator who is also a 'step grandparent' of one of the victims. Maybe some people will find this interesting, but I don't read true crime books to hear about the flat tire you had or the trials and tribulations of dealing with aging parents, etc. Ms. O'Neal also seems a bit self satisfied, and much of the dialog sounds either sticky sweet (between her and her husband) and/or just not real.
Unless this book starts focusing VERY SOON on the crime, the victims, the murderer, trial, etc., I'm not sure I'll be able to finish reading it. ....
EDIT: I never did finish the book, giving up due to the focus being on Linda O'Neal, rather than the victims, the perp, the investigation, trial, etc.
I don't see how any experienced true crime buff would be able to finish it.
Whereas most of the true crime books I've read have focused almost exclusively on the perpetrator and victims (and occasionally the cops and DA, maybe) THIS one, at least so far, focuses too much on the daily life of one of the authors -- Linda O'Neal, a private investigator who is also a 'step grandparent' of one of the victims. Maybe some people will find this interesting, but I don't read true crime books to hear about the flat tire you had or the trials and tribulations of dealing with aging parents, etc. Ms. O'Neal also seems a bit self satisfied, and much of the dialog sounds either sticky sweet (between her and her husband) and/or just not real.
Unless this book starts focusing VERY SOON on the crime, the victims, the murderer, trial, etc., I'm not sure I'll be able to finish reading it. ....
EDIT: I never did finish the book, giving up due to the focus being on Linda O'Neal, rather than the victims, the perp, the investigation, trial, etc.
I don't see how any experienced true crime buff would be able to finish it.
September 16, 2011
I got this book as a gift from my mother. This is a true story is about 2 beautiful girls, Ashley Pond and Miranda Gaddis. They went missing and later their bodies were found. Their local nieghbor Ward Weaver III murdered Ashley and Miranda and buried them in his yard. What was so upsetting is that dog handler Harry Oakes dog Valorie picked up a scent in Weaver`s back yard and nothing was done. There are two videos on youtube:
An Angel To Soon: Ashley Pond:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6SG8K...
An Angel To Soon: Miranda Gaddis:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZFD1J...
An Angel To Soon: Ashley Pond:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6SG8K...
An Angel To Soon: Miranda Gaddis:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZFD1J...
December 15, 2022
This did not manage to fully hold my attention unfortunately. The true crime case was hashed in with what felt like general chit chat of the authors day to day business while she was involved in investigating the crime. It didn’t feel clear cut and I was confused of who was who and the exact timeline of it unfolding.
January 18, 2016
Held my interest but way to many details on things other then the case.
This is a very horrific story which needed to be told and was well done on that part.
This is a very horrific story which needed to be told and was well done on that part.
May 21, 2019
Loved all crime books based on fact. This book was written in a way it was totally enthralling and was a great reminder of persistence and people power.
August 7, 2021
The police really missed the mark on this one. They were looking for a murderer instead of a serial predator. After he killed two underage girls they finally homed in on him with the help of the media and a private investigator, who had connection to one of the missing girls.
July 23, 2018
Good true crime book.
June 18, 2022
Ugh, this book was NOT written like a true crime book. WAY to many characters involved and extremely slow going. Couldn't finish it, Next...
January 31, 2018
I would approach this book as a fictionalized account of the murders of Ashley Pond and Miranda Gaddis, even though Linda O'Neal conducted her own investigation into the crimes. I found some irregularities between this book and news articles published at the time. However, it is an interesting look into what it's like when a private investigator conducts their own investigation at the same time, but not with, the authorities. I'm not crazy about O'Neal's voice but I feel like I got an insight that I didn't get from reading news articles.
October 2, 2020
This book was more about Linda than it was about the victims. All I've got is a very shallow, stereotypical description of the girls.
She keeps going on about the family connection between her family and Ashley Pond and the back of the book even said 'Missing: two young girls from the same neighbourhood. No one believed that evil could be so close to home... until a heroic grandmother brought a killer to justice.' The family connection was grossly overstated, as was the fact that Linda brought the killer to justice.
The family connection is this: Linda's husband used to be married to Ashley Ponds' grandmother before this grandmother had children. They divorced and this grandmother married another man, having a child with him: Lori Pond. Ashley Pond is Lori Ponds' daughter. That is the family connection. Linda is the wife of the ex-husband of Ashley Ponds' grandmother. Not even her grandfather. I thought that was a bit too much to claim such a connection.
She keeps saying how the FBI and the police didn't even look at the murderer as the person who did it. She keeps saying they screwed the case up. But meanwhile she also didn't share all she found out, until much later. Meanwhile the girls dissappeared two months apart from each other, first Ashley Pond, two months later Miranda Gaddis. Who knows, maybe Linda sharing her research earlier on, could have prevented Miranda's death.
All in all, Linda was not that one heroic person who brought a killer to justice, while the police and the FBI were twiddling their thumbs, even though she very much likes us to believe that. She was just one person in the whole machinery.
As I've gathered from the book there was little contact before the dissappearances and yet Linda was always so emotional during the investigation and always had a wise word to say during all the gatherings. Like she always wanted to be in the spotlight. I thought the mock presenting of the case to the family was laughable. I thought she was trying to present herself as a perfect person fighting against the powers that be.
What I found very tasteless and disturbing was the part which seemed like a prelude to the sex Linda had with her husband while on the case. This was not the place.
Also this 'filler' about her mothers illness. I have no clue why this was in this book.
And the third person writing style, weird okay. And the 'sweetness' oozing from Linda and her conversations with her husband and others. All the dears and hon's, sometimes very inappropriate.
After all this critique I'd like to say that I did find this case interesting. The research Linda did was interesting to follow. I just did not like her as a person and how she presented herself and others.
She keeps going on about the family connection between her family and Ashley Pond and the back of the book even said 'Missing: two young girls from the same neighbourhood. No one believed that evil could be so close to home... until a heroic grandmother brought a killer to justice.' The family connection was grossly overstated, as was the fact that Linda brought the killer to justice.
The family connection is this: Linda's husband used to be married to Ashley Ponds' grandmother before this grandmother had children. They divorced and this grandmother married another man, having a child with him: Lori Pond. Ashley Pond is Lori Ponds' daughter. That is the family connection. Linda is the wife of the ex-husband of Ashley Ponds' grandmother. Not even her grandfather. I thought that was a bit too much to claim such a connection.
She keeps saying how the FBI and the police didn't even look at the murderer as the person who did it. She keeps saying they screwed the case up. But meanwhile she also didn't share all she found out, until much later. Meanwhile the girls dissappeared two months apart from each other, first Ashley Pond, two months later Miranda Gaddis. Who knows, maybe Linda sharing her research earlier on, could have prevented Miranda's death.
All in all, Linda was not that one heroic person who brought a killer to justice, while the police and the FBI were twiddling their thumbs, even though she very much likes us to believe that. She was just one person in the whole machinery.
As I've gathered from the book there was little contact before the dissappearances and yet Linda was always so emotional during the investigation and always had a wise word to say during all the gatherings. Like she always wanted to be in the spotlight. I thought the mock presenting of the case to the family was laughable. I thought she was trying to present herself as a perfect person fighting against the powers that be.
What I found very tasteless and disturbing was the part which seemed like a prelude to the sex Linda had with her husband while on the case. This was not the place.
Also this 'filler' about her mothers illness. I have no clue why this was in this book.
And the third person writing style, weird okay. And the 'sweetness' oozing from Linda and her conversations with her husband and others. All the dears and hon's, sometimes very inappropriate.
After all this critique I'd like to say that I did find this case interesting. The research Linda did was interesting to follow. I just did not like her as a person and how she presented herself and others.
November 24, 2015
3.5 stars -- While a bit overly long, THE MISSING GIRLS is a true crime thriller whose writing chops surpass many in this genre. The author is a private investigator who is related to one of the titular young girls and was on the case from the beginning.
O'Neal's third-person writing style was a bit jarring, however, and the numerous interludes in which the author focuses upon her personal life--including her love life and her own mother's declining health--felt intrusive and unnecessary, in my opinion. I also wish the writing style was a little less dialogue driven; while the author gets the point across, the recreated conversations simply do not reflect normal speech patterns, and it's easy for the author to put herself in the best possible light writing from hindsight.
I guess this is the cynic coming out in me, and it's not a knock on the investigators in the case, but I couldn't help but wonder if a nationwide manhunt would have occurred (including a PEOPLE cover story and a dozen huge billboards) if the abducted teenagers had been people of color. Something tells me the case would have not achieved such prominence in our society, and may still be unsolved to this day.
O'Neal's third-person writing style was a bit jarring, however, and the numerous interludes in which the author focuses upon her personal life--including her love life and her own mother's declining health--felt intrusive and unnecessary, in my opinion. I also wish the writing style was a little less dialogue driven; while the author gets the point across, the recreated conversations simply do not reflect normal speech patterns, and it's easy for the author to put herself in the best possible light writing from hindsight.
I guess this is the cynic coming out in me, and it's not a knock on the investigators in the case, but I couldn't help but wonder if a nationwide manhunt would have occurred (including a PEOPLE cover story and a dozen huge billboards) if the abducted teenagers had been people of color. Something tells me the case would have not achieved such prominence in our society, and may still be unsolved to this day.
July 3, 2017
I've decide to give up on this book. The storytelling was not focused enough on the crime. I was not interested in the things going on Linda O'Neal's life at the time. I suggested googling what happened to Ashley Pond and Miranda Gaddis instead. It is a tragic story that should have focused on them, not a private investigator.
June 2, 2018
This was an incomplete account of what happened to middle school girls Ashley Pond and Miranda Gaddis. They were on the same cheerleading team, but the authors failed to mention how involved the killer was with the team, because one of them didn't want it revealed that their husband did business with him. Who cares? If you didn't know, you didn't know, but don't gloss over the facts.
June 15, 2010
this book is very sad i don't like it when people die. i hate ward weaverIII because he killed them! the ending was so sad but i'm glad they finally got justice!!!!
October 7, 2017
It was a very heartbreaking book to read. I recommend it but also be prepared for an emotional rollercoaster.
January 4, 2023
Author made this all about herself and the story is far from being about the victims.
January 22, 2024
I worked with Michelle Duffey. We had discussions about Ashley's disappearance ... so when her daughter Miranda disappeared, I was pretty emotionally attached to the outcome. I followed the Oregonian and the TV closely. All the while holding my own daughter, a year younger, close. We would drive by this on our way to the Oregon City library. I used this as an active occasion to talk about predators, secrets, etc....
The book has been criticized heavily here. I felt it was well written and very emotional as a family member and private investigator. Because it wasn't meant to be a true crime book, the chapters were written as factual.
It was hard for me to judge this book because in the first place, it should never have been a fact. Those two girls should be alive. Ward Weaver lives in my brain as one of those evil purps, and any comment he received in this book just made me hate him more. He is the one negative star I left.
The book has been criticized heavily here. I felt it was well written and very emotional as a family member and private investigator. Because it wasn't meant to be a true crime book, the chapters were written as factual.
It was hard for me to judge this book because in the first place, it should never have been a fact. Those two girls should be alive. Ward Weaver lives in my brain as one of those evil purps, and any comment he received in this book just made me hate him more. He is the one negative star I left.
March 15, 2022
One of the best written true crime books I have ever read. Ward Weaver was a vile man who preyed on the innocence of young girls. One whom trusted him and one who knew the truth. Such a tragedy these two young girls lost their lives so young. I especially felt my heart tug upon hearing Ashley's name over and over again in the vook, as we share the same birthday. All the mishaps between DHS and even Lori. Maybe this all could have been prevented. Maybe. Linda O'Neal did a wonderful job of getting evidence very quickly to be shot down by the FBI with her findings. If they would of heard her out these girls remains would have been found much sooner and Weaver would of been prosecuted much quicker. I would read another book from these 3 wonderful authors anytime!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 26, 2022
Technically I did not finish this book. I feel horrible giving it such a low rating but I was barely able to get through 50 pages.
The writing was in the present tense, something that is rare in true crime books. Also the narrative slipped in and out of the main story with very little context. People were barely mentioned as to how they fit in, then referenced by first name for a while after. It was impossible to tell who was who in the story. Also when the author wrote about herself it was either overly complimentary or intelligent to the point that none of her conversations seemed real. Also she tried to pass conversations off as happening exactly as written, which is impossible to believe.
I really do hate to give any book this low of a rating but it was pretty much unreadable.
The writing was in the present tense, something that is rare in true crime books. Also the narrative slipped in and out of the main story with very little context. People were barely mentioned as to how they fit in, then referenced by first name for a while after. It was impossible to tell who was who in the story. Also when the author wrote about herself it was either overly complimentary or intelligent to the point that none of her conversations seemed real. Also she tried to pass conversations off as happening exactly as written, which is impossible to believe.
I really do hate to give any book this low of a rating but it was pretty much unreadable.
March 13, 2019
Ashley pond 12 vanished on her way to the bus stop in Portland Oregon after she accuses mallori weavers dad ward of trying to rape her she lived with them off and on ward weaver was know for having a lot of malloris teanage friends over. 2 months later Miranda gaddish also vanishes on her way to school after she told a teenage girl about Ashley ponds accusing ward of trying to rape her. with the local police involved and the fbi they seem like they are getting no where so they ask linda oneal who is a private investigator and a member of Ashley ponds family to help find what happened to Ashley but the fbi or local police wont even look at what she has found...
Displaying 1 - 30 of 79 reviews