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Missing Values
Patrick Grey, a single father and marketing analyst, is the only Black guy on the company directory.
When his teenage son, PJ, is abducted, police dismiss it as a gang-and-drug related hit. But Patrick knows better.
The only one who believes him is FBI Agent LaWanda Thompson. The crime bears a striking resemblance to one that destroyed her family, one involving human trafficking.
Using typical forensic methods, the police have not uncovered any leads.
But by using marketing science, Patrick comes up with more insightful intelligence which he must now use to predict where PJ was taken, before it’s too late and his son is sold on the open market.
When his teenage son, PJ, is abducted, police dismiss it as a gang-and-drug related hit. But Patrick knows better.
The only one who believes him is FBI Agent LaWanda Thompson. The crime bears a striking resemblance to one that destroyed her family, one involving human trafficking.
Using typical forensic methods, the police have not uncovered any leads.
But by using marketing science, Patrick comes up with more insightful intelligence which he must now use to predict where PJ was taken, before it’s too late and his son is sold on the open market.
330 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 2, 2024
1 person want to read
About the author
Michael Grigsby
3 books99 followersI've worked in the corporate world of marketing analytics for over 20 years. My PhD is in marketing science (and no, that is NOT an oxymoron).
I've published two non-fiction books, Marketing Analytics and Advanced Customer Analytics. Marketing Analytics has also been translated into Chinese and Polish (yes, Polish.) I used those texts in teaching my graduate school classes.
My first novel, SEGMENT OF ONE, is an analytic thriller that uses marketing analytics as a plot device which seemed unique, exciting, and very fun.
My second novel, MISSING VALUES, is another analytic thriller, this time about human trafficking and how to stop it with marketing science.
My third novel, FORECASTING ERROR, is an analytic thriller with a large dose of action / adventure.
I've published two non-fiction books, Marketing Analytics and Advanced Customer Analytics. Marketing Analytics has also been translated into Chinese and Polish (yes, Polish.) I used those texts in teaching my graduate school classes.
My first novel, SEGMENT OF ONE, is an analytic thriller that uses marketing analytics as a plot device which seemed unique, exciting, and very fun.
My second novel, MISSING VALUES, is another analytic thriller, this time about human trafficking and how to stop it with marketing science.
My third novel, FORECASTING ERROR, is an analytic thriller with a large dose of action / adventure.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 24, 2024
A grisly, highly original crime thriller in which an unlikely hero wields data science to solve his son’s disappearance.
Missing Values follows a cross-country crime spree by sibling serial killers Mabel and Kane. While murder is clearly their passion, human trafficking and drugs are their path to earning freedom from a despot named King Carlos. As the siblings are about to leave Texas for Florida, they decide to slaughter their moving men – an act they clearly relish. However, Mabel elects to spare the life of young PJ, a teenage boy who she thinks King Carlos will appreciate.
Meanwhile, PJ’s father, Patrick Grey, is immediately disillusioned with police efforts to solve his son’s disappearance. Rather than launch a search, police investigators quickly conclude that PJ should already be presumed dead, determining that in all likelihood, this was a gang-related hit. Patrick soon realizes that he is PJ’s only remaining chance for survival.
In the book’s opening chapters, author Michael Grigsby lays the foundation for Patrick’s role as an amateur sleuth by establishing him as a data analyst with a PhD in Marketing Science. In the opening pages, he performs technical heroics that save a colleague’s job – only to be hit with a backhanded, racist compliment (Patrick is black, while his co-workers are white). Patrick’s coworker won’t be the only character obsessed with racial identity. In the first scene with Mabel and Kane, one of the soon-to-be-murdered movers remarks, “So nice to see White people, young love, startin’ a family, more of ya’ll breedin’ throughout the whole damn earth.” Later, Mabel wants PJ not because he’s a teenager, but because he’s a “beautiful Black teenager.” Later, a woman’s interest in Origami is questioned due to her Chinese heritage, and a white supremacist regrets his potential execution at the hands of a “wetback.” The aggregated effect of seeing life through the lens of race, while not subtle, effectively compliments King Carlos’ worldview that humans are valued by their physical contributions alone. Mabel was sexualized early in life and remains King Carlos’ favorite partner, while Kane is valued only for his physical strength. Interestingly, when it comes to criminal appetites, Mabel attempts to draw the line when it comes to organ harvesting, only to be put in her place by King Carlos, who possesses an almost vampiric bloodlust.
In a world where there is no comfort – only carnal appetites, endless servitude and suffering – Patrick’s intellect has the potential to offer salvation. Missing Values deals with extremely dark subject matter throughout, including sexual abuse, racism, execution-style killings, grief, abduction and prostitution. But those who read it cover-to-cover will be rewarded. Everyone talks about their desire to make “data-driven” decisions, but Grigsby’s use of it within the context of this hardscrabble crime novel is truly original.
Missing Values follows a cross-country crime spree by sibling serial killers Mabel and Kane. While murder is clearly their passion, human trafficking and drugs are their path to earning freedom from a despot named King Carlos. As the siblings are about to leave Texas for Florida, they decide to slaughter their moving men – an act they clearly relish. However, Mabel elects to spare the life of young PJ, a teenage boy who she thinks King Carlos will appreciate.
Meanwhile, PJ’s father, Patrick Grey, is immediately disillusioned with police efforts to solve his son’s disappearance. Rather than launch a search, police investigators quickly conclude that PJ should already be presumed dead, determining that in all likelihood, this was a gang-related hit. Patrick soon realizes that he is PJ’s only remaining chance for survival.
In the book’s opening chapters, author Michael Grigsby lays the foundation for Patrick’s role as an amateur sleuth by establishing him as a data analyst with a PhD in Marketing Science. In the opening pages, he performs technical heroics that save a colleague’s job – only to be hit with a backhanded, racist compliment (Patrick is black, while his co-workers are white). Patrick’s coworker won’t be the only character obsessed with racial identity. In the first scene with Mabel and Kane, one of the soon-to-be-murdered movers remarks, “So nice to see White people, young love, startin’ a family, more of ya’ll breedin’ throughout the whole damn earth.” Later, Mabel wants PJ not because he’s a teenager, but because he’s a “beautiful Black teenager.” Later, a woman’s interest in Origami is questioned due to her Chinese heritage, and a white supremacist regrets his potential execution at the hands of a “wetback.” The aggregated effect of seeing life through the lens of race, while not subtle, effectively compliments King Carlos’ worldview that humans are valued by their physical contributions alone. Mabel was sexualized early in life and remains King Carlos’ favorite partner, while Kane is valued only for his physical strength. Interestingly, when it comes to criminal appetites, Mabel attempts to draw the line when it comes to organ harvesting, only to be put in her place by King Carlos, who possesses an almost vampiric bloodlust.
In a world where there is no comfort – only carnal appetites, endless servitude and suffering – Patrick’s intellect has the potential to offer salvation. Missing Values deals with extremely dark subject matter throughout, including sexual abuse, racism, execution-style killings, grief, abduction and prostitution. But those who read it cover-to-cover will be rewarded. Everyone talks about their desire to make “data-driven” decisions, but Grigsby’s use of it within the context of this hardscrabble crime novel is truly original.
February 3, 2024
Very fascinating! I am very glad I read it!!
February 5, 2024
I was very impressed. I loved the accurate portrayal of relationships and the characters that felt really real
February 5, 2024
What a page turner! Unequivocally kept me on the edge of my seat! Can't wait for the author's next book!
June 30, 2024
Loved it. Fast and exciting. Very brutal and pretty bloody. It’s about human traffickers!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews