The Missing and the Dead

by E.M. Scott

It appeared that Helen McAllister – for whatever reason – had simply got out of the car sometime the previous morning, taking her keys and bag and phone with her, and walked away…

Ten years later there has been no trace found of the teacher who went missing from a small village on the last day of the school year. Her lover Alice Hauser's accusations of impropriety on the part of the senior investigating officer, DI Thomas Maitland, led to his early retirement, his life in disrepair.

Maitland now lives alone, consumed with grief over the death of his wife two years ago. Then he's involved in a road accident in which a man is killed. The victim's twin, John, is convinced that Maitland is to blame for his brother's death. And when John meets Alice, they are determined that Maitland should pay the price they demand of him…

Genres: Audiobook

288 pages, Paperback

Published November 21, 2024

About the author

E M Scott is the crime pen name of Elizabeth Cooke, who has published 20 novels and 124 short stories over a 40-year career. She lives in Dorset UK, on the Jurassic Coast.

Reviews

[Mike Baker]

I really liked the sound of this from the blurb but it fell woefully short of expectations. Whilst characters were well drawn and intriguing, the plot wasn’t. It was set up nicely but then just bobbed about and didn’t deliver.
Apart from the disappointing ending, I found the jumping about chronologically, confusing. The author should have been advised to put the periods before each switch in time.

[Jan]

Really captivating and thought provoking

I love the way the basic story of the missing woman is woven into the other characters' lives, both in the present day and in the past. The handling of the multiple timelines is brilliant. It kept me guessing all the way through the various twists and turns. Beautifully written.

[Mrs G]

Not my usual genre to read but after a friend’s recommendation, I gave it ago. I really enjoyed it and thought it well researched and written with a plausible plot and authentic characters, a real page turner with an ending that leaves you shocked. Can’t wait for the next one now.

[Tempest Sharp]

slow

Sometimes, if there’s too many characters in a book, it’s hard for me to keep track of things and about halfway through this book I found it hard to follow, but I kept at it. It wasn’t a battery, but it’s not what I would truly recommend sorry.

[Mandy Marr]

I found this hard to get into and took me at least a third of the book to want to continue, initially reading whilst waiting delivery of another author, and to remember whi everyone was and what time frame we were in. I also didn't like the ending 😕

[Jennifer Tate]

If this hadn't been a book club read it would have been a DNF 25% in and it did not get any better. Too many characters, crazy timeline jumps, nobody likeable, nothing interesting. Felt like total nonsense.

[Helen Sloan]

NFM

[Libbey]

Did not like the writing style. Kept forgetting I was reading this book.

[Dee Groocock]

Following a car accident, where the other driver lost his life, retired DI Thomas Maitland, is blamed for the death by the driver’s brother, John.

When Helen McAllister disappeared ten years ago, her girlfriend, Alice Hauser, blamed DI Maitland.

Ten years on, and Alice is back, and when she meets John, who is grieving the loss of his brother, she conspires with him to make DI Maitland’s life hell.

Having read the second book in this series first, I enjoyed going back and reading this first book.

I liked DI Maitland’s character, I also felt quite sorry for him. Still reeling from the death of his wife, he’s a quiet character, who wants to enjoy his retirement painting.

An enjoyable story, and I hope there will be more books in this series.

[Jennifer]

I haven't read a crime novel for a while and I was intrigued by this. However, I found the plot predictable and struggled to find any depth to the characters. I can understand the skill of having questions unanswered but it isn't something I enjoy. Overall, it was an ok read but I'm not in a rush to read the next one.

[Kris]

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