THE CASE OF THE MISSING AMERICAN: a totally gripping and charming English cozy mystery

by Julie Highmore

297 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 2, 2026

About the author

After having her three children, Julie became a mature student at first Westminster College, then Oxford Brookes University, where she gained a degree in English. As part of the course, she studied creative writing with Philip Pullman, who encouraged her to continue with her writing after graduation. This she did, and her published work includes nine rom-com novels, and more recently, a crime fiction series for The Book Folks. The Missing American - the first in the series - features the somewhat flawed, Oxford-based private investigator, Edie Fox; a single mother and very young grandmother who inadvertently gets her precious family caught up in her first big case. Although her recent novels have ventured into some dark places, Julie manages to inject humour into the stories without diminishing the danger of situations Edie finds herself in.

Between graduating and becoming a published author, Julie taught English as a foreign language, and for several years was a reader for Oxford University Press’s Children’s Books.

She enjoys music, binge-watching a good TV series, country strolls, doing the New York Times crossword, and hanging out with her husband and ever-expanding family. With two Edie books now in production and a third following in Spring 2023, Julie is hoping to continue with the series while also exploring other crime-fiction paths.

Reviews

[BEVERLEY TARRAN]

It was ok

Not a page turner for me and struggled to warm to any of the characters, apart from Naz, too mixed up to keep track of and why do they have to partake in drink and drugs all the time?
I'll try the next one and see after that.....

[Shirley Maude]

Not the usual who dunnit! Lots of mystery to unravel , well written.