Missing Girls: In Truth is Justice

by Larry Crane

Marcella and Gavin’s daughter, Hannah, is missing and there’s nothing Marcella can do about it.
Distraught over the loss of their child—and their own helplessness—the couple limps along, trying to find a reason and a way to go on.

When the couple moves to a new town—the site of the grisly murder of a fifteen-year-old girl, Marcella becomes obsessed with the case. Ignoring the risks, she gets involved in a cat-and-mouse game with Edgar Smith, the alleged killer, that draws her deeper into the crime—and the mystery of her own daughter’s disappearance.

Marcella’s relentless pursuit of Edgar Smith brings to the surface questions about fidelity and honesty and how well we can ever know the people we love.

Intelligent and captivating, Missing Girls is a riveting story of how we can deceive ourselves even when we say we want to know the truth.

Genres: Mystery, Thriller, Fiction, Ebooks, Suspense, Amazon

320 pages, Paperback

First published December 23, 2015

About the author

Transplanted to Maine mid-westerner Larry Crane brings a Heartland sensibility to his writing. Larry graduated from West Point, served in the Army, and commuted to Wall Street from New Jersey. His writing includes articles for outdoor magazines, stage plays, short fiction, and his most recent thriller novel, A Bridge to Treachery. Crane is a volunteer videographer for his local Public Access Television Station. Larry and wife Jan now live on the coast of Maine.

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/MaineLarryCrane

Reviews

[Anu · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too many details, too many POVs. I never leave books unfinished, which is the only reason I read this book till the end in the first place. I liked the premise, but the execution really needs work, which is why I've shelved it as 'woefully long' even though it's only about 300 pages long.

[Jeff · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book simply doesn't make sense. There's no logical connection between the two missing girl cases and no reasonable explanation for Marcella to connect them. The introduction of the supernatural makes this story even more difficult to accept. None of the characters are particularly likable, either.

Millie Santiago's performance was adequate, but she didn't make nearly enough distinction between the character voices. To make matters worse, the author wrote characters' thoughts in first person, and without voicing these thoughts differently from the third person prose, it became even more confusing.

I thought the story moved very slowly and lacked the tension necessary to make it suspenseful. It only got really interesting in the last hour of the story. I kept listening, wanting to learn what happened and hoping to find the point to the story, but I never found any.

NOTE: I received a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for this unbiased review.

[Kati · Rating 1 out of 5]

Interesting premise but poorly executed. The dialogue wasn't believable at all. The characters were shallow but could have been really compelling if they were explored more. The story jumps from first person POV and third person POV, and from character to character too often.

[T · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not really a thriller/mystery but more of a "how a mother deals with the abduction of her child" book, in the same vain as "The End of The Ocean", by Jacquelyn Mitchard. Only in this story the bereaved housewife turns into the Jodi Foster character in "Silence of the Lambs" midway through the book. The two completely different personalities of the mother were hard to mesh. I couldn't picture myself, after becoming clinically depressed, then turning around and becoming Megan Kelly sitting across from Hannibal Lecter discussing court room mumbo jumbo

[Chantelle · Rating 1 out of 5]

Awful. The jumping perspectives and going back and forth between first and third person was too much to continue reading.

[Samantha · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really can't say what I expected from this book as I went into it blind so to say. I didn't even read the blurb. The book starts with a woman who find out her nine year old is missing. It started with a promise to be a fast paced mystery. Unfortunately about 25% of the way in it lost it's luster. The pace slowed down horribly and was extremely hard to follow along. I found the three main characters hard to like even the slightest.

[Sharron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written and crafty.

The fact that the author incorporated many true facts from a case that I knew nothing of lends his book a credibility I’ve not come across before. You want to read but you’re afraid and repulsed at the same time. There’s a lot to this book and if you like mystery and suspense, I’d recommend it. Put your big girl/boy pants on first.

[Cindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the beginning of this book and the ending but in-between in my opinion, there was too much detail and it felt like it derailed...it went off course and I was getting bored. I am glad I stayed with it for it was a good story.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Missing Girls: In Truth Is Justice is a psychologically layered thriller that blends fiction, true crime, and alternate history into a tense exploration of loss, obsession, and moral uncertainty. Larry Crane constructs a narrative that is both emotionally unsettling and intellectually rigorous, using the disappearance of a child to probe deeper questions about truth and accountability.

The novel centers on Marcella and Gavin, whose lives fracture after their young daughter, Hannah, is abducted on her way to school. Crane does not rush the aftermath of this trauma; instead, he examines the slow corrosion of grief, helplessness, and marital strain. Their relocation to New Jersey signals an attempt at escape, but the past refuses to stay buried.

Marcella’s growing fixation on the real-life case of Edgar Smith—accused of murdering a young girl—forms the novel’s most compelling thread. As she pursues answers about Smith’s guilt or innocence, the boundaries between historical fact and personal obsession blur. Crane uses this dual narrative structure to question how justice is constructed, who controls truth, and how unresolved trauma distorts perception.

What distinguishes Missing Girls is its refusal to offer easy resolutions. The novel challenges readers to confront uncomfortable ambiguities about crime, marriage, and self deception without moral shortcuts. Crane’s prose is sharp and controlled, sustaining tension while allowing emotional complexity to surface naturally.

Intelligent, unsettling, and emotionally resonant, Missing Girls will appeal to readers who appreciate psychologically driven thrillers that engage with true crime, history, and the darker corners of human motivation.

[Karla Renee Goforth Abreu · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story begins with an abduction of a 4th grade beloved baby of the family. From there is gets convoluted from parental misunderstanding, grief, and the wife's obsession with a murder from 14 years earlier. The dialogue becomes like something out of an old 40s detective move sometimes and it is just laborious to read, at times.an interesting twist is that the a Thor has taken a genuine historical murder and intertwined it with the novel.
There are glaring time-line discrepancies in the story that were annoying. For instance, the latest the date is for the setti g of the novel is 1970-71.at one point the husband and wife stop off at an Applebee's to eat. This restaurant chain did not even exist until 1981.
The older daughter, Celia, goes off to college and tells her mother about sorting her trash from recycle. This was not even a thing on campuses back then.
A kitchen is described as the latest: granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, etc. Seriously in the early 70s it was about ceramic awesome tile, maybe harvest gold appliances, and matching sinks. I remember the new house my parents built during that time period.the author should have paid attention to these details.
The book just wasn't fast paced enough and the dialogue was like a black and white serial. I was not impressed.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

A rare five star review from me!

I rarely give five star reviews, but this one deserves it!
What a brilliant blend of true crime and fiction, with a beautiful ending!
I couldn't stop reading and brought my Kindle with me everywhere - and I do mean everywhere.
I've never heard of the Edgar Smith case, and I'm a true crime nut, so now I have a new book line to pursue. It was a bit before my time and the hype was over before I was born so I'm off to look for books on that subject now. I only found one typo in this entire book, and that's when the name Myrtle was spelled 'Mrytle' accidentally but that's nothing and doesn't affect my rating a bit seeing as how many books have horrible issues with spelling and grammar.
I'd recommend this book to anyone looking for a wonderfully entertaining weekend read...just be sure you have nothing else to do

[Louise Pledge · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've spent too much time, trying to get through this book, along with going back to see what I missed (nothing), etc. I wanted to finish it, and I am 49% of the way through, but I feel like I'm getting nowhere and using too much of my time to do it. I'm drawn to books about missing children but after the first part where Hannah is "lost", it doesn't come back to her and her case. It starts talking about some murder, which I don't even like reading about.

I feel bad for the author, getting all of these bad reviews, but, at least, it's an honest one.

[Janine · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wow. Very hard to follow who was being focused on. The way it's written is almost like the author couldn't decide between using the characters' inner monologue or sticking to a more standard perspective. It jumped back and forth quite a bit. Sometimes in the same paragraph. After 20% through it, not much really *happened* and I started losing interest. I rarely don't finish a book, but I just couldn't do it.

[Dawn Ancelet · Rating 2 out of 5]

Waste of Time!

I really love to read and do a ton of it, however this is definitely not a book I would ever recommend to anyone. It totally started off great but then jumped to a totally different story midway through, not my idea of a great read at all. I totally skipped through about 10 chapters so I could get to where the original story began so I could find out what happened to Hannah!!!

[Rhonda Green · Rating 1 out of 5]

Beginning: interesting but who are these people?
Middle: Boring
End: Huh?

I was trapped in a waiting room otherwise would not have finished. The book just didn't come together well. Splitting the book into two stories, making the characters more human, and resolving the ending differently would help. The characters in this book were not believable.

[Jackie Roche · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Part fiction part fact, it tells the story of a missing girl and a girl who was murdered over 20 years ago.
It's very atmospheric and emotive. The parent's emotions were described so well that I was in tears and could feel their heart-break.
I will be looking out for more books by Larry Crane.

[Johnna Eisenbarth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Review: Missing Girls

I felt the book was a bit confusing past the beginning. It didn't seem to be going in a firm direction. I did not like the language at times and the sex scenes were not needed for the plot. The second part of the book seemed to go faster than the first.

[Glady Christenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Riveting Read

This author has produced a jewel of a story, well written and hard to put down. His characters are believable and his writing makes the reader feel like she/he knows them personally. I’m eager to read more from this author.

[Diane Feldman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok book. Kind of confusing reading, switching from first person accounts to author telling the story. Quite a few typos and lack of quote marks made reading a bit confusing. Hard to tell who was talking some times.

[Mickie Danner · Rating 2 out of 5]

Agree with previous reviews. It was a trail to just finish the book....glad it had a happy ending for @ least one of the girls. Perspective seemed to really bounce around a lot. Bogged down in unnecessary details.

[toni cannaday · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hope and love

I enjoyed the book and recommend it. It did, however get a bit wordy at times and was somewhat contrived. It would definitely fall into the category of a good and fast read.

[Kristina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Two stars is generous. The story lacked a cohesive story line. The writing was choppy and uninteresting. One of the many stories could have been it's own book. The book just didn't flow and the best part of reaching the final page was knowing I was free.

[Shuquitta Alexander-Marn · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a painfully long read. Seems as though there was an entirely different book placed within the confines of the original.

[caroline gater · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this book, very cleverly written. Pure escapism due to the brilliantly descriptive style. Wanted to give it 5 stars but there was an error when I posted them.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Book

I see a kid on a milk carton, briefly thank God my kids were never snatched. Here's the story of one Mom, and what she did.

[Ann Elliott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read

I found this a little slow reading for a mystery. It took a while to read but I did enjoy and glad for a happy ending.

[Emma · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn’t finish this book. It was muddled, confusing and the tense being used changed from paragraph to paragraph. It only gets two stars because I got through 45% before giving up.

[Elizabeth · Rating 1 out of 5]

Just unreadable. Maybe it was good as a play (which apparently was it's origin) but as a novel, was overlong and difficult to read.

[Christina L · Rating 3 out of 5]

glad there was a happy ending!

[Christa Sullivan · Rating 1 out of 5]

I thought this book was poorly written and it had too many perspectives and points of view. The story was going nowhere.