Just Another Missing Person by Gillian McAllister

Title: Just Another Missing Person
Author: Gillian McAllister
Narrators: Joanne Froggatt, Justin Avoth, Kerry Wotton
Publication: Harper, audiobook, 2023
Genre: Suspense
Setting: Portishead, near Bristol, UK

Description: Julia Day is a Detective Chief Inspector who loves her job and is good at it, although her dedication has caused stress with her husband and daughter, Genevieve. When she is called into work from a family dinner because Olivia Johnson has been reported missing, Julia is especially concerned because this is the second young woman who has disappeared in a year – and the first case was never solved.

June 2025 Reading

June was a varied month of reading and I particularly enjoyed The Eights, with its depiction of the early years of women at Oxford, and Death at the White Hart, a mystery by the creator of Broadchurch. I also continued with Val McDermid’s Karen Pirie series and Martin Edwards’ Lake District mysteries.  There were also some disappointments like the much-hyped All the Other Mothers Hate Me by Sarah Harman - it's hard to appreciate a protagonist who leaves her young child alone to go sleuthing and blacks out from partying!

My April 2023 Reads

April was a busy and varied month that I nearly forgot to share (I guess I did forget my March summary!). One book, in particular, stayed in my mind. I did not have a chance to review Wrong Place, Wrong Time, which I listened to while commuting and found somewhat compelling as the heroine finds herself reliving previous days in her life in a desperate attempt to change something that happened. My sister Clare read it about the same time (unplanned, as sometimes happens) but did not like it much. However, this is one that grew on me and I decided it was well done.

My October 2023 Reads

October was a busy month with a business trip to Tulsa (no direct flights, so lots of reading time), some reading for the 1962 Club, and hosting my book group’s discussion of Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow (not everyone finished it). My favorites this month were Just Another Missing Person, The Serpent Pool, Witch of the Glens, and two from D.E. Stevenson, along with several rereads.  Three reads this month were audiobooks.

July 2026 Reading

My favorite books in July were A Wartime Marriage - also published as Escape from Bucharest, a better title because the book is more of an adventure than a historical romance, and The Wednesday Wars by Gary S. Schmidt, a book set during the traumatic year of 1967-68, which manages to be funny yet also very serious. I think it should have won the Newbery Medal as it reaches readers on many different levels but it was a runner-up.

WWW Wednesday – June 18

WWW Wednesday is hosted by Taking on a World of Words.

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading Two New Books

I am listening to Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister (2025), which starts with a bang. It’s Camilla’s first day back at work after her maternity leave (do women usually get nine months in Britain or is her employer very generous?) but, before she’s even had time for coffee,

Spell the Month in Books - July

Spell the Month in Books is hosted by Reviews from the Stacks and usually occurs on a Saturday. This edition is brought to you from Trinity College in Dublin where I am spending the night before returning to Boston tomorrow.

J - The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark (1961). A charismatic teacher at a girl’s school in 1930s Edinburgh has made it her mission to introduce a selected group to arts and culture, as well as topics that would horrify their parents. Eventually, the girls turn against her. My book group read this in January and we found it very disturbing.