Find out what Mumsnetters thought of Missing, Presumed by Susie Steiner

I received a free copy of this book and read it this week. (WARNING: may contain spoilers!)

I gave it 2 stars out of 5. I felt it was much too long and was left thinking at the end, 'was that it?'. I was expecting an exciting psychological thriller, with a lot of twists, but instead, I got a boring description of life for police officers.

The main story of Edith, who is presumed missing, is dull. In fact, there isn't a story. At some point the author tries to make you think there's a connection with a body found in the river but there is no link to Edith. Although there is a family link, which I find to be too much of a coincidence for that to actually happen in real life.

I didn't like Manon at all; I'm not sure we are meant to like her. So the ending for me was a bit too much.

The one thing though that kept me going with this book was the language and the humour. I loved some of the descriptions; I loved the style of writing, it's just such a shame the storyline didn't match up to this. There were also some really funny parts and some lines which made me smile, she captures the real world perfectly (I absolutely loved the part where she described This Morning with Holly and Phil!).

I'm glad I read this book because I enjoyed it, the style of writing was really enjoyable. But the story, for me, was just dull and not believable.

Thank you for my free copy!

I agree with a number of previous comments - I really thought I'd enjoy this but didn't. It dragged on without seeming getting anywhere and the ending was a bit too neat. I was hoping to pass it onto DH because he loves thrillers but I'm not sure he'll have the patience for this one.

Dh and I both read this book over a few days and really enjoyed it. As I said previously not the type of book I normally read but loved the plot - it was not too gory. Slow in places but liked the fact that they built up a picture of each of the characters so that we got to know them. Twist at end 're death of Taylor dent was good although the ending was a little flat and we don't know the outcome of either of the trials.
many thanks for the book.

I just finished reading Missing, Presumed and I really enjoyed. It's the story of a young woman who suddenly disappears and the police search for her. The story is told by the perspective of all the characters involved, from the police to the victim's family and friends, and it's really engaging and captivating, full of twists as secrets are revealed and truths come out. I like how the narrator focuses on the description of the characters' personality, especially DS Manon Bradshaw, the detective in charge of the case, whose character develops during the book.

I am on page 98 so far (not a quick reader) and really enjoying it! Looking forward to finding out what has happened to Edith!

Although I thought I'd really enjoy this, unfortunately I found it very dull and struggled to finish it. It went on and on without really getting anywhere and the ending was totally unbelievable. I didn't really warm to any characters although their stories at times were more interesting than the main plot. Could've been written in 100 pages, unfortunately.
Disappointing.

Wow! Not usually my choice of a read but the book arrived and I knew a review was expected. What can I say? I LOVED it. I became emotionally involved with the characters and it's one of those books when you are desperate to finish but also cannot bear to because the end means no more interaction. I give it top thumbs up. It's exciting, sometimes funny, and quite simply adorable. Buy it, read it and share it. it's very good.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I found the characters interesting and enjoyed getting to know them, all of them seemed real to me. I also was guilty of 'just one more chapter' then ending up sitting up late reading. I like the story being written from each characters perspective, I felt this helped me to get to know the characters and made them more real. However I was disappointed with the ending, it just felt too cosy, it's not that I didn't want a happy ending I just would have preferred it to be a bit more 'to the wire'. I also do not understand why '72 hours' was splashed across the cover as it really is not that important to the story. All in all a good read.

Thank you for my free book! My DP managed to read it before me and we both enjoyed it. I liked the characters and I thought that the author made some good observations that I could relate to. Reminded me a bit of the Kate Atkinson detective series starting with Case Histories. I would be interested in reading other books by this author.

Just finished this book with my post-school-run cup of coffee. I have to say I did really enjoy this even though it was quite a chaotic read, with the story unfurling from many different character angles. Found it quite fascinating with not so easy to predict twists & turns. Quality writing with a real element of wit to it. Had me gripped and I can see this as a drama/screenplay perhaps. 9/10 if I was scoring it. Thanks Mumsnet (& publisher) for the opportunity to read & review.

I loved it, thank you Mumsnet! I couldn't put it down and would have devoured it in one day if my pesky kids didn't need feeding etc!! I loved that you developed a view on a character and then had it turned around. It showed that you can't possibly know all the facts about a person and that their image isn't always the real them. I liked the character of the mum best. The dressing down she gave Edith at the end 'And if your love ends the moment you find out your parents are people, then my God, there really is no hope for you.' struck home for me and made me realise I am guilty of this somewhat so will be calling my mum. I will seek out the author's other book now.

I started off enjoying this book but then realised I was getting bored the more I read. It's taken me longer to read than it normally would because I found myself not really caring about the characters. Because of this, I wasn't eager to pick the book up.
I found the ending boring and was pleased when I turned the last page.

An enjoyable, page-turner of a book. I really couldn't put it down. It only took me two days to read it. There are quite a few twists and turns in it, some more believable than others. The characters are interesting. I thought the chapters told from the perspectives of Davy and Manon (with the exception of the ending) were on the whole more convincing than those of Miriam, Helena and Edith. On the whole a satisfying read. I hope this will be the first in a new series.

I took a little while to get into this book as I found to start with there were a lot of police terms abbreviated, this for me did make me stop and have to think what does that mean? Also maybe my attention span is not what it used to be but we were introduced to a lot of new characters in one fell swoop. I am also not a fan of stories told from different people's perspective , it seems to stop the flow.
But saying all that I did enjoy the book, the unfolding of the tale, I did jump to the wrong conclusions and was nicely surprised by the outcome of the investigation.
The characters were believable most of the time, although a little too obsessed with sex during important life and death situations, when they should have been concentrating on serious police business.
The tale was quite uplifting at the end with happy endings for all. Well almost all!

Loved this book! I'm a fan of crime novels anyway, and this didn't disappoint. A woman goes missing in Cambridgeshire, and the police are on the hunt to find her. The story is told from the point of view mainly of one of the female police officers and the girl's mother. The characters are beautifully described, Manon, the police sergeant, is a great character, flawed, vulnerable but tenacious. The police investigation all seemed very realistic. I found myself reading 'just one more chapter', desperate to find out what happens. I'd definitely recommend it

Thank you for my copy. I've really enjoyed reading the book. It has been a while since I've read a thriller - put off by too many gratuitous details about the crimes literally giving me nightmares. This book was different though. I agree the 72 hours in the subtitle is a bit confusing but the book really does describe well the chaos of a missing person / suspected murder case. I liked the range of characters within the book and how these were interlinked. I related to the main character and the pressures placed on a woman in a predominantly male profession. Also the pressures of nearing 40, wanting a family but not meeting a partner or wanting to settle. What could have been a cliched character did not appear to be and I liked the balance of the police case plot against the characterisation of Manon.

This book arrived & I thought great this is just my cup of tea. I am only a small way in at the moment but it is gripping me so it won't take me too long to read it through. I will try to post again! Thanks

I enjoyed this book, a well-written page-turner with some well thought-out characters you really get to know. That said, I found it frustrating that not much happened on the actual missing mystery for most of the book and indeed the 72 hours mentioned on the cover came and went without relevance.

Finished the book. I really enjoyed it and wouldnt hesitate to buy another one if Susie Steiner wrote another with the same characters. It was good getting to know the background of the main characters, by the end of the book I knew all about their lives outside of the job they did. I didnt guess how thw book was ging to end and so it left me inrtigued right to the end. Well done Susie lets have some more investigations by DS Bradshaw, or DI as she is by the end!!

Ok - finished it now! I quite liked this book, and liked the details thrown in throughout.

Unfortunately, though, I didn't really like the main character - too pathetic and annoying for my liking. And whilst every good story needs characters who experience changes, I felt this went a bit too far as every single character had some major change by the time the book ended. I did work out before the end who the main instigators were, although not how it had panned out, and felt the ending was a bit too cosy and rounded with no loose ends.

That said, it was quite fun to read and I felt it did give some insight into the frustratingly slow pace of a major investigation, and the challenges the police have to deal with when the press and people of influence get involved.

I received my book thank you and finished it last night.
I have to say I didn't enjoy it.I found the flitting from character to character too brief, so you didn't get to know them. I thought it would be a book about someone who was missing, whereas the focus was more on the other players, yes you did get snippets about Edith but not much. The book seemed to be more about the lives of the others rather than the detective work. The end was a surprise but a bit of a damp squib. All in all I was really disappointed with the story, my apologies to Susie Steiner, who I appreciate spent a lot of time on this book. However, I guess that is the point of reviews, you can't please everyone all of the time.

I have received a copy of the book! Thanks Mumsnet. Started reading and so far it's grabbed my attention! Review to follow!

Really getting into this book after receiving my copy im only on the third chapter its a little slow paced but manon is a likeable character and hoping the storlyline pace will soon pick up soon , I like suspense in a crime novel

I have recently finished reading this book and thoroughly enjoyed it. Once I picked up the book I could not put it down! Brilliantly written and great story. However - I wasn't that impressed with the ending. I'm definitely going to check out more of Susie Steiners books!

I could not put this book down, it is a real page turner. What I also like is there is constant surprises that you weren't expecting. Great read right to the end with the plot still going but not dragged out like some other books I have read. I defiantly was not expecting the end to unravel like it did. Though one thing I would say is really would someone in the police service have a close relationship with the boy, makes you question the professionality but then again it is fiction the rules can be broken! Definitely recommend it though as it is something that might not have thought about trying out so it is good to try something new and refreshing.