Missing, Presumed

March 21, 2016
In this richly plotted police procedural from British author Steiner (Homecoming), Edith Hind, a 24-year-old Cambridge graduate student, goes missing, leaving behind only a smear of blood and signs of a struggle at the flat she shares with her boyfriend. The pressure is on Det. Sgt. Manon Bradshaw, who excels at her job but has suffered a string of dreary Internet dates, and the rest of the Cambridgeshire Major Incident Team, since Edith’s father is Sir Ian Hind, physician to the royal family. Steiner slips smoothly among narrators, shifting from Manon’s ever-widening investigation to characters who are directly affected by Edith’s disappearance. As leads dry up and days missing increase, every scrap of case information is fodder for the press, who pounce on the more salacious aspects of Edith’s personal life, even as Manon and the team discover that the answers might be linked to something much more serious. A vein of dark humor pulses beneath this compelling whodunit with an appealing, complicated heroine at its center. Agent: Eleanor Jackson, Dunow, Carlson & Lerner.

Starred review from April 15, 2016
A new and complex police heroine tries to solve a high-profile missing persons case while seeking domestic fulfillment in Cambridge. Thirty-nine and single, DS Manon Bradshaw is feeling the burn of loneliness. As she pursues dead-end date after dead-end date, her personal life seems a complete disaster, but her professional interest and energy are piqued when the beautiful graduate-student daughter of a famous physician goes missing, apparently the victim of foul play. As the investigation into free-spirited Edith Hind's disappearance uncovers no strong leads, Manon finds herself drawn to two unconventional males: one, a possible romantic partner, plays a tangential role in the investigation when he finds a body; the other, a young boy with a tragic home life, mourns the death of his brother, who also might have ties to Edith or her family. As Manon draws nearer to the truth about Edith, aided by her idealistic partner, Davy, and their team of homicide detectives, she also has to face the fact that she might not be destined to follow the traditional domestic model. Though it follows all the typical twists and turns of a modern police procedural, this novel stands out from the pack in two significant ways: first of all, in the solution, which reflects a sophisticated commentary on today's news stories about how prejudices about race and privilege play out in our justice system; and second, in the wounded, compassionate, human character of Manon. Her struggles to define love and family at a time when both are open to interpretation make for a highly charismatic and engaging story. Hopefully, this is just the first adventure of many Steiner (Homecoming, 2013) will write for DS Bradshaw and her team.

COPYRIGHT(2016) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

May 1, 2016
Manon Bradshaw is a skilled and well-respected member of the Cambridgeshire police force, but she still would like to find the right man. This takes her from one unfortunate Internet date to another. Her mother chose the name Manon for her because it is all held down, those n's' like tent pegs in the ground. Those pegs anchor her through constant personal disappointments and, professionally, in dealing with a missing-person case involving Edith Hind, a graduate student at Cambridge University. Despite the initial description of a straight-arrow Edith, secrets begin to emerge about her tangled love life and odd associations. The collateral damage is enormous, and no one, not even Manon, escapes the consequences. This combination of police procedural and an unfolding family drama that continuously twists and turns will work well for fans of Kate Atkinson and Tana French.The author promises more about Manon at full chaotic tilt, so we can hope to find out whether the path she ultimately chooses for herself is the right one.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)