A new novel set in the Scottish Highlands, featuring a decades-old mystery with contemporary consequences? Yes, please–especially since I’ve been waiting to see what this author would do next. About a year ago, I read Lexie Elliott’s debut, The French Girl, and loved it. You can check out my review here.

Alas, it’s awfully tough when expectations are high. Despite the potential of its eerie premise, The Missing Years in my estimation didn’t measure up to The French Girl. Too slow to lift off, for one thing, and it didn’t possess the same taut, I’ve-got-to-know-what-happens-next quality that made the first book such a page turner. Neither did I care for the direction the author chose for some of the characters. And the mystery itself just didn’t grab me. And while I welcome a bit of creepiness in such a book, an unexpected ick factor did nothing to entice me.

With this novel, I had the sense that Elliott wasn’t able to flesh out the plot or characters with the same nuance that I so appreciated in her debut. Indeed, my suspicion was confirmed when I read her acknowledgements at the close of the book, where she herself admits that writing a second novel under deadline does not afford the same luxury for attention to detail as a first novel written without a publisher. This unfortunate reality is an undeniable downside to the publishing industry. Of course, from a bottom-line perspective, we all understand why publishers demand tight deadlines from their authors, but I sure wish there was another way. With a little more time, I’m sure talented writers like this one would be able to put out consistently top-notch material.

Thanks to Berkley Books for providing me this book free of charge. All opinions are mine.

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From the back cover:

An eerie, old Scottish manor in the middle of nowhere that’s now hers.

Ailsa Calder has inherited half of a house. The other half belongs to a man who disappeared without a trace twenty-seven years ago–her father.

Leaving London behind to settle the inheritance from her mother’s estate, Ailsa returns to her childhood home, nestled amongst the craggy peaks of the Scottish Highlands, joined by the half-sister who’s almost a stranger to her. 

Ailsa can’t escape the claustrophobic feeling that the house itself is watching her– as if her past hungers to consume her. She also can’t ignore how the neighborhood animals refuse to set one foot within the gates of the garden. 

When the first nighttime intruder shows up, Ailsa fears that the manor’s careless rugged beauty could cost her everything.

Genre: Fiction | Contemporary | Suspense | Women’s Fiction

Publication date: April 2019

Buy it here.

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About the author:

Lexie Elliott grew up in Scotland, at the foot of the Highlands. She graduated from Oxford University, where she obtained a doctorate in theoretical physics. A keen sportswoman, she works in fund management in London, where she lives with her husband and two sons. The rest of her time is spent writing, or thinking about writing, and juggling family life and sport.

Connect with the author: Website | Instagram

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