The Missing Girl

The Missing Girl
By Norma Fox Mazer
HarperTeen, 2008. 284 pgs. Young Adult

The man who watches the five Herbert sisters--Beauty, Mim, Stevie, Fancy, and Autumn--could be any normal man...but he's not. He watches them, only watches, trying to decide which one he likes best. The sisters don't know they are being watched; they are busy with the stresses of their own lives, including the fact that their father is out of work and the family is struggling to get by. They have no idea that disaster is about to strike.

This book started a little slowly and I wasn't sure if I would like it. Also, with multiple narrators (Beauty, Fancy, Autumn, and the man who watches them), I didn't initially really get a good feel for any particular character. However, I stuck with it and got hooked. It was an intriguing look at the mind of a criminal and the topic of abuse, without being too gruesome or detailed.

AE