Girl Last Seen by Nina Laurin

Author; Nina Laurin
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Date of publication: June 2017

Olivia Shaw has been missing since last Tuesday. She was last seen outside the entrance of her elementary school in Hunts Point wearing a white spring jacket, blue jeans, and pink boots. I force myself to look at the face in the photo, into her slightly smudged features, and I can't bring myself to move. Olivia Shaw could be my mirror image, rewound to thirteen years ago. If you have any knowledge of Olivia Shaw's whereabouts or any relevant information, please contact... I've spent a long time peering into the faces of girls on missing posters, wondering which one replaced me in that basement. But they were never quite the right age, the right look, the right circumstances. Until Olivia Shaw, missing for one week tomorrow. Whoever stole me was never found. But since I was taken, there hasn't been another girl. And now there is.

I was actually pleasantly surprised at how much I ended up liking Girl Last Seen.  The story involves Laine who was kidnapped and escaped 13 years before.  Now, another little girl has gone missing and she bears a resemblance to Laine as a child.  Laine's life is not great, having never really been able to move past all that happened to her. She ends up getting involved in the hunt for the missing child.

I will admit that I almost DNF'd the book because the main character was extremely unlikable as well as unreliable in the beginning.  Sometimes it's hard to connect with a character like Laine.    However, as I got to know Laine, I found myself rooting for her.  Because, really, she never had a chance at a great life.  I didn't always agree with her decisions, but I could understand her motivation behind them. 

I am glad that I stuck with it. The book is definitely dark and not a "cozy" mystery.  There were a few scenes that made me uncomfortable, so readers should know that going into the book.  There were a few twists that surprised me. One is right toward the beginning.  It was definitely that twist that made me want to keep reading the book.  I highly recommend this debut novel.  I look forward to more from this author in the future.