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mollfie's review
4.0
I haven’t read Elizabeth is Missing so I came into this without any prior impression or knowledge of Healey’s writing, which is great. Clear, descriptive when necessary and truthful. It may be a little grim at times but this is a story about a self-harming, suicidal fifteen year old girl who goes missing and won’t/can’t tell anyone what happened. It didn’t bother me but I can see why it might bother others so heads up, the book talks a lot about self-harm and suicide.
The prevailing feeling throughout the book is one of dread and tension. This is about the aftermath, when someone who has been missing is found. Usually the family would be happy and relieved but not when Lana won’t/can’t tell anyone the hows, whys and wheres of the situation. So, her mother ends up trying to piece it together herself.
I found the story itself intriguing, if a little drawn out. Jen gets caught in a loop of suspicion and paranoia to the point that I think she would benefit from a therapist herself. The situation is clearly driving her quite literally mad. A lot of time it spent on Jen’s day to day obsession with Lana and the whole ordeal, it felt slow in the middle with not much development.
At times it felt as if Jen was an inattentive person in general and not terribly likeable. She never seems to really listen, she doesn’t pay attention to details, she’s insecure about herself and her job, and she’s friends with people not so much because she likes them but because she likes feeling superior to them. The woman has issues all of her own and I would have liked to see that addressed. Jen doesn’t seem to be actively doing much beyond worrying obsessively, stalking her daughter on social media and reading books at the library. She’s also clearly struggling and no one else around her seems terribly concerned for her? If my mum, friend or partner was acting as she is I’d want them to have some help and support because she is obviously unable to cope with not just her depressed and suicidal daughter, but the disappearance too, and her own personal issues.
She avoids conflict and her husband just seems to bob along as usual without much concern. Why isn’t he worrying, waking up at night, googling symptoms and talking to his mum about his daughter? Why is he so okay with just going to work as usual and falling asleep reading a book? His wife is clearly struggling and I found it frustrating that he doesn’t seem overly bothered until she cries in front of him. He’s so steady he could be a rock, and that’s what he is to her but I’d appreciate seeing more fathers shown a being actively involved with their children and partners beyond the fun/chill guy role. Their other daughter and grandmothers seem pretty accepting about everything too. Lana came back and they don’t seem interested in what happened to her or why. Jen is alone in her anxiety and it is consuming her. No one seems to recognise that she’s drowning and I found that very frustrating and a little heartbreaking. In the end, I’ll never know if she gets the support she needs.
This makes it sound like I didn’t enjoy the book but I did. I loved it and read it very quickly because it’s so well written and the characters are interesting. They’re also annoying and flawed, as they should be. I just think there was room for more conflict and that some things could have been expanded upon to round their relationships and the story out. I mostly just wanted someone to help Jen beyond a pat on the hand or a hug.
The prevailing feeling throughout the book is one of dread and tension. This is about the aftermath, when someone who has been missing is found. Usually the family would be happy and relieved but not when Lana won’t/can’t tell anyone the hows, whys and wheres of the situation. So, her mother ends up trying to piece it together herself.
I found the story itself intriguing, if a little drawn out. Jen gets caught in a loop of suspicion and paranoia to the point that I think she would benefit from a therapist herself. The situation is clearly driving her quite literally mad. A lot of time it spent on Jen’s day to day obsession with Lana and the whole ordeal, it felt slow in the middle with not much development.
At times it felt as if Jen was an inattentive person in general and not terribly likeable. She never seems to really listen, she doesn’t pay attention to details, she’s insecure about herself and her job, and she’s friends with people not so much because she likes them but because she likes feeling superior to them. The woman has issues all of her own and I would have liked to see that addressed. Jen doesn’t seem to be actively doing much beyond worrying obsessively, stalking her daughter on social media and reading books at the library. She’s also clearly struggling and no one else around her seems terribly concerned for her? If my mum, friend or partner was acting as she is I’d want them to have some help and support because she is obviously unable to cope with not just her depressed and suicidal daughter, but the disappearance too, and her own personal issues.
She avoids conflict and her husband just seems to bob along as usual without much concern. Why isn’t he worrying, waking up at night, googling symptoms and talking to his mum about his daughter? Why is he so okay with just going to work as usual and falling asleep reading a book? His wife is clearly struggling and I found it frustrating that he doesn’t seem overly bothered until she cries in front of him. He’s so steady he could be a rock, and that’s what he is to her but I’d appreciate seeing more fathers shown a being actively involved with their children and partners beyond the fun/chill guy role. Their other daughter and grandmothers seem pretty accepting about everything too. Lana came back and they don’t seem interested in what happened to her or why. Jen is alone in her anxiety and it is consuming her. No one seems to recognise that she’s drowning and I found that very frustrating and a little heartbreaking. In the end, I’ll never know if she gets the support she needs.
This makes it sound like I didn’t enjoy the book but I did. I loved it and read it very quickly because it’s so well written and the characters are interesting. They’re also annoying and flawed, as they should be. I just think there was room for more conflict and that some things could have been expanded upon to round their relationships and the story out. I mostly just wanted someone to help Jen beyond a pat on the hand or a hug.
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