Reviews

The Missing American by Kwei Quartey

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yvo_about_books's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

2.75

Finished reading: May 4th 2024

"That Ghanaian police officers were constantly looking for a handout from the citizenry wasn't even a secret anymore."

I love a good dose of armchair travel when I'm reading, so it's easy to understand why this thriller series set in Ghana caught my attention. I've been meaning to read The Missing American for a while, and I even added it to my 2024 priorities list to make sure I did... And when I was craving a crime thriller the other day, I decided to give in and finally travel to Ghana to meet main character Emma. I fully expected to love my time with this story, but unfortunately I ended up with mixed thoughts instead. Don't get me wrong, I loved both the premise and the Ghanaian setting. The descriptions of the different locations really made the country come alive for me, and it was without doubt one of the highlights of this book for me. It was interesting to learn more about Ghana as well as dive into some of the issues people have to face while living there... The whole situation with the sakawa scams, the priest and corruption in general was fascinating. BUT. And here is where it mainly went wrong for me: there was SO much going on and there were SO many POVs and storylines, and as a result the story felt both overcrowded and the plot lacked cohesion. The plot switches constantly to yet another POV, and there are way too many storylines with some of them appearing completely random. These constant switches ment that I never really got a feel for the many characters in play, and they mostly felt like cardboard copies to me. Emma is supposed to be the star of the show as the series is named after her, but I felt like we hardly spent time with her and I never got to know her as a result. The little I did see was promising, but her character seemed completely buried under all the other storylines/POVs. I also struggled with the writing and pace, which sometimes felt off for me. That said, the premise was intriguing, as was the murder investigation itself and how everything was woven together in the end. It just took a LONG time and lots of sidetracks to finally get to that point, which was a shame. I might still read the sequel for the Ghanaian setting alone though, which made The Missing American worth the read.

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trivial_reads's review against another edition

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3.0

"The Missing American" is a book by Kwei Quartey that tells the story of Emma Djan, a smart and organized policewoman in Accra, Ghana. Emma's father was also a policeman, but she left the force after refusing her superior's advances. Luckily, she meets a private investigator who appreciates her abilities.

The book explores internet scams, particularly Sakawa scams, which require sacrifices to a fetish priest for success. Emma gets involved in disturbing and corrupt situations but handles them well. It's refreshing to have a competent PI who isn't a mess.

What I appreciated most about this book is that it provides an insight into powerful and different cultures. "The Missing American is a strong start to his new series, and I look forward to continuing it.

almond_cheese's review

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dark mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

hollowistheworld's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.25

A solid enough mystery but the pacing was borked. Most mystery novels are primarily from one perspective - the detective. There's a reason for that. All the perspectives in this book muddied the plot, slowed the pace, and generally made me wish they'd get on with it, as it led to us constantly having to rehash things for the next character. I think the whole thing could have been written to be entirely from Emma's perspective and it would have streamlined the whole thing marvelously. I shouldn't be more than halfway through a book and still wondering what the hell the opening scene has to do with anything. The autism stuff too - I shouldn't be halfway through and going 'why are we spending so much time talking about this? What does this have to do with the plot?' Even at the end I was unconvinced so much of that was necessary. Mysteries, by virtue of their genre, typically need to be kept tight, and this was definitely not tight. It was a sizable bundle of plot ideas and glimpses of Ghana issues, but they connected poorly, when they connected at all. I could also write a sizable article about all the ways this book is an example of how men seem to be incapable of writing believable female characters. Men may stop paying attention to the creep staring at them at a party, but a woman who's recently escaped sexual assault? She's watching him like a hawk. Not quite a bad book - I wasn't longing for the end like with some I've read - but I wouldn't call it good either.

Content Warnings

candacesiegle_greedyreader's review against another edition

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4.0

Emma Djan is a neat, smart, thoughtful policewoman, trying to maintain her focus and morals in the midst of the swirling chaos that is Accra, Ghana. Her father was a policeman, but she's off the force once she refuses her superior's advances. Fortunately, she is recommended to a private investigator who appreciates her initiative and imagination.

Her first case is to find what happened to an American named Gordon Tilson, who came to Ghana to meet a woman he met online. Of course, there is no such person. Even Gordon, the widower of a Ghanaian woman and who has lived in Ghana, falls for a scam headed by a fetish priest and his team of young men.

Kwei Quartey takes us into the world internet scams, especially sakawa scams which require sacrifices to a fetish priest to guarantee success. Emma ends up in the middle of some pretty gruesome stuff, and heaps of corruption, all of which she handles neatly and creatively. What a treat to have a PI who's not a mess.

Quartey's Ghanian novels are a glimpse into a very different world with a culture that is mysterious and powerful. "The Missing American" is a bold start to his new series.

Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for approving me to read and review.

Candace Siegle, Greedy Reader

wanderlustsleeping's review against another edition

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Repetitive, and slow. Just couldn't keep my interest.

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not_another_ana's review against another edition

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Incredibly boring. And then I saw it was 421 pages long and decided I couldn't put myself through all that. Just in the initial 20% there were 7 or so POVs and we barely saw the supposed protagonist. I did like the way Ghana was described and the references to the country and its culture but that was it.

Content Warnings