A review by reish3ll
How to Find a Missing Girl by Victoria Wlosok

adventurous emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

Review: How to Find a Missing Girl by Victoria Wlosok

★☆☆☆☆


Victoria Wlosok’s How to Find a Missing Girl kicks off with serious Good Girl’s Guide to Murder vibes—but doesn’t quite deliver the same level of thrill or clever plotting. While the premise had potential, especially with its podcast/detective format, the execution felt more like a Wattpad fanfic than a gripping YA mystery.


From the get-go, the book leans heavily into alternative and quirky character tropes. Nearly every character seems written to tick a “Gen Z” box—think Reddit references, Instagram drama, cat headphones, and more. While representation is important, the portrayal of the LGBTQ+ characters felt more like a forced checklist than authentic storytelling. Being an ally with close family members identifying as lgbtq+, I support queer rep—but in this case, sexuality was tied too closely to personality and ability, which felt reductive and unrealistic.


The main character, Iris, is a bit of a “WikiHow detective”—her investigative skills lack real substance and feel more like plot devices than earned development. There’s also more high school gossip, doxing, and Snapchat drama than actual sleuthing, which quickly diluted the tension and thriller aspects the story promised. And seriously—why does Lea have six fingers? It felt random and unnecessary.


Despite the shortcomings, there were a few bright spots: the setting had moments of charm (a shoutout to New Zealand, of all places, as a holiday destination), and the ex-best-friend-to-lovers subplot was one of the stronger emotional threads in the book. The final chapters do pick up, revealing a more layered backstory involving two teachers caught up in crime—murder, drugs, cover-ups—the works. It finally brought the stakes the blurb teased, though it felt a bit too late.


The ending was unexpectedly sweet. Iris gets recognition from both her aunt and the lead detective, giving her a sense of closure and validation. All loose ends were tied up neatly, and while that brought some satisfaction, it didn’t redeem the rest of the novel for me.


I admire that this was Wlosok’s debut novel, written at a young age. That’s no small feat, and the effort is evident in the emotional beats and the strong focus on themes like trust, identity, and resilience. It just wasn’t the right book for me. If you’re into character-driven queer YA fiction that leans more into social dynamics than true crime-solving, this might be your cup of tea.


But for me, it was a struggle to get through—and I’m giving it 1 star.


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